Volume Ii Part 35 (1/2)

Limbapyu : immuta lawidperra 2 + 1.

Kowrarega : warapune qua.s.sur 2 + 1.

Gudang : epiamana elabaio 2 + 1.

Darnley Island : netat nes 2 + 1.

Raffles Bay : loca orica orongarie.

Lake Macquarie : wakol buloara ngoro.

Peel River : peer pular purla.

Wellington : ngungbai bula bula-ngungbai.

Corio : koimoil.

Jhongworong : kap.

Pinegorine : youa.

Gnurellean : lua.

King George Sound : keyen cuetrel murben.

Karaula : mal bular culeba.

Lachlan, Regent Lake : nyoonbi bulia bulongonbi.

Wollondilly River : medung pulla colluerr.

The Verb now requires notice. In languages in the same stage of development with the Australian the usual a.n.a.lysis, as shown by the late Mr. Garnett in his masterly papers on the structure of the verb, is as follows: 1. The root. 2. The possessive p.r.o.noun. 3. A particle of time--often originally one of place.

A rough ill.u.s.tration of this is the statement that such a word as dormur == sleep-my-then (or there). To apply this doctrine to the Kowrarega with our present data, is unsafe. Still, I am inclined (notwithstanding some difficulties) to identify the pa of the Present tense with the bu in kai-bu = now, and the n of the preterite with the n of che-na = there.

The double forms of the Past tense (one in n, and another in m) are at present inexplicable. So are the double forms of the Imperative, namely the one in r, and the one in e. It may, however, be remarked, that wherever the Imperative ends in e, the Preterite has the form in m; thus, pid-e = dig, pid-ema = dug. The only exception is the anomalous form peneinG.o.dgi = dived. This prepares the future grammarian for a division of the Kowrarega Verbs into Conjugations.

The last cla.s.s of words that supply the materials of comment are the Substantives. Herein, the formation of the plural by the addition of le, probably occurs in several of the Australian tongues. I infer this from many of those words which we find in the vocabularies of languages whereof the grammar is unknown, and which are expressive of naturally plural objects ending in li, la, or l.

1. Star (stars)--pur-le, pi-lle, poo-lle, in Parnkalla, Aiawong, and Yak-k.u.mban.

2. Fire (flames)--ka-lla, gad-la, in Western Australian and Parnkalla.

3. Head (hair)--kur-le, Encounter Bay. Here we learn from the forms kar-ga, from the Head of the Great Australian Bight, and ma-kar-ta, from Adelaide, that the l is foreign to the root.

4. Hands--marrow-la in the Molonglo dialect; as contrasted with marra in the Adelaide.

This, however, is merely a conjecture, a conjecture, however, which has a practical bearing. It suggests caution in the comparison of vocabularies; since, by mistaking an inflexion or an affix for a part of the root, we may overlook really existing similarities.

Father Anjello's very brief grammatical sketch of the Limbakarajia language of Port Essington* exhibits, as far as it goes, precisely the same principles as Mr. Macgillivray's Kowrarega; indeed, some of the details coincide.

(*Footnote. Given to Mr. Macgillivray by Mr. James Macarthur, and prefixed to the ma.n.u.script Port Essington Vocabulary, alluded to in Volume 1.)

Thus, the Limbakarajia personal p.r.o.nouns are:

I = nga-pi.

We = ngari.

Thou = noie.

We two = arguri.

He, she, it = gianat.

Ye = noie.

They = ngalmo.