AustLit

'The Wangaaypuwan dialect of Ngiyampaa is the language of the Pilaarrkiyalu, Nhiilyikiyalu and Karulkiyalu people that come from the dry, riverless country of Western NSW. Some people still live in and around the ngurrampaa ‘homelands’ but many now live in larger towns and cities around NSW and other states and territories.

'Ngiyampaa Wordworld: Thipingku Yuwi, Maka Ngiya; Names of Birds and Other Words includes stories, example Sentences and songs. The second half of the dictionary is dedicated to bird names (and other words). The dictionary includes an English to Ngiyampaa finder list, which is also useful for looking up words in Ngiyampaa.

'Ngiyampaa Wordworld is part of the AIATSIS Indigenous Language Preservation: Dictionaries Project.' (Publication summary)

'Liza Kennedy belonged to the generation of Ngiyampaa people who were the last to be able to 'camp about' in their own country, their ngurrampaa or 'campworld' between Cobar and Ivanhoe in central western Ne w South Wales.' (Introduction)

'In November 1991 Bill Reid heard that there was to be a meeting at Brewarrina Aboriginal Cultural Museum to explore ways for local people, especially children in school, to learn back some of their language heritage, making use of the archival material at AIATSIS. He made sure that he got a lift across from Bourke, from Peter Cooper, then working there for Radio 2WEB. At the museum Bill kept quietly singing a little tune beside me, so infectiously that I was soon singing too, and couldn't wait to ask him what it was. 'That's the curlew's love song!' Then he said with a gleam in his eye, I know the dance for it too'. Terry offered his skills with the video camera, and in next to no time they had arranged to go to a suitable riverbank spot after returning to Bourke, where Bill sang and danced for Peter and for posterity.'  (Introduction)

'Dark, viscous honey, hot stuff— so go some of the words sung in Anbarra country in Arnhem Land to celebrate sugar bag, as translated into English by Margaret Clunies Ross (P 81).

'The Central Australian song focussed on in the book's title also has honey as a theme. Verse 60 in Stephen Wild's organisation of the song words runs, in his translation: He asked for honey Not enough honey (p 67) Stephen Wild introduces this verse with the comment, The sexual symbolism of honey has its parallel also in Western thought' (p 66). Indeed—and, it might prove safe to add, wherever there is honey. Imagery is part of the celebration of the power of language in song the world over. Since it is love that makes the world go round, as English speakers are used to putting it, and since singing offers people a slippery grip on the process, many of the same sexually symbolic associations crop up in song again and again, here, there and everywhere.' (Introduction)