n - University of Newcastle

63 AN AUSTRALIAN LANGUAGE.
The conjngations of certain letters may occasionally, but rarely,
cause the general roles to be violated for the sake of euphony ;
thus, the verb mugha has in the perfect tense mugaigngn, not,
as might be expected, mugaguan, no doubt, on account of two
' g's7 being so near each other.
4. MODIFICATIO~~ OF THE VERB.
A chai.acteristic feature ancl peculiarity of this aboii,&al dialect
is the use of numerous postfixes. By meails of these, the
llouil shows an unnsual number of cases, which supply in a certain
measure the absence of our prepositions. In a similar manner, the
verb takes additions or changes of its fom, by which new forms
it expresses its modified significations according to the various
relations in which the simple verb may be placed. These tend to
enrich the language considerably, since the moclified ideas impliecl
in them often produce quite a new kind of worc1 or signification.
As new verbs, they may be adjusted to some one or other
of the examples already given, agreeably to their terminations.
Hence they can never be supposed to be merely conjugations.
For the sake of convenience, I shall carry one verb through
the modifications, though it cannot be expected that all verbs are
used or needecl in every modification. I will take the root-form
buma, 'beat,' as the chief example of these modifications, but
another suitable one will be always adcled.
Some of the postfixes in those examples hare doubtless lost or
changed their original signification in certain 1-erbs.
Exanyles of the use of Szc$ixes to nzod;;fy the nzenlzilzy of J7erbs.
1. Bianna, 'a constancy of action'; as, bumal-bianna, 'to
be always beating '; ga-biann a, 'to be always looking.
2. Gunnanna, ' a present continuance of action '; as, bumal-
gunnanna, 'to be now beating'; ga-gunnanna, 'now looking
on.'
Both of these are used for our participle, bnt in a definite and indicative
way ; but as, like other verbs, they are conjugated, and never employed as
adjectives, they cannot be considered as participial forms, but only as
modifications of the verbs.
3. Awaigunnanna, 'a long continuance'; as, bumal-awai-
gunnanna, 'to be beating a long time '; gagawaigunnanna,
'to be looking on long.' This does not much differ from No. 2.
4. Garrimzna, 'a continuance of all day long'; bumal-gar-
rimiina, 'to be beating all day long'; bunba-garrimha, 'to
run about all day long.'
5. Guabianna, ' a continuance for the night '; bumallai-
guabianna, ' to beat (fight) all the night '; winai-guabianna,
' to sit up all night.'
6. Dillinga (rejezive); as, bumangi-dillinga, 'to beat one's
self '; mirama-dillinga, 'to defend one's self.'
THE WIBADHARI DIALECT.
7. Lann a (reci~~~ocal)
; as, bnmal-lanna,' to beat each other,'
'to fight '; nnrungamil-lanna, 'to love each other.'
8. Alinga (reiterative); as, bumal-alinga, 'to beat again';
y annai-alinga, ' to go again.'
9. Numinga implies that an action is to last for a little time
only before another ; as, bum al-numinga, ' to beat previously ';
ganuminga, ' to see beforehand.'
10. &Tam b ir r a is causative and permissive ; as, bum ali-ma m-
birra, 'to let beat'; yal-mambirra, 'to cause one to speak,'
'to teach.'
11. Gambirr a, instrumental ; meaning that a thing has been
clone by means of an instrument, tool, 01- weapon ; as, bum al-
gambirra (not used) ; bangal-gambirra, 'to break by throw-
ing at (or hitting) with something.'
12. Billing a, submissive ; expressive of obedience to a corn-
mand; as, buma-billings, 'to beat when tolcl or ordered';
yanna-billings, 'to go when ordered off.'
13. Eilinga iniplies a vicaiious action-an action done on
behalf of, or instead of, another ; as, bum-eiling a, ' to beat in-
steacl of another'; barram-eilinga, 'to get or provide for
another.'
14. Duringa seems to intimate achange of action, the turning
of one's attention from one thing to another, or to do a thing
well and thoroughly; as, bumal-cluringa, ' to leave of the pre-
sent act of beatino'. minnanga-duringa, 'to forget,' ' to think
of something else'; " to reflect.'
15. Wanna probably signifies an aim at 09. a purpose to clo a
thing ; or rather, to act in a kincl of series of doings, one after
another, going all round, or to be just in the act of doing ; as,
bumalla-wanna, 'tobeat one after another'; yannaia-manna,
' to walk away,' ' to walk from one place to another.'
16. Danna means the resuming of an action after having
taken refreshment ; as, bum al-clanna, ' to beat agin ' after
eating ; bu mba-clanna, ' to run off again ' after a little refresh-
ment.
17. Gilanna inclicates a kind of dual action ; as, bumalu-
gilafina, 'two to beat together at once '; bumban-gilanna, ' two
to run t,ogether.'
18. Y arra is the verb ' to speak'; it 6an be put or joined to any
verb as a postfk, and is then expressive of a command; ' ba' is
put between as a uniting syllable; thus, yanna-ba-yarra, 'to
order to go', ' to send away '; bumal-ba-g arra, ' to tell to beat.'
19. Birra, nirra, dirra, banirra, bamarra, bunmarra;
these particles, when joined to a neuter or an intransitive verb,
give it a transitive and causative signification; thus, from
gannarra, ' to burn,' is formed gannal-birra, 'to set on fire';
ballunna, 'to die' gives ballubunirra, 'to kill'; banganna,
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