Yulparija

Yulparija
Yulparitja, Yulbarija, Yulparirra
Region	Bidyadanga, north of Jigalong, Western Australia
Native speakers	33 (2021 census)
Language family	Pama–Nyungan Wati Yulparija
Language codes
ISO 639-3	None (mis)
Glottolog	yulp1239
AIATSIS	A67
ELP

Yulparija is one of the Wati languages of the large Pama–Nyungan family of Australia. It is sometimes counted as a dialect of the Western Desert language, but is classified as a distinct language in Bowern.

It is one of the components of the Martu Wangka koine.

Phonology

Yulparija has a typical phonemic inventory for languages of the Kimberley area. It uses 17 consonants in five distinct places of articulation.

Consonant phonemes

	Bilabial	Apico-alveolar	Apico-post-alveolar	Lamino-palatal	Dorso-velar
Stops	p ⟨p⟩	t ⟨t⟩	ʈ ⟨rt⟩	c ⟨j⟩	k ⟨k⟩
Nasals	m ⟨m⟩	n ⟨n⟩	ɳ ⟨rn⟩	ɲ ⟨ny⟩	ŋ ⟨ng⟩
Laterals		l ⟨l⟩	ɭ ⟨rl⟩	ʎ ⟨ly⟩
Taps		ɾ ⟨rr⟩
Glides	w ⟨w⟩		ɻ ⟨r⟩	j ⟨y⟩

Vowels

Yulparija uses a three vowel system, with a length contrast for the open vowel [a] and the close back vowel [u].

Vowel phonemes

	Front	Back
Close	i [i]	u [u], uu [uː]
Open	a [a], a [aː]