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CEREMONY AND CULTURE

kathal naming-word. novices' shed. Thuurrkalangkunang-kal kanaapiyi kathalku. Then the men carried them on their shoulders to their special shed. A special shed used in the purrpa ceremony for making boys into men. Lily Hampton and Liza Kennedy told a story about the purrpa to Tamsin Donaldson, and it is found as text 1 in Ngiyampaa Wordworld, 2nd edition (from page 13 onwards).
katharay 1. naming-word. undeterred, undeterred one.
2. naming-word. respect for punishment, one who respects punishment.
Kurikuta ALSO: Kurrikuta. See: Kurrikuta naming-word. names and place names. powerful female sky being, made of quartz crystal.
Kurrikuta ALSO: Kurikuta. naming-word. powerful female sky being made of quartz crystals.
kuthi naming-word. song.
manhang naming-word. white paint.
ngiya naming-word. word, talk, the law. Mayingku ngiya Aboriginal law
ngulungkiyarr naming-word. headband.
nguuya naming-word. special creature of the wirringan mayi 'cleverman', familiar.
pathaampathaanh naming-word. a specific poison. Pathaampathaanh is a specific kind of poison, not the general word for poison.
pupu ALSO: puupuu. naming-word. being associated with initiation ceremonies. People prefer to avoid naming mythical beings such as pupu/puupuu and thuwi. Instead they refer to them as wanta/waanta, i.e. 'ulgy ones' (even when speaking English).
pupunhaam naming-word. pupu tucker. Pupunhaam is a synonym for tharramulan 'yam', said by Ngiyampaa consultants to mean literally 'one legged' (tharraN- is 'thigh, leg'). Pupu are the mythical beings who 'take away the boys to make them into men', according to the women who reminisce in Text 1 (in Ngiyampaa Worldworld, 2nd edition) about their experience of preparations for the purrpa (initiation ceremony).
purrpa ALSO: purrpanh. naming-word. ceremony for making boys into men, initiation ceremony. Mayilukal purrpanhthi pantiyi. They put people through the rules (lit. 'They tied people into the purrpa.')
purrpil naming-word. pillow to beat time for songs. Tamsin Donaldson writes: 'Time was kept [for songs] by thumping a small burbil [purrpil] or "pillow" of crumpled rag. Informants do not know what the pillow was made of before rag was available. Women sang and "beat their rugs" according to Matthews (1897:128)'. (Ngiyampaa: The Language of the Wangaaybuwan, page 307)
purrpilaka doing-word. will beat time, might beat time. See: purrpira See: purrpiya See: purrpiyaa See: purrpiyi See: purrpil
purrpili doing-word. to beat time, in order to beat time. See: purrpira See: purrpiya See: purrpiyaa See: purrpiyi See: purrpilaka See: purrpil
purrpira ALSO: purrpiya. doing-word. beat time, beating time. See: purrpiyaa See: purrpiyi See: purrpil Usage: Tamsin Donaldson wrotes that Trida speakers preferred present forms with 'ra' and Keewong speakers preferred 'ya' at the end of present tense L2 verbs (see Ngiyampaa: The Language of the Wangaaybuwan, page.158)
purrpiya ALSO: purrpira. doing-word. beat time, beating time. See: purrpiyaa See: purrpiyi See: purrpil Usage: Tamsin Donaldson wrotes that Trida speakers preferred present forms with 'ra' and Keewong speakers preferred 'ya' at the end of present tense L2 verbs (see Ngiyampaa: The Language of the Wangaaybuwan, page.158)
purrpiyaa doing-word. beat time!. See: purrpiyi See: purrpil
purrpiyi doing-word. beat time (past). Winarruluku purrpiyi His woman beat time [with her purrpil]. See: purrpil
puupuu ALSO: pupu. See: pupu naming-word. being associated with initiation ceremonies.
thakurrma naming-word. cemetery.
thankurrumakirri doing-word. to dance in the shake-knees style.
thankurrumanha doing-word. dance/dancing in the shake-knees style.
thankurrumanhi doing-word. danced in the shake-knees style.
tharrampal naming-word. 1. Milky Way.
2. path at ceremonial ground.
3. personal 'beat' or accustomed travelling range.
thiitu naming-word. bundle of goods for exchange.
thingkaa ALSO: thingkaang, thingkaanh. naming-word. 1. animal, meat.
2. a person's 'meat' or totem.
thuwi ALSO: thuwii. naming-word. hairy 'wanta' being who lives in caves. Wanta means 'ugly'. People prefer to avoid naming mythical beings such as pupu and thuwi. Instead they refer to them as wanta, i.e. 'ulgy ones' (even when speaking English). The kind of wata described at T2, is called thuwi on account of its call,"thuwi, thuwi, thuwi..."
tyiirr ALSO: tyirr. naming-word. spirit of a dead person.
tyirr ALSO: tyiirr. naming-word. spirit of a dead person.
waanta See: wanta naming-word. ALSO: wantang. scary being. Wantangkunangkal kaanhilanga. The Wanta took them then. Wanta means 'ugly'. People prefer to avoid naming mythical beings such as pupu and thuwi. Instead they refer to them as wanta, i.e., 'ulgy ones' (even when speaking English).
Waaway naming-word. being that made the rivers, 'rainbow serpent'. Ngiyampaa speakers never translate the word 'waaway'. They liken 'waaway' to a big snake, and to the whale that swallowed Jonah.
wakakirri doing-word. to dance, to corroborre.
wakathunmakirri doing-word. to dance together, to corrobore together. Kurunhinangkal ngathilaa ngawukakalay, wakathunmakirriku. They went inside that windbreak, at night only, to corroboree together. See: wakakirri
wakathunmangilanha doing-word. generally dance/corroboree together, dance/corroboree together continuously. This is where they generally corroboree together.
waluuy naming-word. newly initiated man.
wanta naming-word. ALSO: wantang. scary being. Wantangkunangkal kaanhilanga. The Wanta took them then. Wanta means 'ugly'. People prefer to avoid naming mythical beings such as pupu and thuwi. Instead they refer to them as wanta, i.e., 'ulgy ones' (even when speaking English).
warangun naming-word. spirit animating a living person. Ngani-laa mayi warangun kupa-tyili-nya. That persons warangun is chasisng itself. That person is rushing about.
wirringan naming-word. clever man.
yirramurrung naming-word. novice in the law.
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