Data collected by AUSTLANG

Data on the Meriam Mir language

Alternatives names: Meriam, Miriam

For a full list of alternative names and spelling, see Austlang

Main dialects: There might have been dialectal variation spoken on Erub and Ugar islands. These dialects have disappeared.

Classification: Eastern Trans-Fly.

Meriam Mir has no relation to any other Australian Indigenous language, but according to Ross (2005) it is related to Papuan languages spoken in the Fly River area, in Papua-New-Guinea.

Area: Australia, Torres Strait Islands, Murray Island.

It was once spoken throughout the eastern islands of Erub, known in English as Darnley Island and Ugar, known as Stephen Island.

Number of speakers :

The 2005 National Indigenous Languages Survey Report estimated approximately 160speakers of Meriam Mir, whereas the 2006 Australian Bureau of Statistics Census counted 212 speakers.

Vitality and transmission:

The National Indigenous Languages Survey Report considers the Meriam Mir to be “critically endangered”. The transmission is declining rapidly and the use of the language is poor among the young generations.

Bibliography

Passi, Gamalai Ken and Piper, Nick. 1994. “Meryam Mir”. In Macquarie Aboriginal words, eds. N Thieberger, W McGregor. Macquarie University, NSW:The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd.

Piper, Nick. 1989. A sketch grammar of Meryam Mir, Australian National University: MA.

Ray, Sidney. 2003. Dictionary of Torres Strait languages (2nd ed.). Kuranda, QLD: Rams Skull Press.

Ross, Malcolm, (2005). «Pronouns as a preliminary diagnostic for grouping Papuan languages ». in Andrew Pawley, Robert Attenborough, Robin Hide, Jack Golson, (eds).. Papuan pasts: cultural, linguistic and biological histories of Papuan-speaking peoples. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics

See the Austlang website for a complete bibliography about Meriam Mir

Links

AUSTLANG website