Diary of ten years eventful life of an early settler in Western Australia and also A descriptive vocabulary of the language of the aborigines/A descriptive vocabulary of the language in common use amongst the aborigines of Western Australia/Part 1/W
W.
Wab-ye gadak, a.—Awed; terrified; having awe or fear.
Waddarăk—Proper name of the Canning mountain people.
Waddarak, s.—A species of chicory or sow-thistle.
Waddo-wadong, s.—Vanga destructor; butcher-bird.
Wadju. A term applied to the hair of the head. Katta măngăra wadju, meaning that it is properly dressed, according to native fashion and ideas, when rolled up, well-greased, and wilgied, and fastened round the head, so as to form a matted mass impenetrable to the intense heat of an Australian sun.
Wai-yu—(K.G.S.) A species of Kingia.
Wa-kur-in—(K.G.S.) A species of waterfowl.
Walbăr—(K.G.S.) The sea-shore.
Walbul, ad.—Stretching or reaching over—as Walbul-ngannowin, eating with the neck outstretched, as a horse reaching over a fence.
Walbyn, v.—Pres. part., Walbynang; past tense, Walbynăgga. To cure by enchantment: to eject the Boyl-ya, or evil spirit, the supposed cause of all sickness and disease. This is performed by the person who undertakes the cure, squeezing the afflicted part with his hands, and then drawing them down, thereby to attract the Boyal-ya to the extremities. He is, however, very careful after each squeeze to shake his hands and blow well upon them, in order to preserve himself from any evil influence, or ill-effects of Boyl-ya, who generally makes his escape, invisible to uninitiated eyes; but sometimes assumes the likeness of a piece of quartz, in which case he is eagerly captured, and preserved as a great curiosity. Any person having the reputation for effecting this cure is sought after by the natives for many miles round, in behalf of a sick relative. The mode of cure sometimes adopted resembles the process of animal magnetism.
Waldja, s.—Very large dark brown mountain-eagle. It sometimes attacks lambs and young pigs.
Walga, s.—A kind of Dowak.
Walgah—(K.G.S.) A species of fish.
Walgen, s.—The rainbow.
Wal-gur—(K.G.S.) To laugh.
Walgyt, s.—The calf of the leg.
Waljăp, s.—Stem of the Xanthorea, or Grass-tree flower. It is this stem or rather stick, which serves the natives to produce fire by friction. This is done by rapidly twirling between the hands one piece of the stick within a hole cut in another piece placed upon the ground, and retained in its position by the feet; the operation being assisted by the dry furry material of the withered seed-head laid in the hole, and which very soon smokes and ignites. The length of the stem varies from 8 feet up to 10 feet, and the thickness from that of a man's finger up to that of a man's wrist: the flowering part is often 4 or 5 feet long. The flower contains much honey in the proper season.
Wallăk-wallăk, ad.—Separately; in part; divided; individually as wallăk-wallăk yonga, to divide among several persons; to give to each separately or individually.
Wallak-ijou, v.—To change.
Wallak-yonga, v.—To give in portions; to share; to divide.
Wallăng—(K.G.S.) The seed of a parasite which bears a red flower.
Wallarra, ad.—Carelessly; without looking—as wallarra murrijobin, walking along without looking.
Walle, v.—To cry; to shed tears; to wail.
Wallu, s.—An interval or open space between two points or objects; the division of the hair when parted on the top of the head; partial baldness; morning twilight; the interval between night and day.
Waly-adi, a.—Tall; long; ungainly.
Wal-yal, s.—The lungs. Instances of death from diseased lungs have been seen among them, but are not of very frequent occurrence. They generally recover from the effect of a spear-wound in the lungs.
Wal-yo, s.—The Kangaroo-rat. An animal nearly as large as a wild rabbit, tolerably abundant, and very good for eating. The natives take them by driving a spear in the nest, sometimes transfixing two at once, or by jumping upon the nest, which is formed of leaves and grass upon the ground.
Wăndang, v.—Pres. part., Wandangwin; past tense, Waudangăgga. To wear or carry on the back.
Wando, s.—Eucalyptus; the white gum-tree. In hollow trees of this sort, water is frequently retained, which forms the only resource for natives in summer, in many districts. It is discovered by a discoloration of the bark. A hole is opened with a hammer and carefully closed again.
Wan-do-na, s.—A species of insect.
Wangadan, v.—Pres. part., Wangadanin; past tense, Wangadanăgga. To scream out; to cry loudly for help. Compounded of wangow to speak, and dan or dtan (so as) to pierce (the ear).
Wang-en, a.—Alive; well; in health.
Wanggi-ma, s.—The satin-bird.
Wan-go, s.—The upper part of the arm from the elbow to the shoulder; a species of snake particularly liked as food by the aborigines.
Wan-gow, v.—Pres. part., Wangowin; past tense, Wangyăga. To speak; to talk.
Wan-gow-djinnăng, v.—To ask; To enquire.
Wănja, v.—Pres. part., Wanjawin; past tense, Wanjăga. To leave; to quit.
Wanna, s.—The long heavy staff pointed and hardened at one end by fire, carried about by the women, each of whom has one for the purpose of digging roots. The digging or pointed end is flattened on one side and rounded on the other, so as to act, when used, like the claw end of a crow-bar.
Wanni, v.—To die.
Wanniga, part.—Dead.
Wannyl, s.—Roots of trees.
Wan-yur-du, a.—Indisposed.
Waow, in.—An exclamation of surprise and warning.
Wappi, s.—A small species of fish, found in the pools of rivers in summer, and taken by pushing boughs through the water from one end of the pool to the other.
Warba, ad.—otherwise.
War-bum—(K.G.S.) To kill; to slay. Probably from wardo the throat and buma to strike.
Warda, s.—Fame; renown; news; the recent track of any animal, such as the fresh particles of sand left by the opossum's claws on the bark when climbing up trees, which immediately show the natives that the animal is to be found there.
Wardagadăk, s.—A hero; a great warrior; a man of renown, or authority.
Wardan, s.—A large species of long-winged buzzing fly.
Wardang, s.—Corvus coronoides? a crow. In appearance it is like the English crow, but its voice is very melancholy. It does not appear to be gregarious.
Wardo, s.—The neck or throat.
Wasdo-narrowin, part.—Being thirsty. Compounded of wardo the throat, and narrowin burning. The native is careful not to drink directly from stagnant water, but scrapes a hole in the sand at a little distance and drinks the filtered water. And even in springs he frequently inserts a quantity of grass-tree leaves, so as to act as a strainer; this is to guard against swallowing insects, a precaution which might be prudently imitated by the settlers.
Wardyl, v.—Pres. part., Wardyl-yin; past tense, Wardylăga. To whistle.
Wargat, v.—Pres. part., Wargattăgga. To search for; to look for.
Warh-rang—Numeral three.
Warh-ral, s.—Whirlwind.
Warh-ro, s.—A knoll; a hillock; an acclivity.
Warra, a.—(Mountain dialect.) Bad.
Warraja, s.—Zapornia? Little swamp-hen.
Warrajudong, s.—Anthus Australia; the lark. It has not the splendid song of the English lark, yet it twitters very cheerfully when on the wing.
Warran, s.—One of the Dioscoreæ. A species of yam, the root of which grows generally to about the thickness of a man's thumb; and to the depth of sometimes of four to six feet in loamy soils. It is sought chiefly at the commencement of the rains, when it is ripe, and when the earth is most easily dug; and it forms the principal article of food for the natives at that season. It is found in this part of Australia, from a short distance south of the Murray, nearly as far to the north as Gantheaume Bay. It grows in light rich soil on the low lands, and also among the fragments of basaltic and granitic rocks on the hills. The country in which it abounds is very difficult and unsafe to pass over on horseback, on account of the frequency and depth of the holes. The digging of the root is a very laborious operation. It is said to grow to a very large size, to the north; but this may be a traveller's exaggeration. This root is known by the same name in New South Wales.
Worran-ăng, s.—A porpoise.
Warrang-ăn, v.—Pres. part., Warrang-ănin; past tense, Warrang-ănăga, to tell; to relate; to bid; to desire.
Warrăp, s.—Any parasitical plant. Almost every tree has a parasite peculiar to itself, affecting it like a vermin, to such an extent, as frequently to destroy the tree. The flower is in general beautiful. The splendid flowering tree Nuytsia floribunda, is said to be an independent parasite. The only known Loranthus of that character.
War-roitch—(K.G S.) A species of fish.
Warru, s.—A female kangaroo. Cloaks are made of the skin of the female, that of the male being considered too hard and unsuited for the purpose.
Warryl-bardang, s.—Gerygone culicivorus? ash-coloured wren.
Warryn, s.—A word. The grammatical structure of the language appears simple and rudimentary, and not very copious, as many compound words are used; and there are few or no terms to express abstract ideas.
Watti—(K.G.S.) A species of Mimosa.
Watt, ad.—Away; off. Ngan-ya watto, I am off.
Wattobardo, v.—To go away; depart.
Wattobarrang, v.—To carry off.
Watto-djin im. v.—Look out; keep out of the way. Literally, away! see!
Waubătin, a.—Full; overflowing.
Waubbaniranwin, part.—Joking; jesting.
Waubbow, v.—Pres. part., Waubbowin; past tense, Waubbow, to play to tease.
Waudarăk, s.—The sow-thistle. This was very generally used as a vegetable by the early settlers, before the gardens were made productive.
Waudunu, s.—A species of hymenopterous insect.
Waug, s.—(K.G. Sound dialect.) Soul; spirit; breath.
Waugăl, s.—An imaginary aquatic monster, residing in deep dark waters, and endowed with supernatural powers, which enable it to overpower and consume the natives. It generally attacks females, and the person whom it selects for its victim pines and dies away almost imperceptibly. To this creature's influence the aborigines attribute all sores and wounds for which they cannot otherwise account. Its supposed shape is that of a huge winged serpent. It may be a lingering remnant of the tradition of the old Serpent or evil Spirit.
Waugalăn. a.—Ill; very sick; a woman who miscarries, or has any complaint subsequent to child-birth, is said to be Waugalăn, or under the influence of the Waugăl.
Waugar, s.—Breath; breathing.
Waugart dtan, v.—To pierce through.
Waugar-buma, v.—To breathe; to pant.
Waugat, a.—A few.
Waukănga, s.—Polytelis Melanura, mountain-parrot.
Waukyn—(K.G.S.) Bad, useless.
Waullu, s.—Light; dawn; daylight; the morning twilight; the interval between light and darkness; a clear open space without trees; an interval or open space between two objects; the division of the hair, when parted on the top of the head; partial baldness.
Waumil-yăr, v.—Colonially called Manna. A white, sweetish substance found on and under certain trees and plants, supposed to be some insect secretion. It is much prized by the natives. Birds feed upon it, and are in excellent condition during the season when it abounds. When the native women find a quantity of it collected about an ant-hill, they fling the furry side of their cloak upon it, to which it adheres. They then carry off the cloak and secure their prize, the ants have dropped off the fur in the meantime. At Perth it is called Dangyl, which see.
Waumma, a.—Another.
Waummarăp, a.—Giddy; confused.
Waummarapbin—Straying; bewildered.
Wauraling, s.—Nymphicus Novæ Hollandiæ. Crested-parrot.
Wayl-mat—(K.G.S.) The bone through the nose.
Way-re—(K.G.S.) To ford; to walk in the water.
Wedin, s.—A valley.
Weko, s.—The nest or brooding-place on the ground of a large bird, as Ngowo-weko.
Wellang, or Wela-wellang—(Vasse.) Quickly.
Welle, s.—A dream.
Welo—A name given to all people living to the north of them, by every tribe, be the latter situated where they may, in the same way as Daran is applied to all people to the eastward.
Welojabbin, s.—The name of a bird which is so called from the noise it makes at night. It is colonially called the Curlew, from its resemblance to that bird, but its bill is short and blunt and the colour is lighter.
Wendang, a.—Bad.
Wer, c.—And; also.
Werbal, a.—(Upper Swan.) Lean; in poor condition.
Wetdang, v.—Pres. part., Wetdangan; past tense, Wetdangăgga; to collect.
We-to, s.—The young white ants, which are eaten by the natives at a particular stage of their growth.
We-yang (Vasse.) To mix.
Wi-ak—(K.G.S.) Enough.
Wi-dă, s.—Kernal of the Zamia nut.
Wida-wida, s.—The name of two sorts of Pardalotus punctatus and and striatus, the Diamond-bird. Its native name is taken from the sound it utters. In some places it is called Widji winji, where is the Emu?
Windang, v.—Pres., part., Widangwin; past tense, Widangaga; to mix.
Widang-winan, v.—The act of mixing or pounding anything.
Widap widap—Another name for the Diamond-bird. See Wida wida.
Wi-ding, a.—Thin; bony,
Widji, s.—An Emu; a Dragon-fly. The emu is easily domesticated when taken young, and becomes very familiar with and attached to the dogs, which generally leads to the death of a tame one. A full-grown one, when erect, stands seven feet high. The natives creep on them and spear them. The flesh is very good for eating in the proper season, tasting something like veal. The eggs are of a tea-green colour, with a watered appearance on the surface. There is a singularity in the growth of the feathers—two of them spring from one quill.
Widji bandi, s.—A gun; literally an emu shank or leg, perhaps from the thin handle part of a gun stock resembling in its carving the rough grain of the skin of an emu's leg. A double-barrelled gun is described as having two mouths. A gun with a bayonet, as the gun with the spear at its nose.
Wilban, a.—White.
Wilgi, s.—An ochrish clay, which, when burned in the fire, turns to a bright brick-dust colour; with this, either in a dry powdery state, or saturated with grease, the aborigines, both men and women, are fond of rubbing themselves over. The females are contented with smearing their heads and faces, but the men apply it indiscriminately to all parts of the body. Occasionally they paint the legs and thighs with it in a dry state, either uniformly or in transverse bands and stripes, giving the appearance of red or parti-coloured
pantaloons. This custom has had its origin in the desire to protect the skin from the attacks of insects, and as a defence against the heat of the sun in summer, and the cold in the winter season. But no aboriginal Australian considers himself properly attired unless well clothed with grease and wilgi.
Wilgilăm, a.—Red.
Willar—(K.G.S.) An estuary.
Willarăk, s.—Sandalum latifolium, Sandalwood tree. This tree is tolerably abundant in the interior, but the transport is expensive. It is said to be the true sandalwood. The smoke of it when burning produces nausea in most persons. It bears a nut, having a white kernel of the size of a musket bullet, from which oil of a pure quality, without taste or smell, may be expressed. This nut, though not disagreeable, is not eaten by the natives.
Willaring, s.—Muscicapa. Wagtail; fly-catcher.
Wil-yan, v.—Pres. part., Wil-yanwin; past tense, Wil-yanaga; to miss; not to hit. The native does not throw with precision more than twenty or thirty yards. When not flurried, his aim is very accurate, and his spears delivered with surprising rapidity.
Wil-yu, a.—Œdicnemus longipennis? Wil-yu.
Wimbin, s.—Rhynchaspis. Shoveller or Pink-eyed Duck.
Winatding, part.—(N. E. dialect.) Dead; derived from or connected in some way with Wynaga, dead.
Windang, a.—Worn out; useless; applied particularly to an old man or woman.
Windo, a.—Old; useless.
Wi-nin (K.G.S.,) A species of waterfowl.
Wining, a.—(N. E. dialect.) Alive; the opposite of Winatding. dead.
Winjalla, ad.—Where.
Wingi, ad.—Where; whither; as Wingi watto, Where or whether are you going?
Winnagal (Mountain dialect.) The west.
Winnijinbar, ad.—Now, at this very moment. (Upper Swan.) Wynnikănbar.
Winnar—So many; this number.
Winnirăk—Similar to; at this time; now.
Wirba, s.—(Northern dialect.) A large heavy club.
Wirbe, s.—The name of a dance amongst the natives living to the south-east.
Wirgo, s.—A species of rock-crystal found to the north.
Wirgojăng—(K.G.S.) Blowing away; curing by disenchantment.
Wiril, a.—Slender; wasted; slight; thin.
Wiring, a.—Straight; in a right line; used also to denote that two persons are in the right line of marriage.
Wirrit, s.—South-east wind.
Wi-yul, a.—Thin; slight; wasted.
Wodta, s.—Columba. The Bronze-winged pigeon. Most delicate eating. It abounds in summer, when the acacia seeds are ripe.
Wo-do, s.—Green-fleshed edible fungus; more juicy and tender, and less to be dreaded than our mushroom.
Woi-le?—(K.G.S.) A small species of kangaroo.
Woindja, v.—Corruption of Wanja, to leave; to quit; to desist.
Wolang, v.—To put on one's covering or clothes.
Wol-jarbăng—(Vasse.) A species of parrot.
Won-gin, a.—Living; also green, when applied to leaves or wood.
Wonnar, s.—A species of spear-wattle found in the hills.
Wonnang (Vasse.) To throw; to cast.
Woppăt—As Woppăt murrijo.
Wordan—(Vasse.) Supposed to signify north—probably the direction in which the rivers of a country flow.
Worri, s.—A species of snake not eaten by the natives.
Wot-yan, a.—On the other side; as Bilo wot-yan, on the other side of the river. Also remote; distant.
Woyn-bar (K.G.S. ) To cure by disenchantment.
Wu-lang-itch—(K.G.S.) To fasten.
Wulbugli, s.—Athenæ? The Barking Owl.
Wulgang, s.—A. grub found in the Xanthorea or Grass tree, distinguished from the Bardi by being much larger, and found only one or two in a tree, whereas the Bardi are found by hundreds.
Wulgar, s.—Guilt. Being implicated, from relationship or other causes, with persons who have committed murder, which renders a person Wulgargadăk, and liable to be killed in revenge. Those who are not in a state of Wulgar are said to be "Jidyt."
Wu-ling, ad.—Thus; in this manner.
Wul-lajerang—The Pleiades.
Wulwul, s.—Diomedea Chlororhynca. The Albatross.
Wambubin, a.—Strutting; being proud or vain.
Wunda, s.—A shield. The native shield is about two feet long, and very narrow, being barely sufficient to protect the hand when holding it. It is convex on the exterior face, and thinned off and rounded at each end, having a slit cut in the thickest part at the middle of the back, to serve as a handle. There are two sorts of wood, the Kumbuil, and the Kardil, of which they are made. The use of them is not at all common among the natives in the located parts of Western Australia, who bring them as great curiosities from the north to the settlers. They are sometimes ornamented with wavy lines or grooves, traced upon them with an opposum's tooth in the grain of the wood; the grooves being painted alternately red and white.
Wundab-buri, s.—The name given to an English boat, from its shape like a shield. The natives have no canoes, nor any mode of passing over water; but on the north-west coast, one man was seen by Captain King crossing an arm of the sea, on a piece of a mangrovetree. They describe with great vividness their impressions when they saw the first ship approach the land. They imagined it some huge winged monster of the deep, and there was a universal consternation. One man fled inland for fourteen miles without stopping, and spread the terrifying news amongst his own friends.
Wundi—(K.G.S.) A species of Iguana.
Wun-du, s.—Human hair, made into a coarse string, and worn as an ornament round the head and arms.
Wundun, v.—Pres. part., Wunduning; past tense, Wundunăga; to stare; to wonder; to look at a person in order to recognise him.
Wun-gan, v.—Pres. part., Wunganin; past tense, Wunganăgga; to embrace, or fold the arms round a person to restrain him. When a native is in a passion, his friends (Wungan) hold him back from attacking or harming others till the fit goes off.
Wunnara, s.—A species of Tea-tree, of which spears are made.
Wunno, ad.—This way; in this direction; round about.
Wunnoitch, ad.—Thus.
Wurak, s.—Macropus elegans; a species of kangaroo.
Wurak, s.—A glossy brown-barked Eucalyptus, abounding to the eastward of the hills, but not found to the west.
Wuraling, s.—Nymphicus Nov. Hol.; crested parrot.
Wurdoitch, s—The name of a star, supposed to have been a native.
Wurdukumeno—Name of the Ballarok family in the Murray district.
Wurdytch—The name of a star, supposed to have been a native.
Wurgyl, s.—A frog. When this species of frog has the embryo within it in the state of the young roe of a fish, it forms a favourite food of the natives, and marks a particular season. They are found in great abundance in the swamps and shallow lakes.
Wurjallăk—The name of a star.
Wurriji, s.—Small species of lizard, not eaten by the natives.
Wurtamar—(K.G.S.) To beat; to strike.
Wu-yun, v.—The soul.
Wyamăk, a.—Straight; slender.
Wyan, s.—Ardea, Novæ Hollandiæ; the Blue Crane.
Wy-e, s.—A species of snake.
Wyen, v.—Pres. part., Wyenin; past tense, Wyenăgga; to fear; to dread to be afraid.
Wyen wyen, s.—A coward. A term of great insult, as among more civilised people.
Wyerow, v.—Pres. part., Wyerowin; past tense, Wyerow; to raise; to construct. As Mya wyerowin; raising a hut; Gabbi wyerowin; the water is rising.
Wyni kanbar, ad.—Now at this immediate moment.
Wyrodjudong, s.—Glyciphila Ocularis? Gould; the white-breasted honey-sucker.
Wy-uda, s.—Podiceps nestor? the little Grebe.