Kaurna in Tasmania: A case o f mistaken identity
Rob Amery
Until now, a list of som e eighty w ords has been considered to be part of the corpus of
m aterial on the languages of Tasm ania. Plomley, the m ost com prehensive source on the
docum entation of the languages of T asm ania,1 attributes these K aurna w ords, com piled
by Charles Robinson, the son of George A ugustus Robinson, to the Ben Lomond area of
north-east T asm ania.2
In this paper I will dem onstrate that these eighty w ords are irrefutably Kaurna, the
language of A delaide and the A delaide Plains of South Australia. Further, I will put
forw ard a probable explanation as to how these w ords came to be included w ithin the
Robinson papers. F urther I will identify the Kaurna w om an w ho w as the probable
source.
Kaurna words first noticed within Tasmanian materials
Early in 1993, I first noticed the K aurna w ord kauwe 'w ater' w ritten as cow.ive w hen
flicking through Plom ley's 1976 A Word-list of the Tasmanian Aboriginal Languages. O ver
several decades of painstaking work, Plom ley has collated alm ost all of the w ords ever
recorded on the languages of Tasm ania. Plomley compiled his w ordlist from the records
of at least thirty different observers, gathering together all the w ords from the various
sources and listing them u nder an English headw ord. So under the w ord for 'w ater' for
instance, Plom ley lists w ords recorded by these different observers and has taken care to
specify the source, location and inform ant, w here such inform ation is available.
Cow.iue seem ed out of place am ongst the other w ords recorded for w ater. It w as shorter
than m ost of the other Tasm anian w ords w hich are often polysyllabic. Variants of other
term s for w ater w ere given by a n um ber of observers, w hereas cow.we stood out on its
own. Interestingly, other w ords lar.cun.er and la.un.er for w ater w hich are cognate w ith
other Tasm anian languages are provided also for the Ben Lomond language. No other
Tasm anian w ords for w ater were rem otely sim ilar to cow.we. I didn't think much of it at
the time. At that stage I suspected that it m ight have been a K aurna w ord that
1Plomley 1976.
' This list of Kaurna words is insignificant in number relative to the total corpus of
Tasmanian materials. Plomley (1976) lists some 1400 English head words. Under each of
these head w ords are numerous alternative terms and minor variations of spelling as
recorded by the different observers of the various Tasmanian languages.
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
F igure 1
25
K a u rn a w o r d l i s t fro m P lo m le y (1976:459-61)
water
cow.we
bl : gar : water
cow. we
moka
ch : bm : fresh water
lay.gen.ner
moke
pd : gar : water
n / jb : gar : water
lay.gen.ner
möke
mh : cu : water, water vessel
pr : gar : water
lay.kun.ner
mocha
— : jj : fresh water
bl : er : water
lar.cun.er
w : bm : fresh water
mocha
bl : er : water
la.un.er
— : 1h: water (fresh)
moga
w : jj : fresh water
legana
mogo
e : jj : fresh water
legana
par.nick.er
e : bmm : fresh water
legana
wc : gar : water
par.nick.er
— : bmm : fresh water
ligana
cg : gar : water
par.nik.er
wc : gar : water
par.nic.ker (x)
— : ar : water
lagena
ri : gar : water
par.nic.er
— : 1h: water (fresh)
lugana
ri : gar : water
parn.nic.er
dl : gm : eau
boue lakade
/ ? tu : gar : water
parn.nic.er
liena
roti
oyb : mj : freshwater
liena
se : dr : eau
roti
b : rbg : water
liena
se : drm : eau
oyb : mj : fresh water
roti
liena eleebana
se : drm : eau douce
roti
oyb : mj : fresh water
lin’ eleebana
roty
se : drm : eau
oyb : bd : water
ly.en.na
e / sl : gar : water
lye.an.ner
(a) Running water
b — s : mj : fresh water
lienire
kukkamena
b : st : water
line.ner
oyb : mj : trickle
kukkamena meena
b : st : water
li (abbreviation)
lia tarightea
br / lr : er : water
li.ner
oyb : mj : flow
lia tarightea
— : jj : freshwater
lini
b — s : mj : flow
lia teruttena
ps : er : fresh water
li.nur.rer
truggara
b — s : mj : trickle
ps : er : water
li
n / pb : gar : water
ly.iare
ly rul.ly
n / pb : gar : water
b : gar : water running fast
ly rul.ly
iy
/ lj : gar : water
iy
mo.wine.dur.um
se : pl : water (fresh)
lia
wc : gar : water make a noise
mo.wine.dur.um
w — nw : mj : fresh water
lia winne
(b) Warm water
b — s : mj : fresh water
liawenee
b — s : mj : cold water
liawenee
lay.gun.ner
w — nw : mj : fresh water
lileah
lay.gun.ner tow.wer.er.tune.ner
cp : gar : water boil, wate
oyb : mj : drop of water
liemkaneack
lialughrana
oyb
:
mj
:
cold
water
lietinna
b — s : mj : warm water
lialughrana
oyb : bd : water
lee.na
liena
b : rb : water
leena
liena peoonya
oyb : mj : warm water
e : bm : water
leni
liena peoonyack
oyb : mj : warm water
e : jj : fresh water
lerui
w — nw : mj : fresh water
lie nonghate
(c) Wash (to)
me.nude.de.ker
legumer
wp : gar : water
me.nude.de.ker
leg’ürner
— : sn : wash
war.ran.le.nig.ger.er
b : st : wash
mo.ken.er
/? mn : gar : water
mo.ken.er
— : sn : water
mökenür
— : sn : bring the water
mökenür wöorünär
e
—
sp
—
oyb
: st : water
mü.kin.ner
oyb
: sc : water
mookaria
b — s : mj : drop of water
mikany
moker
wc : gar : water
moker (x)
wc : gar : water
mo.ker
n : jj : fresh water
moka
26
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
had been introduced to Tasmania by Tasmanian women or sealers who had associated
with Kaurna women on Kangaroo Island.
During the course of 1994, again I had cause to work from Plomley. I noticed that a
number of other words collated by Plomley were similar in form and meaning to
Kaurna words. Words like you.co 'whaleboat', ioal.le 'house', me.you 'man' and tin.to 'sun'
quickly came to my attention. None of these words bore any relationship to other
Tasmanian words either. So I began to make a more methodical search, page by page. I
soon realised that all the Kaurna words were said to come from the same region, Ben
Lomond, in north eastern Tasmania, with the recording attributed to either Charles
Robinson or George Augustus Robinson. I found that 1 was often aale to predict which
word within a given list was a Kaurna word, irrespective of whether I w as familiar with
that particular Kaurna word or not.
Some of these words stood out from the corpus of Tasmanian words in other
respects too. A num ber began with the letter i, yet Tasmanian words beginning with i
are exceedingly rare. They are as follows:
Robinson's Kaurna
i. tho
i. tho
i.char.ne
i.char.le
i. cllie
i.chu.ung.er
i.chi.yuck.er.nu
i.thoe.ar.mi.ther
i. thoe. moker.un.der. re
Kaurna, according to
Teichelmann & Schürmann (1840)3
'give'
ngaityo
ngaityo
'me'
'tired'
ngaityanna
feeble; tired'
'father'
ngaityerli
'mother'
ngaityaii
'brother'
ngaityo yunga
'sister'
ngaityo yakkana
'my wife'
ngaityo ngammaitya
ngaityo mukandari
'forget'
•
•
»4
mine
'mine'
'weak; faint;
'my father'
'my mother'
'my brother'
'my sister'
'my woman'
'[1] forgot mine’
The term given for 'forget' is absolutely convincing because it consists of several
meaningful parts in Kaurna. The relationship terms too are complex and involve the
word ngaityo 'my' used in combination with another word. For instance, Robinson's
i.char.le 'father' is equivalent to the Kaurna word ngaityerli which is glossed by
Teichelmann & Schürmann (1840) as 'my father; contraction of ngaityo yerli [ngaityo 'my'
yerli 'father']'. Further, nin.co.ar.mi.ther your wife1 = ninko ngammaitya 'your woman'
contrasts with i.thoe.ar.mi.ther = ngaityo ngammaitya 'my woman' above, thus adding
further weight to the argument.
' Teichelmann & Schürmann (1840), which includes approximately 2,000 vocabulary entries,
and Teichelmann (1857) are the most comprehensive and reliable sources on the Kaurna
language. A comparison with modern recordings in neighbouring related languages (eg
Nukunu) indicates that they represented most but not all sounds in the Kaurna language and
were reasonably consistent in their spellings. Accordingly, Teichelmann & Schürmann
(1840), henceforth abbreviated to T&S (1840), is used as the point of reference for comparison
with Robinson's wordlist.
4It is easy to imagine how confusion between 'give' and 'mine' might arise. Robinson might
have been gesturing with a motion of the arm towards himself in trying to elicit the word for
'give' whilst this might have been misinterpreted by Kalloongoo as 'mine'.
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
27
F u rth e rm o re , a great m a n y Tasm anian w o rd s com m ence w ith 1 and r. H o w e v e r,
K a u rn a w o rd s never begin w ith 1 and r. As I had observed w ith cow.we m a n y o f the
o th e r K au rn a w o rd s w ere also sh o rt tw o s y lla b le w o rd s. T asm anian w o rd s are m ore
often three syllables or longer, th o u g h tw o s ylla b le w o rd s are c e rta in ly present.
M o st im p o rta n tly how ever, the K a u rn a w o rd s
u s u a lly bore no re la tio n s h ip
w h atsoever to the oth e r Tasm anian w o rd s recorded fo r th a t p a rtic u la r item . P lo m le y
lists 56 o f the 80 w o rd s separately. W here he has associated the K a u rn a w o rd w ith other
T asm anian w o rd s, the resemblance is u s u a lly n o t close. For instance, P lo m le y has
associated K aurna wung.car.ne 'speak' (T & S wanggandi ) w ith O yster Bay munkannara
'eloquent'. These w o rd s are n o t especially close in e ith e r fo rm o r m eaning. K a u rn a yar.ter
'c o u n try ' is listed w ith troun.ter, trout.ter and troune, p re s u m a b ly on the basis o f the end
o f the w o rd . T his is one o f the few cases w h e re the K a u rn a w o rd is g ro u p e d together
w ith a Ben L o m o n d w o rd . So yar.ter and troune 'c o u n try ' have been regarded as va ria n ts
o f the same w o rd in the same language b y P lo m le y , ye t there is n o th in g in com m on
betw een the tw o form s. A ll the v o w e ls and the consonants are d iffe re n t.
The K aurna w o rd w ilto 'h a w k' (T&S, 1840) is perhaps the closest in fo rm and
m e a n in g to P lom ley's g ro u p in g s w h ic h in v o lv e a K a u rn a w o rd recorded b y R obinson:
iuil.er.de
b: gar
'h a w k '
weelaty
w ill, to
b - s: m j
bl: cr
'eagle'
'h a w k '
(b = B ru n y Island; gar = George A u g u s tu s R obinson; b - s = B ru n y Isla n d - so u th e rn
tribes; m j = Joseph M illig a n ; bl = Ben L o m o n d ; cr = C harles R obinson; T & S =
T eichelm ann & S chürm ann, 1840)
The firs t tw o are clearly va ria n ts o f the same w o rd w ritte n w ith d iffe re n t E nglish
conventions representing a w o rd so m e th in g lik e [w ila ti] w h e n w ritte n p h o n e tica lly.
L in k in g w ill.to [w iltu ] w ith these tw o w o rd s h o w e v e r in v o lv e s the in tro d u c tio n o f a
v o w e l in betw een the 1 and t and a v o w e l change u -> i. The resem blance is not
p a rtic u la rly close.
A fte r m a k in g these observations o f P lo m le y (1976), I suspected th a t the K aurna
w o rd s c o n stitu te d a separate w o rd lis t, so I p u rs u e d the o rig in a l h a n d w ritte n w o rd lis ts
held in the M itc h e ll lib ra ry in Sydney. I fo u n d th a t the K aurna w o rd s d id indeed
co n stitu te a separate w o rd lis t (Figures 2,3,4). B elow , the K a u rn a w o rd s transcribed b y
R obinson are listed according to the o rd e r in w h ic h th e y appear in P lo m le y 1976.
P lo m le y has ordered his w o rd lis ts a lp h a b e tic a lly acco rd in g to his E nglish h e a d w o rd .
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
23
F ig u re 2
Jf
F ia n d w r itte n K a u rn a w o r d lis ts (C o u rte s y o f the M itc h e ll L ib ra ry ,
Sydney)
c X
I
c ***~ "^JL"
/
' JA
’
A
^
A
?
jh f a t
X
*
&
V
.V
# '* t A
/ -t T
\\
:m
-V
?
5^
c f
T v
‘ V ;■ft"/ t
,
-/ / t #
£) ,
<t* ~
.*«. / 4
W
/'
VtvCL
c -tt
/ t /
Ä ^X * ^ ^ <- fc" •"*
'
A * 1-*- A
_ / v* L /
\
/f.-*- V .
* ^ **1
-
A l e - Ä ^ . ;n<
A ’4 / «- *2 « •* ^
/ ^
e' L
A
cy
'* v v
^ <-** ^
•tf
Ta X
KAURNA IN TASM ANIA
Figure 3
29
H a n d w ritte n K a u rn a w o rd lis ts (C ourtesy of the M itc h e ll L ib ra ry ,
S ydney)
»
I& A
J L **'
'S'
&
£/
/is t S z
spe"
—
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•ft
o
.
11
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c
s i is V
,'s
£ V~~-
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’7 s*~
r
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s
r ä t * -
-41
i t n^ ^
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/ Ü
^
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- ■C’C e 'y
Ä
4 :- /
t-
^
yUis}*^ ^{ks-i
y f* *
-
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—
^/fg.<^l*~
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f n - 1 / —-■'*■£
ß ' A j 2 - - tz.
-4 js^—
—
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T-
£- \ ___ ^
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j^ty.
y*'y y
y
i< r
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'p m t y C i^
—
"P ix ^ e /
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t-S f
£s / A
fc't-
^
L ii?
A- V-
*.
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y * J t—
'
s
/s
....
30
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
Figure 4
H a n d w ritte n K a u rn a w o rd lis ts (C ourtesy o f the M itc h e ll Library,
Sydney)
Z'
c/
—r ~
t y Csl-
__
<"
jh jt ,
* * - * '’>-
—
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♦
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<✓ *£
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+ + * -< ' 3 » .
t <* / ^
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1
A
y y T
%#,
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31
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
The nearest identifiable counterpart or related w ords from Teichelm ann & Schürm ann
(1840) are listed alongside each of Robinson's K aurna w ords:
Robinson's Kaurna Wordlist as compiled by Plomley (1976)
(bl = Ben Lom ond; cr = C harles Robinson; gar = G eorge A ugustus Robinson)
Robinson's 'Ben Lomond'
'baby'
y a r .to .y a r .to
'no good’
iva r.k e.n er
'hawk'
w ill, to
'black'
p u ll.y o u .n e r
'whaleboat'
y o u . co
'boy'
tin .y a r e .ro
c u .re r
'not far off'
'cold'
p a r.c u l.la r
'come'
c a w .y .h e
'they are coming'
m e .y o .c o w .y
'country'
y a r .te r
'cry'
m u .re r.c a r .n e
w in .c o .p a ri.d e r .re 'dead'
car. th u d . er. lo
m o. ta r.tie
i.char.le
i.chie
i.c h u .u n g .e r
i.c h i.y u c k .e r .n u
c u ll.a r
'long way'
'eat'
'father'
'mother'
'brother'
'sister'
'fire'
Kaurna (T&S, 1840)
bl: cr
'to grow'
y e r th o n d i
'bad, wicked'
bl: cr
w a k k in n a
bl: cr
w ilto
'species of eagle'
'black'
bl: cr
p u ly o n n a
bl: gar y o ko
’ship'
bl: gar tin y a r a
'boy, lad, youth'
'near, not far off
bl: cr
k u ra
bl: cr
bakkadla
'hoar frost'
bl: cr
'come'
kaw ai
'men coming'
bl: cr
m e y u ka w a i
bl: cr
'earth, land, country'
y e r ta
bl: cr
m urkandi
'to cry, weep, lament'
bl: cr
w in g k o p a lta r i = breath beaten out
'lungs; breath’
w in g k o
p a lta n d i
'knock; push; throw;
beat; pluck off; pull out'
bl: cr
'far off; long away'
ka rradio
bl: cr
m u ta n d i
'to eat'
bl: cr
'my father'
n g a ity e r li
bl: cr
'my mother'
n g a ity a ii
bl: cr
'my brother'
n g a ity o y u n g a
bl: cr
'my sister'
n g a ity o y a k k a n a
bl: cr
'fire, fuel, wood'
g a d la
'forget'
bl: cr
i.th o e.m o ker.
= forgot mine
'mine'
m u k a n d a r ia p p e n d i
'to forget; leave behind'
bl: gar m a n k a rra
'girl; young female'
m u n .c a r .r e
girl'
'give'
bl: cr
'mine'
i.th o
n g a ity o
'go, go away'
bl: cr
'further; off; away'
none, t a
n u rn ti
'good'
bl: cr
m arni
'fat; rich; good'
m unni
'hill'
bl: cr
'mountain'
m o .in . te r
m u k u r ta
(this word was mis-transcribed by Plomley - should be m o .c u .te r — see original)
bl: cr
me. th e r
'hot'
m eda
'heat, flame; hot etc'
'house'
bl: cr
w o d li
'hut; house'
zval.le
’h unt’
bl: cr
'to creep, sneak, steal up
y o u .ro . r in .n e
yurrurendi
u n .d e r.re
n g a ity o m u k a n d a r i
n g a ity o
5 Some of Teichelmann & Schürmann's glosses have been reduced or abbreviated for the sake
of clarity.
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
32
w at.tar cut.ter1*'
'isla n d '
bl: cr
tow.roar.rer
cun. car. ne
war. car. re
par. rar me
war.rer
'big '
'la u g h '
Tost'
'm ake'
b a n d ico o t
bl:
bl:
bl:
bl:
bl:
ter ker
nun.to.buke
ka n g a ro o '8
'kang aro o'
bl: cr
'forester' (kan ga roo)
'doe forester'
ung.kee
mo.ker mo.ker 'ka n g a ro o rat'
'opossom '
pit. tar
'rin g ta il'
wung-go
'm an'
me.you
pu.car
'o ld m an'
pirn.dim.me.yoe 'w h ite m a n 1
car.ca.rer
'm oon '
'n ig h t'
ule.ta
'no'
m ul.lar.ner
'p la in '
wam.mer
'shrub '
cut. ter
'me'
i.tho
y aider, me.yoe' y o u n d ' ' 1
'yo u '
nuc.co
(this w o rd w as m is-tra n scrib e d b y
we.rale.lar
'be q u ic k ’
gar
cr
cr
cr
cr
??Wäda Karta? = W h e re is K.I.?
'w h e re '
wada
'K a n g a ro o Is la n d '
Karta
?? watte Karta - 'm id d le o f K .I.'
Targe; great; m u ch ; v e ry '
tauara
'to la u g h '
karnkendi
wakkari
Tost, strayed '
'to k in d le , lig h t; che w ; m a rry '
parrandi
'a s m a ll a n im a l
?? w a tte w a tte
b u r r o w in g in the e a rth '1
Targe sp. o f ka n g a ro o '
tarka
bl: cr
nanto burka
'o ld m ale
'd ry b a rk '
Tlbakka
bl: cr
ngangki (= fem ale)
bl: cr
(no id e n tifie d c o u n te rp a rt)9
'opo ssum '
bl: cr
p ilta
's m a ll opossom '
bl: cr
wangko
bl: cr
'm an'
meyu
'o ld , an a d u lt, m an'
bl: cr
burka
'w h ite m an'
bl: gar pindim eyu
'm o o n '
bl: cr
kakirra
bl: cr
n g u lti
'n ig h t'
bl: cr
madlanna
'no; none; no t'
bl: cr
'p la in '
womma
bl: cr
(no id e n tifie d c o u n te rp a rt)"1
bl: cr
'm y , m in e '
ngaityo
'fa th e r'
bl: cr
yerlim eyu
'y o u r'
bl: cr
ninko
P lo m ley-—s h o u ld be nin.co - -see o rig in a l)
bl: cr
'q u ic k ly ; h a s tily ; fast'
w irrilla
"W at.tar cut.ter 'isla n d ' bears som e s im ila rity to G a im a rd ’s (1833) wategakal 'is la n d ' a n d a s trik in g
resem blance to the R a m in je ri w o rd wäteakattauwe ’sm a ll ro c k y isla n d ' (M e ye r, 1843:106), th o u g h
M e ye r records an o th e r w o rd Kukakungar fo r 'K a n g a ro o Isla n d ', -auwe is a p ro d u c tiv e s u ffix in
R a m in d je ri m e a ning 'b e lo n g in g to'. K a u rn a has watte 'm id d le ; m id s t' an d wattingga 'betw een', so
perhaps w at.tar cut.ter m eans 'in the m id d le o f K a n g a ro o Isla n d '. H o w e v e r, as w e sh a ll see,
G eorge A u g u s tu s R obinson records an a lm o st id e n tic a l fo rm wat.ter.ker.ter w h ic h he also glosses
as 'an isla n d '. The e ty m o lo g y o f th is w o rd is in co n clu sive .
W h ils t T e ich elm a nn & S chü rm an n's wattewatte is perhaps n o t too close to R obinson's
war.rer, s im ila r w o rd s have been recorded in n e ig h b o u rin g languages. N o te wara 'ra t' in
N a rru n g a and warda 'ra t' in N g a d ju ri.
KW y a tt lists nanto boorka 'an o ld h o a ry m ale kan ga roo'.
9 There is som e resem blance to N g a rrin d je ri m ik u rri 'b a n d ico o t (spo tte d)' (T a p lin , 1879: 126)
and to the w o rd m uru curlu reco rde d on the in s id e cover o f S tu rt’s Jou rna l 1 3 /9 -3 0 /9 /1 8 4 5 as
'N a tiv e nam e o f a n im il <sic> g o t fro m the N a tive s on the P ark la nd 20th A u g t 1845' (noted
by D a vid N ash). These resem blances re m a in in co n clu sive .
111W h ils t no s im ila r te rm w as reco rde d b y T e ich e lm a n n & S ch ü rm a n n (1840) s im ila r w o rd s
have been reco rde d by o th e r observers o f K a u rn a . N o te cur-tah ’scrub, bush, u n d e rw o o d '
(Piesse, 1840) and kerta 'a forest' (W ya tt).
"'Y o u n d ' is an E n g lish d ia le cta l v a ria tio n o f 'y o n d ' o r 'y o n d e r' w h ic h w o u ld translate as
nguntya. P resu m ab ly the g lo ssin g o f th is w o rd as 'y o u n d ' w as the re s u lt o f a
m is u n d e rs ta n d in g on R obinson's pa rt. Yal.ler.me.yoe d e fin ite ly lo oks lik e a c o m p o u n d w h e re
meyu 'm an; p e rso n ’ is the second elem ent.
33
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
manya
'cold; rainy'
'rain'
bl: cr
karri karri
'stand up!'
bl: cr
'get up'
murren di
'to go; walk; travel'
'run'
bl: cr
'sea water'
'salt water'
kopurlo
bl: cr
mis-transcribed by Plomley-—should be cu.po.lai- - see original)
ngandandi
'to be ill; sick; feel pain’
’very ill'
bl: cr
sing'
bl: cr
makkandi
'to shake, quiver in the
legs as in dancing'
tikkarna!
'sit down!' (you plural)
ta.car.na
'sit down'
bl: cr
wandendi
'to lie down'
'sleep'
won.ta.ne
bl: cr
tnedo wandendi
'to lie down to sleep’
tu.yu.ther
bl: cr
tukkutya
'small; little'
'little'
puiyo
'smoke'
'smoke'
bl: cr
pue.yo
'to speak'
'speak'
bl: cr
wanggandi
wung.car.ne
'star'
bl: cr
purle
'star'
pull.le
bl: cr
'sun'
'sun'
Undo
tin. to
'morning'
bl: cr
panyi
'early in the morning'
pine.ye
'tired'
bl: cr
ngaityarni
'tired; wearied'
i.char.ne
bl: cr
'frog'
(no identified counterpart)1'
yul.to
bl: cr
(no identified counterpart)
war.rar.te
’tadpole'
'water'
'water'
bl: gar kauwe
cow.we
wa
war
bl: cr
'where?'
'where is it?'
bl: cr
warri
'wind'
war. re
'wind'
ar.mi.ther
'black woman'
bl: cr
ngammaitya
'woman generally'
ngaityo ngammaitya 'my woman’
i.thoe.ar.mi.ther 'my wife'
bl: cr
bl: cr
ninko ngammaitya 'your woman'
nin.co.ar.mi.ther 'your wife'
'old woman'
pie.ther.pull.ta 'old woman'
bl: cr
paityabulti
ar.rer
ngarra
'wood'
bl: cr
'piece of burnt wood;
stump; stick'
karra
'red gum tree'
In addition, cue.wer 'crow' appears in the handw ritten manusrcript, but seems to have
been inadertently omitted by Plomley. It is clearly another representation of kua 'crow'
which appears in T&S (1840).
mun.yer
car.re.car.re
mu.rane.ne
clu.po.lar
(this word was
un.dar.ne
muck.car. ne
Robinson also records two short sentences, only one of which is included within
Plomley (1976):
1. I.tho.nin.to.pie.ar.rer.war.rer
'Do you understand my talk?'
cf corresponding Kaurna sentences constructed following similar forms in Teichelmann
& Schürmann (1840):
Ngaityo nindo paiarendi warra?
'Do you understand my talk?'
and
Ngaityo nindo paiari warra? 'Did you understand my talk?
2. yun.char.le.nin.co.what.te
'What's your name?'
'What's your name?' has been recorded by Teichelmann & Schürmann (1840) and
Teichelmann (1857) as:
13Compare with Wyatt's (1879) ngoorto 'a frog’. Robinson had difficulty in transcribing the
initial 'ng' sound. It is just possible that in this instance he wrote it as 'y', though in all other
cases he simply left it off.
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
34
N gaintya ninna n a rri?
Nganna n a rri ninko?
N inko narri ngaintya?
N inna n a rri ngaintya?
N one o f these accord closely w ith R obinson's version, th o u g h the segm ent nin.co
clearly relates to ninko 'y o u r'. The G erm an K a u rn a sources record the w o rd s n a rri n a m e ’
and m ity i 'name' used b y people in the n o rth and at E nco u n te r Bay. H o w e v e r, W y a tt
(1879: 21) records zvatte 'name' in accord w ith Robinson's what.te. T h a t leaves the firs t
h a lf o f the expression, yun.char.le w h ic h bears a s lig h t resem blance to ngaintya 'w h a t',
rem em bering th a t Robinson is unable to transcribe in itia l 'ng'. There is a s u ffix in
K aurna - r li 'to resemble; -like'. Perhaps R obinson's yun.char.le is e q u iv a le n t to n g aintyarli
' w h ic h m ig h t translate as 'w h a t like?'. H o w e v e r, this fo rm w ith the - r li s u ffix attached is
not fo u n d in any o f the K a urna sources.
A lm o s t a ll the w o rd s recorded in R obinson's w o rd lis t have clear and re a d ily
id e n tifia b le co u n te rp a rts in K aurna. H o w e v e r, there are a few w o rd s eg. zvar.ra r.te
'tadpole' and mo.ker mo.ker 'kangaroo ra t’ fo r w h ic h term s w ere n e ve r recorded b y
T eichelm ann & S churm ann (1840) or b y o th e r observers. T eichelm ann & S ch ü rm a n n
(1840) record kanto 'b u llfro g ' b u t d id n o t record yulto 'frog', w h ic h appears in R obinson.
For m ost o f these v o c a b u la ry item s a p p e a rin g on pages 159-164 o f the R obinson
m anuscripts, ano th e r Ben L o m o n d w o rd is also recorded by C harles R obinson in
a d d itio n to the K a u rn a w o rd . The K aurna w o rd s appear q u ite o u t o f place w ith in the
w o rd lis ts p u b lish e d b y P lo m le y fo r the reasons give n earlier. The tru e Ben L o m o n d
w o rd s are m ore s im ila r to oth e r T asm anian w o rd s and m a n y have clear cognates w ith
other Tasm anian languages. F or exam ple, C harles R obinson gives b o th le.brun.ne and
zoal.le fo r 'house'. Le.brun.ne is c le a rly cognate w ith w o rd s recorded b y a n u m b e r o f
observers as fo llo w s :
G A R obinson
G A Robinson
G A R obinson
G A R obinson
S te rlin g
M illig a n
Jorgenson
Backhouse
W a lk e r
M illig a n
S terling
Jorgenson
Jorgenson
lee.brun.ne
lee.brun.ne
lee.brun.ne
le.brun.ne
leebrerne
leprena
leprena
leprennie
lyprenny
lebrina, leebra
lo ’penarne
tama lebirinna
tama leeberinna
'h u t, house'
(P iper R iver, N E Tas)
'h u t'
(P ort D a lry m p le , N th Tas)
'house'
(eastern tribes)
'h u t'
(n o rth e rn tribes)
'house'
(P iper R ive r)
'house, hu t;
(O yster Bay)
'h u t'
(eastern tribes)
’b re a k w in d , house, h u t, place o f rest'
'house'
'house, h u t’
(west, o r n o rth w e s te rn tribes)
'house'
'h u t'
(n o rth e rn tribes)
'b re a k w in d , h u t'
(C irc u la r H ead, N W Tas)
N u m e ro u s oth e r w o rd s fo r 'house' are recorded fro m across Tasm ania, b u t none o f th e m
are a n y th in g lik e zval.le 'house'.
S im ila rly , C harles R obinson gives b o th te.wer.rut.ten.ner 'w in d ' and war.re 'w in d ' as
Ben L o m o n d w o rd s. Te.zoer.rut.ten.ner is c le a rly related to w o rd s re corded b y o th e r
observers, b u t war.re 'w in d ' stands o u t on its o w n .
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
35
The evidence pointing to these words cited above being Kaurna is very strong
indeed. The morphological evidence discussed on page 2 is overwhelming. Even the
minimal sentence data provided is analysable to a large extent. This added to the fact
that almost every word occurring in the list can be accounted for with a clear
counterpart in Teichelmann & Schürmann (1840) provides irrefutable evidence that the
wordlist in question is in fact Kaurna.
The context in which Robinson's Kaurna wordlist was recorded
Plomley attributes the recording of thirteen wordlists to Charles Robinson, including
two which he says belong to the Ben Lomond area of north-east Tasmania. These
vocabularies appear in notebooks and on sheets of paper. Plomley observes that in
relation to Charles Robinson's materials 'it should be noted that the lists are not always
clearly labelled as to tribal origin (and possibly are not always properly associated in the
collation), and that some are not labelled at all'.13
Robinson's Kaurna wordlist is compiled on pages 15914, 160, 163 and 164 of the
Robinson Papers Volume 64, Part 6. There is in fact no indication on these manuscript
pages themselves as to when, where and from whom the words were recorded and
which language they were thought to be. However, within the same volume on
preceding pages, in what appears to be the same handwriting (i.e. Charles'), the wordlist
on page 10115 is headed 'Benlomond' with the later addition in George Augustus
Robinson’s handwriting 'JanY 1838 F.P. and on page 105 'Charles'. Plomley notes this
(1976: 21) and has assumed, perhaps on the basis of these notations on preceding pages,
that the Kaurna words also belong to the Ben Lomond area. Jumbling and re-ordering of
the original manuscript has perhaps also contributed to the mis-identification of the
Kaurna wordlist. Whilst Plomley attributes the majority of the Kaurna words to Charles
Robinson, several are attributed to his father George Augustus Robinson. This is curious
as all the words belong to the same wordlist and are written in the same handwriting
which is definitely not that of George Augustus Robinson.lh
According to Plomley, Charles Robinson arrived in Tasmania in 1826 at the age of
nine years.1' He accompanied his father on expeditions to round up the remaining
Tasmanians in 1830, 1832 and 1833/34. He then lived on Flinders Island with his father,
who was appointed commandant of Wybalenna, the Flinders Island Aboriginal
13 Plomley, 1976: 22.
14These page numbers have been written over the top of the original page numbers which
are faint and illegible. Page 163 for instance, appears to have been originally numbered 42.
15The numbering of Charles Robinson's wordlists is confusing. Some pages have three
different numbers on them. It would appear that the page numbers provided here have been
added at a later date. In the 'Benlomond Jan 1838 F.I.' wordlist referred to here bears the
original numbering of pages 1 to 10 numbered in the opposite corners as in an open
notebook. The numbers added later are 101 to 104,113-114,117-118,115-116 in that order,
thus jumbling the original ordering of the wordlist. Library microfilm frame numbers at the
bottom of the pages are 837-840, 849-850, 853-854, 851-852 following the same sequence of
the numbers added later.
Ihp.c. Ian Clark, 1994.
17Plomley 1976: 22.
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
36
settlem ent, fro m O ctober 1835 to F e b ru a ry 1839. C harles R obinson's w o rd lis ts w e re m ost
lik e ly co m p ile d at W yb alenna fro m m a te ria l elicited fro m residents there.
But h o w d id so m a n y K a u rn a w o rd s come to be recorded at F lin d e rs Isla n d and
become p a rt o f the Tasm anian corpus? To answ er th is q uestion w e m u st tu rn to h is to ry
and R obinson's jo u rn a ls in p a rtic u la r.
The historical context
F requent m ovem e n ts o f A b o rig in a l people fro m A lb a n y to Bass S trait, and occasionally
even fu rth e r a fie ld w ere associated w ith the fre n zie d a c tiv itie s o f sealers and w h a le rs
d u rin g the e a rly p a rt o f the n in e te e n th c e n tu ry .'* T h is a c tiv ity a c tu a lly preceded any
o ffic ia l w h ite settle m e n t in V ic to ria , South A u s tra lia and W estern A u s tra lia .u The sealers
obtained A b o rig in a l w o m e n fo r th e ir sexual fa v o u rs b u t also fo r th e ir assistance in
h u n tin g o f seals and o th e r game and to collect bush foods fo r them . Some w o m e n w ere
kept in a state o f slavery. The w o m e n w ere o b tained c h ie fly fro m Tasm ania, b u t also
fro m V ic to ria , S outh A u s tra lia and W estern A u s tra lia . O ccasionally A b o rig in a l men
w ere also liv in g w ith sealers and engaged in th e ir sealing a ctivitie s, in c lu d in g a n u m b e r
o f A b o rig in a l m en fro m P o rt Jackson (Sydney). Hence, there was fre q u e n t contact
betw een in d ig e n o u s Tasm anians and K aurna people fro m the coastal re g io n so u th o f
A d e la id e as w e ll as w ith m em bers o f o th e r A b o rig in a l g ro u p s fro m the s o u th e rn coasts
o f m a in la n d A u s tra lia .
IKW haling and sealing a ctivity extended as far as A m sterdam and St Paul Islands, ro u g h ly
m id w a y between Western A ustralia and South A frica in the west and to the South Island of
New Zealand and its su rro u n din g islands in the east. It is kn o w n that occasionally
Tasmanian w om en accompanied sealers to Am sterdam and St Paul Islands in the Indian
Ocean. For instance, five Tasmanian w om en and three children accompanied sealers to St
Paul on the H unter in 1825. From St Paul the wom en w ent to Ile de France (M auritius). One
w om an and a child died there. A nother ch ild was allow ed to rem ain there w ith his father, a
sealer. The other w om en and child returned to Tasmania via Sydney in March 1827.
(Plomley, 1987, p. 280) In 1832 Backhouse, a Quaker w h o visited Flinders Island, came across
some Tasmanian w om en w h o knew some French w hich they had learned in M a u ritiu s.
(Plomley, 1966, p. 686)
' The sealing in d u s try in the Southern Ocean closely follow ed Flinders' and Bass's salvage
mission in 1797 o f the Sydney Cove, w recked in the Furneaux Islands in Bass Strait. On his
return to Port Jackson, Flinders reported on the abundance of fu r seals on islands in Bass
Strait (Plom ley & H enley, 1990, p. 2). The firs t A ustralian sealing vessel operating in Bass
Strait sailed in 1798 (Cumpston, 1970, p. 73) The sealers and whalers themselves seem to
have left no w ritte n records chronicling their activities. M ost were illiterate. H ow ever life in
the southern oceans can be pieced together fro m the w ritin g s o f passing observers and
records o f sh ip p in g movements to and fro m the ports of Sydney and Hobart. Cum pston
(1970) documents several voyages each year to Kangaroo Island by sealers and w halers from
1803 onw ards w hen the Am erican ship, the Union sailed to Kangaroo Island and spent more
than four m onths there w h ils t b u ild in g a second ship and sheltering from the w in te r. It is
possible that sealing vessels could have visited Kangaroo Island p rio r to its 'discovery' by
Flinders in 1802 (N unn, 1989, p. I l f ) . A n Am erican ship, the Elligood is know n to have
reached K in g George Sound (A lbany) in 1800 and it is lik e ly that the ship also visited
Kangaroo Island (Cumpston, 1970, p. 7). The larger Am erican N antucket ships p ro v id e d a
more or less reliable su p p ly line and transport fo r the sealers, though many sealers traversed
the southern ocean along vast stretches o f the A ustralian coast in open w hale boats. M uch of
w h a t we know about the activities o f the sealers comes from the journals o f George A ugustus
Robinson published by Plom ley (1966; 1987).
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
37
K angaroo Island w as v is ite d fre q u e n tly b y sealers, as it w as the m a in source o f salt
used fo r c u rin g the seal skins. It w as established as a base fo r u n ru ly elem ents o f the
sealing in d u s try , some o f w h o m w ere ru n a w a y convicts. Because K a n g a ro o Isla n d w as
beyond the reach o f the la w and because it appears to have been u n in h a b ite d b y
A b o rig in a l people fo r the last 2,000 years, it served as a safe haven fo r the sealers, w h o
w ere able to k id n a p A b o rig in a l w o m e n fro m Tasm ania and the m a in la n d and then
retreat there w ith o u t fear o f reprisal fro m the w o m e n 's husbands and k in . W e k n o w fo r
sure th a t b o th T asm anian w o m e n and K a u rn a w o m e n w ere present on K a n g a ro o Island.
M o s t lik e ly the firs t A b o rig in a l w o m e n on K a ngaroo Island w ere Tasm anians. Peron
(1816) notes th a t 'th e traders, w h o v is ite d the isla n d [K angaroo Is la n d ] b ro u g h t w ith
th e m a Tasm anian lu b ra fo r a co n sid era tio n '. The captain o f a passing sh ip [S u th e rla n d ]
re p o rte d in 1819 th a t Europeans liv in g on K a ngaroo Island w h o 'h a ve c a rrie d th e ir
d a rin g acts to an extrem e, v e n tu rin g on the m a in la n d in th e ir boats and s e izin g on the
natives, p a rtic u la rly the w o m e n , and ke e p ing th e m in a state o f slavery, c ru e lly tre a tin g
them on e very tr iflin g occasion'.20 Later, it w o u ld appear th a t K a u rn a w o m e n w ere the
m ost n um erous am ongst the A b o rig in a l w o m e n on K a ngaroo Isla n d as the re su lt o f
local k id n a p p in g opera tio n s carried o u t on the m a in la n d , p rin c ip a lly in the R apid B a y Cape Jervis region w here the coast w as m ore sheltered. L ike the Tasm anian w o m e n ,
South A u s tra lia n w o m e n w ere also tra n sp o rte d o ve r a vast area across the Southern
O cean.'1 Specific accounts p ro b a b ly represent ju s t the 'tip o f the iceberg' since fe w
accounts w ere w ritte n and fe w records s u rv iv e fro m th is era.
P h ilip C larke discusses the ea rly in te ra c tio n betw een the sealers and w h a le rs and
A b o rig in e s in the southern oceans, focussing on K a n g a ro o Island. H e notes th a t 'in 1820,
there w ere an estim ated fifty sealers w ith a b o u t a h u n d re d A b o rig in a l w iv e s and
c h ild re n , liv in g in the Bass S traits to K a ngaroo Isla n d re g io n '.2'
Some o f the K aurna w o m e n k id n a p p e d fro m the s o u th e rn K a u rn a re g io n ended up
liv in g w ith sealers in Bass S trait. In 1831, R obinson noted th a t there w e re A b o rig in a l
211M oore cited in Clarke, 1994: 7.
:i In 1822 a sealer was encountered on the South Island of N ew Zealand. 'The man Stuart had
come from Kangaroo Island w ith a w ife o f the country and tw o children to settle in New
Zealand; but having w ith his fa m ily been taken prisoner by the natives [M aoris], he had
adopted their customs [and] was em ployed by the chiefs...as a p ilo t...fo r fin d in g all the
different h id in g places o f the Am ericans' (Cumpston, 1970, p. 63). It is unclear exactly w hen
this wom an, like ly to have been a Kaurna wom an, w e nt to N ew Zealand. It is also kn o w n
that in 1823 another w om an fro m Kangaroo Island (possibly a Kaurna w om an) was stranded
on the South Island of N ew Zealand for a period o f eight months w ith her sm all ch ild . The
other members of her sealing party belonging to an A m erican ship, the General Gates, had
been kille d by Maoris. This South A u stralian w om an returned to Sydney in A p ril 1824.
(Cumpston, 1970, p. 66). It is possible that these tw o accounts refer to the same w om an,
though the dates suggest otherwise.
22 Clarke 1994: 3.
T h e e x te n t o f s e a l i n g i n t h e S o u t h e r n O ce;
38
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
39
w o m e n fro m K angaroo Isla n d present on islands in the Kents G ro u p in the eastern Bass
S traits, n o rth o f F linde rs Is la n d .'3 One o f these w o m e n , Em ue o r E m m a, w as a K a urna
w o m a n w h o was liv in g w ith a sealer nam ed John A n d e rso n , alias A b yssin ia Jack.
A n d e rso n to ld Robinson that:
[he] has a black w o m a n liv in g w ith h im , w h ic h he got fro m o ff the m a in on the
coast o f N e w H o lla n d opposite to K a n g a ro o Isla n d and has liv e d w ith her ever
since. Says he has ten c h ild re n b y her, fiv e o f w h o m are alive. G o t a b la ck b o y fro m
the m ain, son to th is w o m a n , a b o u t fo u r years since.'4
O n 23rd July 1836, R obinson reports that:
C o rp o ra l Ramsay re tu rn e d to the se ttle m e n t fro m the Sisters Islands [im m e d ia te ly
to the n o rth o f F lin d e rs Is la n d ] h a v in g re m oved the sealers, w h o offered no
resistance. T hey had been on the islands a b o u t a fo rtn ig h t...T h e y had tw o boats.
A byssinia Jack had charge o f one w ith some H e w H o lla n d w o m e n and also V D L
[Tasm anian] w o m e n nam ed [ ]. The N e w H o lla n d w o m e n w ere the same th a t had
been stolen fro m th e ir c o u n try adjacent to K a ngaroo Isla n d b y George M e re d ith jn r
o f O yster B ay...T h e sealers had several halfcaste c h ild re n on b o a rd o f th e ir boats.
There w ere three men in the boat, A b yssin ia Jack, E ve re tt and a n o th e r...A b y s s in ia
Jack and a nother sealer stop on W o o d y Island. They re p o rte d th a t there w as three
m en on G u n C a rriage [island adjacent to W o o d y Isla n d in betw een F lin d e rs and
Cape Barren Islands]. They had w ith th e m several N e w H o lla n d w o m e n .25
In 1837 Em ue w as s till liv in g w ith A n d e rso n , then on W o o d y Isla n d , in betw een
F lin d e rs and Cape B arren Island. Robinson's jo u rn a l e n try o f 10 January 1837 contains
the fo llo w in g :
Woody Isle:
A byssinia Jack and three w o m e n n a tiv e o f N e w H o lla n d ; one w ith E verett one
in fa n t; w ith A b yssin ia a w o m a n Em ue and three c h ild re n ; a w o m a n n a tiv e o f
Spencers G u lf has been le ft b y D u tto n , th is w o m a n has a b o y b y a b lack m an, she
w ishes to leave the sealers.2’’
T his la tte r w o m a n , K a llo o n g o o , also nam ed Sarah b y the sealers and renam ed C h a rlo tte
b y Robinson, is cru cia l to the sto ry o f R obinson's K a u rn a w o rd lis t. P lom ley's annotations
to R obinson's jo u rn a l fo r 1 June 1837 note that:
C o rp o ra l M ille r le ft the settle m e n t on the m o rn in g o f 31 M a y fo r W o o d y Island and
reached there th a t evening. H e w as accom panied b y tw o a b o rig in a l w om e n ,
Rebecca and M a tild a . O n a rriv a l at W o o d y Island, M ille r in te rv ie w e d the one
sealer there, John A n d e rso n , w h o to ld h im th a t som etim es a n o th e r sealer liv e d
there too, b u t th a t he had 'gone to p o rt'. There w e re tw o n a tiv e w o m e n and three
c h ild re n on the isla n d , o f w h o m one w o m a n and tw o c h ild re n belonged to
A nderson. The o th e r w o m a n , a fte r ta lk in g to the w o m e n fro m the settlem ent, was
w illin g to q u it the isla n d on the u n d e rs ta n d in g th a t she w o u ld be conveyed to her
o w n co u n try, i.e. N e w H o lla n d . She w as k n o w n as Sarah o r C h a rlo tte , and was
ab o u t tw e n ty years o ld .2
Robinson in Plomley, 1966: 327, 335.
24 in Plom ley, 1966: 327.
25 in Plom ley, 1987: 366-67.
2h in Plom ley, 1987: 416.
27 in Plomley, 1987: 695.
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
40
O n June 1st 1837, K a llo o n g o o w as b ro u g h t to R obinson's s e ttle m e n t at F lin d e rs
Island and rem ained there u n til the 25 F ebruary 1839 w h e n she was taken b y Robinson
to P ort P h illip (M e lb o u rn e ). W h ils t at F linders Island, K a llo o n g o o liv e d in Robinson's
house and w o rke d fo r h im as a dom estic servant, and th u s is the m ost lik e ly source o f
the K aurna w o rd lis t. It is m ost lik e ly th a t Charles R obinson recorded the w o rd lis t
som ew here betw een June 1837 and F ebruary 1839, as he w as in constant contact w ith
her d u rin g this period.
O n a rriv a l at F lin d e rs Island, K a llo o n g o o gave a le n g th y account to R obinson o f
ho w she w as kid n a p p e d and her subsequent life w ith sealers on K a n g a ro o Isla n d and in
Bass S trait. In a d d itio n she p ro v id e d specific details o f her o rig in s. H e r in te rv ie w w ith
Robinson, as recorded in R obinson's jo u rn a l fo r June 2nd 1837, is p ro v id e d here in fu ll:
Interrogated the w o m a n w h o a rriv e d last n ig h t fro m W o o d y Isla n d ; re su lt as
fo llo w s — (1) K A L .L O O N .G O O , (2) C O W .W ER .PITE.YER, (3) W IN .D E E R .R E R alias
Sarah an a b o rig in a l fem ale o f N e w H o lla n d , the p o in t opposite to K a n g a ro o Island,
the w est p o in t o f P o rt L in c o ln . W as fo rc ib ly taken fro m her c o u n try b y a sealer
nam ed James A lla n w h o in co m p a n y w ith ano th e r sealer B ill Johnson (this man
was d ro w n e d subsequent to m y v is it to P o rt P h ilip ) conveyed her across to
K angaroo Island w h e re she rem ained fo r a considerable tim e u n til she w as seized
upon by Johnson and forced on b oard the schooner Henry J G r iffith o w n e r and
master and b ro u g h t to the straits, w h e n Johnson sold her to B ill D u tto n , w h o had
subsequently abandoned her. She had a c h ild by D u tto n a g irl w h ic h he to o k aw ay
w ith him . The w o m a n states th a t at the tim e she w as seized and to rn fro m her
co u n try, A lla n the sealer was led or g u id ed to her e ncam pm ent and w here her
m o th e r and sister then w as b y tw o b la c k fe llo w s her co u n try m e n b u t n o t her trib e
and w h o had been liv in g w ith the sealers on the island [K a n g a ro o Isla n d ]. Said the
b la ckfe llo w s came sneaking and la id h o ld o f m y hand; the oth e r g irl ran aw ay. The
w h ite m an p u t a rope a ro u n d m y neck lik e a dog, tie up m y hands. W e slept in the
bush one n ig h t and they then tied m y legs. In the m o rn in g w e w e n t to the boat.
They took me then to K a ngaroo Island. She rem ained there a lo n g tim e u n til she
w as b ro u g h t a w a y in the schooner [Henry ow n e d b y J. G r iffith ] to the straits. She
said there w ere several N e w H o lla n d [m a in la n d e r] b lack men on K a ngaroo Island.
Said tw o o f them died fro m e ating seal; her b ro th e r died also fro m e a tin g seal. Said
the sealers beat the b lack w o m e n p le n ty ; they c u t a piece o f flesh o ff a w o m a n 's
b u tto ck; cut o ff a boy's ear, Emue's boy. This w o m a n [E m ue] is n o w on W o o d y
Island w ith A b yssin ia Jack. The boy died in consequence o f his w o u n d s . They cu t
them w ith b ro a d sealer’s knives. Said they tied th e m up and beat th e m and beat
them w ith ropes.2S B ill D u tto n beat her p le n ty. Said the sealers g o t d ru n k p le n ty
and w om e n get d ru n k too. Said the c o u n try w h e re she came fro m w as called
BAT.BU N .G E R [Patpangga = R apid Bay] Y A N G .G A L .L A L E .L A R [Y a n k a lilla ], It is
situate at the w est p o in t o f St. V incents G u lf. Said th a t Em ue's b ro th e r w as her
husband. It is on the sea coast; there is a lo n g sandy beach w it h three rivers.
M A N .N U N E .G A R is the nam e o f the c o u n try w here she w as b o rn . K angaroo
island is called D IR KI.Y E R .TU N .G E R .Y E R .TE R ; W A T.E R .KE R .TE R , an island.
(YAR.PER, a hole; called the hole in the cartilage o f her nose YAR .PER.) (1)
W H IR L E (2) W H IR .L E , house. Fire, KIR .LER. W o o d , (1) N A R .R E R (2) N A R .R A R .
s This account o f cruelty given by K alloongoo is closely corroborated by A nderson's and
Constable M unro's versions o f the same events documented by Robinson some years earlier
in 1831 (Plomley ed. 1966, p. 357, 360, 462, 1010).
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
41
This aboriginal female of N H KAL.LOON.GOO has a hole through the cartilage of
her nose. She relates the follow ing circum stances in reference to her rem oval from
K angaroo Island. She said one day the schooner Henry John Griffith m aster and
o w ner came to K angaroo Island. Allan w as aw ay at this tim e at another p art of the
island. Said that Johnson tied her h an d s aand feet and p u t her on board of the
schooner, w hen he and H arry W ally cam e aw ay in the schooner to the islands in
the straits. A sealer H arry W ally assisted in tying her. Subsequently Johnson sold
her to Bill D utton by w hom she had a female child a girl. She had had a male child
by a Sydney black a sealer. This child is the one now w ith her and is about five
years of age. Bill D utton stopped on W oody Island w ith Abyssinia Jack. He has left
ab o u t ten m oons, has gone aw ay and m arried a w hite w om an. He took his child
the girl w ith him. She had heard this. H e has gone w haling. The boy w as born at a
rock near to the Julians. She had the girl first by Bill D utton. Said she w as a big girl
w hen Allan took her aw ay from her ow n country. In answ er to a question, 'd o you
like this place', she said 'yes!' 'D o you w an t to go to W oody Island?', 'no, it is no
good place, there is nothing there at all'. She got little to eat. Bill D utton beat her
w ith a rope. She w as glad she had got aw ay. In answ er to several questions about
God she answ ered she never learnt him , she did not know. The w om an's boy is
about five years of age and is very interesting child. The features are European
cast, thin lips and sm all feataures, and ap pears intelligent. So also does the mother.
The w o m an ’s features are sim ilar to the boy's. So soon as it w as know n at the
native settlem ent that a N ew H olland w om an had arrived all the native
inhabitants w ere in m otion and an evident excitem ent w as created. Several of the
native m en cam e to m y quarters b u t the greater part kept aw ay from bashfulness.
Before breakfast I w alked w ith her to the native cottages and introuced her to the
aborigines, and she m et w ith a hearty w elcom e from those generous and simple
hearted people. She appeared m uch delighted w ith her reception and there
appeared a reciprocal feeling betw een this stranger and the resident aborigines.
She brought a bitch and two pu p s w ith her. This m orning she drew here rations
from the store and w as p u t on the strength of the establishm ent from yesterday the
first of June inst. M uch curiosity prevailed on the part of the aborigines, and
constant visits w as m ade th ro u g h o u t the day at my house to see the stranger.
A bout noon her son arrived in the boat. I shew ed the various kinds of w ork
perform ed by the male aborigines, the cultivated land, the fencing, the road
m aking, and the large heap of grass collected by the females, their knitting and
dom estic w ork, w ith the w hole of w hich she appeared highly delighted and said
she should like to learn to w ork like them . At 6 pm she accom panied me to the
evening school and here she appeared to be quite overcom e w ith astonishm ent at
w h at she w itnessed. This w as a new scene, an epocha she had not possible
conceived. Here she beheld people of her ow n colour engaged at learning w hat she
could not com prehend, native children teaching native m en and w om en. H eard
the whole in one united chorus singing the praises of God, of that being of w hom
she had not heard and of w hom she acknow ledged she had not the slightest
conception. All w as w onder to her poor u n tu tored m ind. I shall not easily forget
w ith w hat astonishm ent she looked w hen the congregation began to sing, and it
app eared equally a m atter of surprise to her w hen the native m en stood up to
pray. She said she w ished to learn and I instructed her in the alphabet, I suppose
the first time in her life.
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
42
3 June Sat
This m orning the aboriginal female of N ew H olland w as b rought to the office and
interrogated by the C om m andant in the presence of the storekeeper Mr L
Dickenson and M r Clark the catechist and w hich w as signed by those gentlem en
and is herew ith annexed by w hich it will be seen that this poor creature has been
cruelly treated and left in total ignorance of the Being of a God. She m ade the
statem ent and answ ered the questions w ithout the least em barrassm ent....T his
evening C harlotte w as again surprised at w hat she w itnessed at our family
w orship. On the arrival of this w om an a new nam e w as given her i.e. C harlotte in
lieu of Sarah by w hich latter she w as called by the sealers, and it has been my
practice to give new nam es to all w ho join the settlem ent from this class of
individuals. She is very docile and quiet and appears industrious. She this day
cleaned out m y office.
Kalloongoo, a Kaurna woman from the region south of Adelaide, and not
from Port Lincoln
Before proceeding further, it is necessary to clear up a point of confusion inherent in
Robinson's journal entry, and p erpetuated in a num ber of secondary sources published
since. R obinson’s interview w ith Kalloongoo quoted above begins w ith the statem ent
that 'KAL.LOON.GOO, (2) COW.WER.PITE.YER, (3) WIN.DEER.RER alias Sarah [is] an
aboriginal female of N ew H olland, the point opposite to Kangaroo Island, the w est
point of Port Lincoln'. C um pston referring to this journal entry of Robinson's reiterates
that 'D utton had obtained a N ew H olland w om an (from Port Lincoln) nam ed
Kal.loon.goo (S arah /C h arlo tte)'.3(1 Barwick also referring to Robinson's journal, this time
for 9th January 1837, m akes the statem ent that two of the w om en on G un Carriage
Island in the Furneaux G roup betw een Flinders and Cape Barren Islands 'w ere certainly
from Port Lincoln' 1and cites personal com m unication w ith Plom ley that 'K alloongoo or
Sarah (then renam ed Charlotte) w as originally kidnapped from Port Lincoln (where she
had been m arried to a brother of the w om an Emue or Emme w ho became the wife of the
Abyssinia Jack' alias John A nderson)'.32 M ollison, also draw ing on Robinson's journals,
refers to Kalloongoo as com ing from Port Lincoln.33
H ow ever, later in the interview w ith Robinson, Kalloongoo 'said the country w here
she came from w as called BAT.BUN.GER [Patpangga = Rapid Bay] YANG.GAL.
LALE.LAR [Yankalilla], It is situate at the w est point of St. Vincents Gulf'. Rapid Bay
and Yankalilla are located to the south of A delaide, north of Cape Jervis. The reference
to Kalloongoo com ing from Port Lincoln then is probably due to Robinson's lack of
know ledge of the geography of the South A ustralian coast. Robinson recorded this
interview in 1837, one year after the establishm ent of the South A ustralian colony, w hen
Port Lincoln w as nothing m ore than a nam e and a dot on a map. The tow n of Port
Lincoln w as not surveyed until 1840.
2g in Plomley, 1987, pp. 445-447.
3,1Cumpston 1970, p. 170.
Barwick 1985, p. 212.
' Barwick 1985, p. 231.
33 Mollison 1976.
43
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
The language data recorded by Robinson in this interview further confirms that
Kalloongoo was a Kaurna speaker. The words recorded are readily identifiable as
Kaurna words recorded by Teichelmann & Schürmann (1840):
Robinson's Journal
yap.per
whirle; whir.le
kir.ler
nar.rer; nar.rar
Gloss
'a hole'
'house'
'fire'
'wood'
T & S (1840)
yappa
wodli14
gadla 35
ngarra
Gloss
hole'
'house'
'fire'
'piece of burnt wood,
stump, stick'
The name recorded for Kangaroo Island, Dirki.yer.tun.ger.yer.ter, is possibly a
misunderstanding. Kalloongoo might have said tikki yertangga yerta 'lived on the land
(on) the land’, possibly meaning that she came from the mainland. Wat.tar.cut.ter is also
recorded for 'an island’ in Charles Robinson's wordlist, whilst a similar form wattegakal is
given by Gaimard (1833) for 'island'. Teichelmann & Schürmann (1840) document Karta
as the name for Kangaroo Island, though they did not record a word for 'island' in
general.
James Allen, Kalloongoo's abductor and master on Kangaroo Island, was engaged
in the sealing industry from 1817.h However, she must have been kidnapped some time
after 1823 since her co-abductor, William Johnson was on board a sealing vessel, the
Alligator in 1823.1 In 1831, Johnson told Robinson that he had been sealing for seven to
nine years.w She would have been transported from Kangaroo Island to Bass Strait
aboard the Henry sometime between March 1829 and March 1834. We can say this
because the Henry was launched in 1827 and made her first voyage to Kangaroo Island
in March 1829. The Henry made at least seven voyages to Kangaroo Island before she
was wrecked at Portland in September 1834.
We can use additional information to pin down the date even further. Plomley and
Henley estimate that Sophia, Kalloongoo's daughter to Bill Dutton of Portland, was born
about 1830.11 Dutton first went sealing in 1828 and was landed at Portland Bay (in
Victoria) in December of that year. Note that in 1837, Robinson reported that at the time
Kalloongoo had a son, Johnny Franklin, who was estimated to have been five years old,
so Johnny Franklin would have been born in about 1832. It is also known from
Kalloongoo's interview that Johnny Franklin was born on a rock near the Julia Percy
Islands near Portland and that Sophia, was born before Johnny Franklin. So for Sophia
34Non pre-stopped forms recorded in other sources: worli 'house' (Teichelmann, 1857); wer-lie
'house' (Williams, 1840); werle 'house' (Wyatt, 1879); walle 'house' (Gaimard, 1833) are closer
to Robinson's whirle 'house'.
"Similarly, other observers record non pre-stopped forms garla 'fire' (Teichelmann, 1857);
cur-la 'fire' (Williams, 1840); kerla 'firewood' (Wyatt, 1879) again more closely approximating
Robinson's kir.ler 'fire'.
3hCumpston, 1970, p. 44
37Cumpston, 1970, p. 170
3MPlomley, 1966, p. 1013
34Plomely and Henley 1990, p. 26.
44
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
45
to have been born before Johnny Franklin in about 1830, it is most likely that Kalloongoo
was transported to Portland in the Henry on its first voyage to Kangaroo Island in 1829.
Kalloongoo herself was thought to have been about twenty years old in 1837.40 If
that was the case, she would have been a child when she was abducted. However, that
in itself would not have been unusual. Robinson's journals document many cases of
sealers kidnapping children and keeping them as slaves for many years.
Kalloongoo was reported to be still in Port Philip (Melbourne) in 1842, where she
appears to have been a close friend of Trucanini. In 1840 they had gone off together and
were living with two shepherds at Point Nepean at the entrance to Port Philip Bay.41
Following the killing of two whalers by a group of Tasmanians that Robinson had
brought to Port Philip, Trucanini and the other Tasmanians were sent back to Flinders
Island, but Kalloongoo and her son, Johnny Franklin, remained at Port Philip.42
Emue or Emma, Kalloongoo's sister-in-law is generally assumed to come from Port
Lincoln also, though Mollison, under the Anderson Family genealogy, states that she
was of the Narrinyeri Group, South Australia.43 It is not clear on what basis Mollison
claims that she w as Narrinyeri. More likely she was Kaurna, though it is possible that
she belonged to the neighbouring Narrinyeri (Ngarrindjeri) group. Later Mollison,
drawing on Robinson's journals, refers to Emue as originating from the mainland
opposite Kangaroo Island, and still later as coming from Spencer's Gulf. Emue had
undoubtedly been abducted earlier than Kalloongoo because, as quoted earlier, in 1831
she was said to have 10 children to Abyssinia Jack, five of whom were with her on Gun
Carriage Island.44 It is extremely unlikely that she had 10 children between 1823 and
1831. It seems that George Meredith Jnr was Emue’s abductor:
23 July 1836
They had two boats. Abyssinia Jack had charge of one with some New Holland
women and also VDL women . . . The New Holland women were the same that
had been stolen from their country adjacent to Kangaroo Island by George
Meredith Jnr of Oyster Bay.43
Emue died at Woody Island in December 1837.4h
The im portance o f R ob in son 's Kaurna w ord list
The existence of an early Kaurna wordlist recorded far from Kaurna territory is an
interesting, but not unique phenomenon. The first Kaurna wordlist ever to have been
transcribed was recorded by a French zoologist, M. Gaimard, aboard the Astrolabe in
King George Sound (Albany) in south west Western Australia.4, This wordlist of 160
words was also recorded from a Kaurna person taken there by sealers in 1826. At the
40Plomley, 1987, p. 695
41 Rae Ellis, 1981, p. 100
42Rae Ellis, 1981, p. 119
43see Barwick, 1985, pp. 212, 231 and Mollison 1976.
44 Plomley, 1966, p. 327
13Plomley, 1987, p. 366
4ABarwick 1985, p. 231
4' Gaimard, 1833
46
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
same time Gaimard also recorded a Tasmanian wordlist. However, Gaimard's Kaurna
wordlist is the topic of another paper.4S
As we have seen, almost all of the words in Robinson's Kaurna wordlist are already
known to us in more reliable sources, especially Teichelmann & Schürmann (1840). How
then is Robinson's Kaurna wordlist important?
Firstly, there are several words, yul.to 'frog', war.rar.te 'tadpole' and mo.ker mo.ker
'kangaroo rat' in Robinson's Kaurna wordlist which were not recorded in any of the
other Kaurna sources. In fact, no term for 'tadpole' is recorded in the other Kaurna
sources, though a different word, rnudatj 'tadpole' is recorded in Narrunga, a closely
related language. Occasionally, an additional form of an existing word, such as yar.to
yar.to 'baby' related to yerthondi 'to grow’ has been recorded. At other times Robinson's
recording gives an additional slant or another meaning of a word recorded by
Teichelmann & Schürmann. Par.cu.lar 'cold' compared with bakkadla 'hoar frost’ is an
example of this, though it could also be the result of misunderstanding.
Charles Robinson's transcriptions break the words into syllables, a practice both he
and his father use regularly in transcribing Tasmanian words. Robinson has consistently
omitted to write the initial velar nasal [N] irrespective of the following vowel.49 Vowels
are transcribed inconsistently. The letter i is used for the diphthong [ai] as in i.thoe =
ngaityo 'my' and for the vowel [i] as in tin.to = Undo 'sun'.
The letter u is used for the vowel [u] as in 'put' as well as the vowel [p ] as in 'but'
The Kaurna vowel [i] is transcribed variously by the letters i, e, ee, er and a
The Kaurna vowel [a] is transcribed variously by the letters ar, er, u, e, a and i
The Kaurna vowel [u] is transcribed variously by the letters ou, u, ue, o and oe
The diphthong [ai] is transcribed as i, ie, yhe and y
Note for example:
i.thoe
= ngaityo
T
pie.ther.pull.ta
=paityabulti
'old woman'
caw.y.he
= kawai
'come'
me.yo.coiu.y
= meyu kawai
'men are coming'
The diphthong [au] is transcribed as ow, whilst the diphthong [ui] is transcribed as ue.
Robinson sometimes inserts a vowel within a consonant cluster. Note:
none.ta
= nurnti
'away'
ule.ta
= ngulti
'night'
For some unknown reason, the final i vowel following t is transcribed as a in both these
words.
Consonants too, are transcribed inconsistently. The alveopalatal stop [ty] is
transcribed as ch and th. The alveopalatal nasal [ny] is transcribed as n.y and ne.y. The
velar stop [k] is transcribed variously as c, k, ck, ck.c and g. Sometimes consonants are
transcribed by a single consonant and at other times by a double consonant. It is
4XAmery, forthcoming
" The i initial Kaurna words appear to be the only ones to appear in Plomley. This oddity caused
Plomley (1976, p. 22) to question the accuracy and authenticity of Charles Robinson's
transcriptions. He attributed these i intial words and other forms such as me.you 'man' to the
influence of English.
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
47
in te re s tin g th a t R obinson alm ost a lw a y s transcribes stops as voiceless. O n ly ra re ly does
he e m p lo y d or g and then it occurs m o s tly fo llo w in g a nasal. B appears n o t to be used at
all in his tra n s c rip tio n o f K a u rn a w o rd s.
In a fe w cases, R obinson's tra n s c rip tio n s can a c tu a lly h e lp in w o rk in g o u t h o w to
p ro n o u n ce the w o rd . For exam ple, R obinson's tra n s c rip tio n mu.rer.car.ne c ry ’ indicates
th a t the 'r' in m urkandi 'to cry' is p ro n o u n ce d as an Y sound and the 'u r' sequence is n o t
p ro n o u n c e d as in E nglish slur. The s p e llin g me.ther 'hot' tends to in d ic a te th a t th e 'd ' in
the w o rd meda 'heat, flam e, h o t etc' is p ro n o u n ce d as an in te rd e n ta l stop [th ]. It is
d iffic u lt to k n o w w h e th e r a ' t ' o r ' d ' in T e ich e lm a n n & S chürm ann (1840) is pro n o u n ce d
as an in te rd e n ta l [th ] and a lve o la r [t] o r a re tro fle x stop [rt].
W here T eichelm ann & S chürm ann have recorded a n u m b e r o f term s m e aning m ore
o r less the same th in g , R obinson's w o rd lis t tends to in d ica te w h ic h term s w ere m ore
c o m m o n ly used, o r w h ic h w ere c o m m o n ly used b y the so u th e rn K a u rn a . Robinson's
K a u rn a w o rd lis t p ro v id e s a d d itio n a l evidence fo r the existence o f a d is tin c tiv e so uthern
dialect, d is tin c t fro m the d ia le ct recorded b y T e ich e lm a n n & S chürm ann (1840). There
are a n u m b e r o f g ro u n d s fo r this:
1. It features the w o rd mu.rane.ne 'ru n '. T eich e lm a n n and S chürm ann (1840) cite
m urrendi as a so u th e rn d ia le ctal fo rm as opposed to padnendi used in the n o rth .
G a im a rd (1833) also records mourenn 'flee, ru n aw ay'.
2. The present tense a ffix w o u ld appear to be -n i in the s o u th e rn d ia le ct o f K a urna
as all the verbs recorded b y R obinson are listed w ith a fin a l ne. There is no
in d ic a tio n o f the d in the present tense -ndi s u ffix recorded co n siste n tly by
T eichelm ann and S chürm ann (1840). T h is is co rro b o ra te d b y oth e r sources such as
G a im a rd and W yatt.""
3. The in fre q u e n t use o f p re s to p p in g (eg. R obinson's cull.ar 'fire ' c.f. T& S gadla 'fire;
R obinson's w a lle 'house' c.f. T&S wodli 'house' etc.). Form s o f these w o rd s w ith o u t
p re sto p p in g also appear in G a im a rd and W y a tt. P re sto p p in g is m u ch m ore
p re va le n t in dialects and languages to the n o rth (eg N u k u n u , P a rn ka lla ), b u t is
e n tire ly absent in N g a rrin d je ri to the east.
The existence o f C harles R obinson's K a u rn a w o rd lis t has even m ore im p o rta n t
lin g u is tic im p lic a tio n s fo r the languages o f Tasm ania. W e k n o w w ith some c e rta in ty the
precise p ro n u n c ia tio n o f m a n y o f the K a u rn a w o rd s he recorded. So th is w o rd lis t
p ro v id e s a good check on the q u a lity and accuracy o f R obinson's tra n s c rip tio n s and
in sights in to the w ays in w h ic h he tends to o r prefers to represent sounds, o r indeed to
o m it sounds altogether.
For instance, in a T asm anian w o rd transcribed b y C harles R obinson, w e s im p ly
d o n 't k n o w w h e th e r 'u' sh o u ld be p ro n o u n ce d [u ] as in 'p u t' o r [ p ] as in 'but'. H o w e v e r,
it m ay be safe to assume th a t fin a l 'er' is p ro n o u n ce d [ p ] o r [ ] as in E n g lish 'b u tte r' fo r
this is the case in every instance o f his K a u rn a tra n scrip tio n s. H o w e v e r, K a u rn a does n o t
a llo w consonant fin a l w o rd s , so it m ig h t s till be possible fo r T asm anian w o rd s to end
w ith an Y sound.
S im ila rly , George A u g u s tu s R obinson is k n o w n to have also recorded w o rd s fro m
V ic to ria n languages in the 1840's. In the same w a y , these records m a y assist in
50G arim ard 1833; W ya tt 1879.
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
48
interpreting his work on Tasmanian languages. It is worth noting from the few Kaurna
words George Augustus Robinson recorded, his transcriptions differed significantly
from those of his son Charles. Note:
George Augustus Robinson
Charles Robinson
kir.ler
'fire'
cull.ar
whirle ~ whir.le
'house'
w alle
nar.rer ~ nar.rar
'wood'
ar.rer
war.tar cut.ter
wat.ter.ker.ter
'island'
Significantly, George Augustus transcribed the initial velar nasal in ngarra 'wood' as 'n'
where Charles consistently omitted it.
However, despite his failings, this paper to some extent rehabilitates Charles
Robinson's standing as a recorder of Tasmanian languages. Plomley, noting aberrant
features in his recordings, is very critical of their quality and of Charles Robinson
himself:
The following points suggest that little reliance can be placed upon Charles
Robinson's work—
(a) In several places the record is incomplete, the English meanings of the
aboriginal words having been omitted; as well, there is sometimes confusion in the
record; and different copies may show differences of spelling of the native word.
(b) In a number of cases the word recorded appears to be wholly or partly a
corruption of English (perhaps representing the 'pidgin' used by (some of) the
natives on the settlement). The following appear to be such corruptions—
1. Words beginning with 'i', and particularly with 'i.tho(e)' (? = I so).
2. Some words beginning with 'o'.
3. Words such as 'me.you' (= man).
4. Words beginning with 'no' and with 'no i', which are English negatives.
Charles Robinson appears to have been handicapped in the compilation of his
vocabularies by a lack of schooling and by a want of intelligence. Unless a word is
supported by other records, it would probably be best to disregard it.51
Most of these 'corruptions' and some of the putative 'pidgin' features, though not all, are
accounted for by the Kaurna wordlist. Points 1 and 3 levelled against Robinson can now
be discounted entirely. It is now up to specialists of the Tasmanian languages to reassess
the value of the remainder of Charles Robinson's work.
C on clu sion
The linguistic evidence within Kalloongoo's interview with Robinson and within the
wordlist itself provides irrefutable evidence that Kalloongoo was a Kaurna woman and
was not from Port Lincoln as Robinson himself and a num ber of other sources suggest.
Nor was Emue or Emma from Port Lincoln, being Kalloongoo's sister-in-law she was
either Kaurna or from a neighbouring group. The historical record can be reliably
corrected in this respect.
It is remarkable that we should still be turning up 'new' wordlists of Kaurna to
augment known historical sources. Robinson's Kaurna wordlist remained unidentified
Plomley, 1976, pp. 21-21.
KAURNA IN TASMANIA
49
or m is-identified for so long because it w as included w ith Robinson's Tasm anian
m aterials and there w as a total absence of any notations on the pages them selves w hich
w ould identify the source.
W hilst m ost of the w ords recorded in Robinson's K aurna source are well know n,
the w ord list does provide several additio n al term s that have not been elsew here
recorded and does provide solid evidence for a distinctive southern K aurna dialect. It
also provides solid evidence for K aurna country extending dow n to Cape Jervis. The
status of this region as K aurna country has been questioned recently by the publication
of Berndt's book A World That Was w hich includes a m ap w ith Ram indjeri territory
extending right up to N oarlunga on the southern outskirts of the city of A delaide.52
Berndt's sources w ere N garrindjeri, interview ed this century. His m ap represents a post­
contact reality from a N garrindjeri perspective and points to a m ovem ent of
N garrindjeri people into an area that w as d epopulated of its original inhabitants.
Perhaps even m ore interesting than the w o rd s them selves are the historical events
surro u n d in g the w ordlist and the m ovem ent of K aurna people over vast distances
during the pre-colonial historical period.
It is possible that other obscure historical sources on the K aurna language may
surface in the future. In the absence of speakers of the language, any attem pts to reclaim
and relearn the K aurna language necessarily rely totally on these historical sources. It is
rem arkable just how m uch progress can be m ade by piecing together inform ation
recorded more than one and a half centuries ago.
A ck n o w led g em en ts
To Philip Clarke my thanks for 'opening the door' to the literature on sealing and
w haling and for access to a pre-publication copy of his paper. I also thank Julie Tree,
Librarian at SSABSA, and the staff of the M itchell Library in Sydney for their assistance
in gaining access to som e of Robinson's h an d w ritten m anuscripts and for facilitating
perm ission for their reproduction here. Ian Clarke kindly gave advice regarding their
interpretation. I thank Richard Barwick and Isabel McBryde for assistance in the
preparation of m aps appearin g in this paper. Most of all, I thank Jane Sim pson and
M ary-A nne Gale for their m any helpful com m ents on an earlier draft of this paper.
Rob Amery is currently completing a PhD in Linguistics at the University of Adelaide ivhere he
is researching efforts to relearn and revive Kaurna, the language of the Adelaide Plains, from
nineteenth century sources. In 1997, with the support of the Kaurna people, he introduced a
course in Kaurna linguistics at the University of Adelaide.
R eferences
Amery, Rob forthcom ing, 'Sally and H arry: Insights into Early K aurna Contact H istory.'
to ap p ear in Aboriginal History, M onograph 5 edited by Luise H ercus & Jane
Simpson.
52
B e r n d t ' s 1 9 9 3 : 30 4.
50
ABORIGINAL HISTORY 1996 20
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