Gawambaraay Explained

The Gawambaraay (Kawambarai) are an Aboriginal Australian people of the state of New South Wales, closely connected to the Gamilaraay (Kamilaroi) people. Their traditional lands are in the central–western district of New South Wales

Name

The ethnonym is thought to derive from a language name, kawam being equivalent to guin, and bearing the sense of 'no'. One other word used denoting the tribe, Wirriri also seems to reflect a word for no, namely wir:i

Language

See main article: Gamilaraay language. The Gawambaraay or Kawambarai language is a dialect of the Gamilaraay language group.^[1]

Country

According to Norman Tindale's estimate, the Kawambarai held sway over roughly 8000mi2 of tribal lands, concentrated on the areas of the upper Castlereagh River, the middle the middle sectors of the Macquarie River and part of Liverpool Plains. Their southern extension ran to the vicinity of present-day Dubbo.

People

Richardson affirmed that the Kawambarai were closely connected to the Gamilaroi.

Alternative names

• Cooinburri
• Gawambarai
• Goinberai
• Guinbrai, Guinberai
• Kawarnparai
• Koinbere, Koinberi
• Koinberri
• Mole tribe
• Wirriri
• Wirriwirri
• Wooratherie

Source:

Some words

• (father)
• (mother)
• (white man)
• (tame dog)

Notes

Citations

Sources

• Book: Dubbo Magistrates . Dubbo . 1887 . The Australian race: its origin, languages, customs, place of landing in Australia and the routes by which it spread itself over the continent . Curr . Edward Micklethwaite . Edward Micklethwaite Curr . J. Ferres . Melbourne . 3 . 365, 372–373 . https://archive.org/download/australianracei02currgoog/australianracei02currgoog.pdf .
• Book: Gunther, J. . Wordlist, Castlereagh River, Talbragar, Mudgee . 1887 . The Australian race: its origin, languages, customs, place of landing in Australia and the routes by which it spread itself over the continent . Curr . Edward Micklethwaite . Edward Micklethwaite Curr . J. Ferres . Melbourne . 3 . 364, 368–369 . https://archive.org/download/australianracei02currgoog/australianracei02currgoog.pdf .
• The Burbung of the Wiradthuri Tribes . Mathews . R. H. . Robert Hamilton Mathews . The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland . 1896 . 26 . 295–318 . 10.2307/2842029 . 2842029 .
• Languages of some native tribes of Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria . Mathews . R. H. . Robert Hamilton Mathews . . 1902 . 36 . 135–190 . 10.5962/p.359384 . free .
• Languages of the Kamilaroi and Other Aboriginal Tribes of New South Wales . Mathews . R. H. . Robert Hamilton Mathews . The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland . July–December 1903 . 33 . 259–283 . 10.2307/2842812 . 2842812 .
• Aboriginal names and meanings . Richardson . T. L. . Science of Man . Sydney . 1 February 1910 . 11 . 10 . 200 .
• Book: Rouse, C. . Placenames, Warren . 1887 . The Australian race: its origin, languages, customs, place of landing in Australia and the routes by which it spread itself over the continent . Curr . Edward Micklethwaite . Edward Micklethwaite Curr . J. Ferres . Melbourne . 3 . 365, 370–371 . https://archive.org/download/australianracei02currgoog/australianracei02currgoog.pdf .
• Aboriginal names in the Wooratherie dialect, Macquarrie and Castlereigh Rivers, N.S.W. . Tibbetts . W. C. . Science of Man . Sydney . 21 May 1900 . 3 . 4 . 62–64 .
• Book: Tindale, Norman Barnett . Kawambarai(NSW) . 1974 . Norman Tindale . Aboriginal Tribes of Australia: Their Terrain, Environmental Controls, Distribution, Limits, and Proper Names . . http://archives.samuseum.sa.gov.au/tindaletribes/kawambarai.htm . 978-0-708-10741-6 .

Notes and References

1. Web site: D39: Gawambaraay . AIATSIS Collection (AUSTLANG) . 26 July 2019 . 14 September 2020.