Nganyundi burrgi My body
Gumbaynggirr
words for parts of the body
First published in 2025 by:
Muurrbay Aboriginal Language and Culture Co-operative
14 Bellwood Road
Nambucca Heads NSW 2448
Telephone: 02 6569 4294
Email: admin@muurrbay.org.au
Website: http://muurrbay.org.au/
Muurrbay Aboriginal Language and Culture Co-operative is a leading regional language centre that provides strategic support to revitalise the languages of seven Aboriginal communities of central and northern NSW. We work closely with Elders and local language, culture and educational organisations to conduct research, publish accessible grammar-dictionaries, and develop engaging education courses and resources.
MUURRBAY’S VISION
‘ . . . language is not just simply a means of communication; it also provides a means through which the culture, social values and world view of a particular language group can be identified and understood.’
© Muurrbay Aboriginal Language and Culture Co-operative
© Illustrations: Frances Belle Parker
ISBN XXXXXXXXXX
A catalogue record for this book is available from the National Library of Australia.
The audio features: [?Any details to add here]
Illustrated by Frances Belle Parker
Map by Sue Tomkins
Designed by Christine Bruderlin
The production of this book has been supported by the Australian Government’s Indigenous Languages and Arts program
From my gaali to my jiina ,
All my body tells a story.
When I see, I see with my miil.
When I hear, I hear with my ngaalgan .
Body healthy, buurrgi darruy — I’m a proud Gumbaynggirr Goori.
ngaalgan
From my gaali to my jiina ,
All my body tells a story.
When I touch, I touch with my maarla .
When I kiss, I kiss with my jalaany.
Body healthy, buurrgi darruy — I’m a proud Gumbaynggirr Goori.
maarla jalaany
From my gaali to my jiina ,
All my body tells a story.
When I smell, I smell with my jingaam .
When I taste, with my ganyaambil.
Body healthy, buurrgi darruy — I’m a proud Gumbaynggirr Goori.
jingaam
ganyaambil
diira
From my gaali to my jiina ,
All my body tells a story.
When I eat, I fill up my buluuny.
Till I bend at my bagabaga .
Body healthy, buurrgi darruy — I’m a proud Gumbaynggirr Goori.
bagabaga
From my gaali to my jiina ,
All my body tells a story.
I have cleaned and combed my maara ,
Put a smile on mummy’s waan . . .
. . . Body healthy, buurrgi darruy —
I’m a proud Gumbaaynggirr Goori.
buurrgi darruy
About Gumbaynggirr
Gumbaynggirr (pronounced Goom-baynggearr) is an Aboriginal language of the country between between the Clarence and Nambucca rivers in northern New South Wales. Since 1986, the language has been revived by Gumbaynggirr people and others. There are now many books and resources in Gumbaynggirr language for the growing number of speakers and language learners.
How to pronounce the Gumbaynggirr words in this book
Gumbaynggirr word Pronunciation English translation
bagabaga knees
buluuny belly
buurrgi body
darruy good
diira teeth
gaali head
ganyaambil tongue
jalaany mouth
jiina foot
jingaam nose
maara hair
maarla hands
miil eyes
ngaalgan ears
waan face
wuuru throat
The sounds of Gumbaynggirr
Vowel sounds
Vowel Gumbaynggirr Equivalent English sound
a galang (gosh) but
aa ngaarlu (water) path
i ngayinggi (sit) bit
ii as in biiway (not) feet
u as in gulung (bowl) put
uu as in guuyu (friend) foot
Consonant sounds
Consonant Gumbaynggirr Equivalent English sound
b biiway (no) baby or puppy
Note: ‘b’ may sound like ‘p’; e.g. gaabi ‘wallaby’, can sound like gaapi
d dunggiirr (koala) did or tot
Note: ‘d’ may sound like ‘t’; giduurr ‘sand’ can sound like gituurr. g gulung (bowl) gag or Kate
Note: ‘g’ may sound like ‘k’, for example ‘galang ’ (gosh) sounds like ‘kalang ’. It is never said like English ‘age’.
j juun (tail) no exact sound, say ‘dune’ rather than ‘June’
l yilaami (come here) lily
m minya (what) mum
n juun (tail) nan
ng ngiinda (you) sing
ny nyaagiliw (will see) onion
Note: ‘ny’ may end a word, but is never said like English ‘many ’.
r waaru (up) run
rr bularri (two) a rolled or trilled ‘r’, with the tongue flapped forward as pronounced by Scottish people
rl ngarlu (water) poorly
w waandi (climb) wow
y ya (this) yet (never pronounced as in why)
The song featured in this book was created as an easy and fun way to teach and learn Gumbaynggirr words for beginner language learners. Gumbaynggirr (pronounced Goom-bayng-gearr) is an Aboriginal language of northern New South Wales. This book is part of the strong language and cultural revival movement of Gumbaynggirr and other Aboriginal people throughout the region.
Scan the QR code inside this book to hear the song!