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Glite Dictionary
Dyirbal language

Dyirbal language

9.9
A language spoken by Aboriginal people in northeast Queensland, Australia
  • noun
: idioma dyirbal
  • She is one of the few remaining speakers of the Dyirbal language.

Examples

  • The Dyirbal language is unique to northeast Queensland.

  • The university offers a course in the Dyirbal language and its cultural significance.

  • Linguists have documented the Dyirbal language to preserve its unique grammatical patterns.

  • Many people are learning the Dyirbal language today.

  • Linguists have documented the Dyirbal language to preserve its unique grammatical patterns.

  • She is one of the few remaining speakers of the Dyirbal language.

  • The university offers a course in the Dyirbal language and its cultural significance.

Synonyms

Dyirbal
vsDyirbal language
9.9

A language that Aboriginal people in northeast Queensland speak

is the full phrase rather than the shorter single word name

How Widely Spoken

Dyirbal language
9.9
dead language
  • Specialized
6 8.9

Surface Forms

Dyirbal language singular
Dyirbal languages plural

Morphology

Dyirbal + language

The phrase is a straightforward noun phrase formed by a proper name ('Dyirbal') plus the noun 'language', so its meaning — the language spoken by the Dyirbal people — is directly compositional. This naming pattern for languages is cross-linguistically common and therefore immediately understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituents.

Etymology

Dyirbal language comes from the name of the people, the Dyirbal, who live in northeast Queensland, Australia. It simply means the way those people 'speak', so the phrase refers to the language used by that group.