Kurrama people
Encyclopedia
The Kurrama people are an indigenous Australian
people from the Pilbara
region of Western Australia
. Their traditional lands encompass much of the higher plateaus of the Hamersley Range
. The indigenous Australian language
associated with the people is the Kurrama language
, from the Southwest branch of the Pama–Nyungan language family. The language is presently endangered
, with perhaps only 20 speakers remaining.
Alternate spellings for the name of this group include: Kurama, Gurama, Kerama, Karama, Korama, and Kormama. The term "Jana:ri", meaning 'inlanders', has been applied to this group by neighbouring peoples such as the Ngaluma and Talandji. , "Jawunmara" is the name ascribed to them by the nearby Indjibandi people from the lower country to the northeast.
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
people from the Pilbara
Pilbara region of Western Australia
The Pilbara is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia known for its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore...
region of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. Their traditional lands encompass much of the higher plateaus of the Hamersley Range
Hamersley Range
The Hamersley Ranges is a mountainous region of the Pilbara, Western Australia. The range runs from the Fortescue River in the northeast, 460 km south. The range contains Western Australia's highest point, Mount Meharry, which reaches approximately AHD. There are many extensively-eroded...
. The indigenous Australian language
Australian Aboriginal languages
The Australian Aboriginal languages comprise several language families and isolates native to the Australian Aborigines of Australia and a few nearby islands, but by convention excluding the languages of Tasmania and the Torres Strait Islanders...
associated with the people is the Kurrama language
Kurrama language
Kurrama is an Australian Aboriginal language. It is one of the Ngayarda languages of the large Southwest branch of the Pama–Nyungan family.The language name has also previously been written as: Kurama, Gurrama, Gurama...
, from the Southwest branch of the Pama–Nyungan language family. The language is presently endangered
Endangered language
An endangered language is a language that is at risk of falling out of use. If it loses all its native speakers, it becomes a dead language. If eventually no one speaks the language at all it becomes an "extinct language"....
, with perhaps only 20 speakers remaining.
Alternate spellings for the name of this group include: Kurama, Gurama, Kerama, Karama, Korama, and Kormama. The term "Jana:ri", meaning 'inlanders', has been applied to this group by neighbouring peoples such as the Ngaluma and Talandji. , "Jawunmara" is the name ascribed to them by the nearby Indjibandi people from the lower country to the northeast.