Langenesis

Pama-Nyungan family

Dyirbal

c. 1500 CE – today Living

Dyirbal (c. 1500 CE – today) is a living Pama-Nyungan language. Lineage: Proto-Pama-Nyungan → Dyirbal.

See Dyirbal on the interactive map
ISO 639-3
dbl
Glottocode
dyir1250

Language of the rainforest of northeast Queensland, famous from Dixon's work on its noun classes and avoidance register. Nearly extinct, with only a handful of speakers. Start date is nominal; intermediate subgroups are not tracked.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Pama-Nyunganc. 4,000 BCE – 3,000 BCE
  2. Dyirbalc. 1500 CE – today

Sister languages 5

Also descended from Proto-Pama-Nyungan.

Sources