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Biri dialect

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Biri
Native toAustralia
RegionQueensland
EthnicityBirri Gubba
Extinctlate 20th century[1]
Revivalexist
Language codes
ISO 639-3bzr
Glottologbiri1256
AIATSIS[2]E56
ELPBiri

Biri, also known as Biria, Birri Gubba, Birigaba, Perembba and other variants, is a dialect of the Australian Aboriginal language of the same name formerly spoken along the Bowen River in the state of Queensland, by the Birri Gubba people.[3]

Phonology

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A basic phonetic sketch of Biri is given below. A full phonological analysis cannot be conducted due to the data.

Consonants

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Bilabial Alveolar Dental Palatal Velar
Stop b d ɟ ɡ
Nasal m n ɲ ŋ
Lateral l
Rhotic r rr ɻ r
Semivowel w j
  • // is realized as [ð] intervocalically and word-initially before /a/ and /i/.
  • /g/ becomes /w/ before and after /u/.
  • /n/ and /l/ are realized somewhat retroflex before and after /u/.[1]

Vowels

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Vowels are noted as /a, i, u/. Vowels are raised and fronted before palatals and backed before /w/.

Long /aː/ occurs in only two words, being waːga 'work', an English loan, and gaːgini 'Reg Dodd', a personal name.[1]

References

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  1. 1 2 3 Terrill, Angela (1998). Biri.
  2. E56 Biri at the Australian Indigenous Languages Database, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
  3. Breen, Gavan (January 2009). "The Biri Dialects and their Neighbours". Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia. 133 (2): 219–256. doi:10.1080/03721426.2009.10887121. ISSN 0372-1426.