Page:An Australian language as spoken by the Awabakal.djvu/196

 108 AN AL'STKALIAN LANGUAGE.

Tarai, 'some one, auotlier, other', is singular; but tara, 'others,' is plural.

Taraito is tarai, with the particle of agency postfixed.

Kuri, 'man, men,' according to the singular or plural idea expressed or understood in the context.

Kuriko is kuri, with the particle of agency postfixed.

Wonto ba, 'whereas,' a compound phrase; from won, 'where'? the interrogative adverb of place.

Wonto ba-ba, 'is as '; the ba is a particle which verbalizes the word to which it is affixed.

No a, the inseparable verbal pronoun, 'he'; the separable em- phatic pronoun 'he' is niuwoa.

Eloita; for Eloi, see above; ta is the substantive verb, 'it is actually'; this phrase affirms that it is God who is the agent.

Section 2.

Wakal, 'one'; buloara, 'two'; goro, 'three'; wara, 'four'; beyond which the aborigines have no word to express higher numbers. For ' five ' the)^ hold up one hand and say y an tin, 'all,' i.e., all the five fingers; or both hands with a part of the fingers up to describe the numbers 6, 7, 8, 9 ; for 10 they hold all the fingers up and say yantin ; or they double both hands and say kauwal-lcauwal, a 'greatmany,' andrepeat the same as often as required, to give some idea of the greatness of the number.

Section 3.

Pital, 'joy, peace, gladness, happiness, love.'

Marai, ' spirit '; not the ' ghost ' of a departed person, which is mamuya.

Section 4.

Gearun, 'us'; geen, 'we'; gearunba, 'our,' 'belonging to us'; see pronouns.

Winulli, ' to burn,' to consume by fire only, and not in any other way ; hence winulli ko, 'to consume,' ' to burn.'

Winullikan means ' one who consumes or burns.' The particle -kan means ' the person who,' and is equivalent to the English particle -er, affixed to verbs to form the substantive person, as lovf7% consumer. To express the thing, the particle -ne is postfixed ; as, wiuullikanne, 'the burning thing wdiich con- sumes.'

Koiyug, 'fire'; the particle -kan, in the text, is affixed to show that the 'fire' is to be construed with the preceding word, by which it is thus connected and governed.

Section 5. TJnnug, 'there.' Bo ta, 'only,' a compound of bo, 'self,' and ta, ' it is '; meaning it is ' that selfsame thing only' to Avhich it is affixed; as, wakol bo ta, 'one only, one by itself, one alone.'

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