Page:Native Tribes of South-East Australia.djvu/190

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
164
NATIVE TRIBES OF SOUTH-EAST AUSTRALIA
CH.

The Dieri cannot give any explanation of the cause of the Nadada arrangement. It is not at all likely that they could do so as to any ancient practice, nor can I venture to do more than to point to what may possibly suggest a reason for its origin. The effect of bringing the grand-children up to the level of their grandparents is to enlarge the group of women who are Noa to those elders. In other words, the tribal brothers of the Nadada and the tribal sisters of the Kanini have a further possibility of wives or husbands. In the chapter on marriage it is shown how the younger brother of the Nadada obtains a wife, she being the grand-daughter in the female line of his elder brother. But neither, for instance, the Nadada No. 1 nor the Kanini No. 4 is permitted to participate in this privilege, which only attaches to the younger brothers of the former and the younger sisters of the latter.

The maternal great-grandmother is Kaiakaia, more commonly called Ngandri, since she is the mother of the Kanini. Through the female line in the ascendent 45-46 are Kaiakaia to 3, and also to 4, her sister. This term of relationship is the only one in use between the first and fourth levels.

Reverting to the fraternal relationships, it will be seen that since 27 and 28 are Nadada-ngatata, that is, the younger brother and sister of No. 1, and 31 and 32 are the Nadada-ngatata of 2, the brother of 1, they are the Nadada-noa of 5, 6, 7, and 8. Similarly, it can be seen that 35-36 and 39-40 are the Nadada-noa of 3 and 4, because they are the Nadada-ngatata of 7 and 8, the husbands of those women.

The relationship term Yenku is reciprocal between 1 and 2, and 25-26, 29 and 30; also between 7 and 8, and 33-34, 37-38; 13 and 43-44 are in the same relation.

Kami is a term which is reciprocal between the maternal grandfather and his daughter's children. It is also reciprocal between the children of a man and those of his sister, they being Kami-mara to each other. Instances of this are the following: 9, 10, 11, 12 are brothers and sisters, being the