Queensland is extremely diverse in terms of its First Nations cultures and languages. The state encompasses around 150 of the continent's 350 Indigenous language groups. While most languages of Queensland belong to the Pama-Nyungan language family, six languages of the Wellesley Islands and adjoining mainland constitute the Tangkic family; and Meriam Mir, spoken on Mer (Murray Island) and other islands of the Eastern Torres Strait, is related to languages of Western Province in Papua New Guinea. Throughout Australia, linguistic diversity is greatest in coastal regions and in the north of the continent; accordingly, Cape York Peninsula and the Gulf Country — the two geographic foci of this volume — represent much of the diversity within the state of Queensland.
Jean-Christophe Verstraete and Diane Hafner's edited volume is a Festschrift for linguistic anthropologist Bruce Rigsby, Emeritus Professor in the School of Social Science at the University of Queensland. It celebrates the profound impact that Rigsby has had on the documentation of First Nations cultures and languages in North Queensland, especially Lamalama and Kuku Thaypan. Rigsby's legacy within the ‘Queensland School’ of anthropology at the University of Queensland is unmistakable in the work of his colleagues and students, many of whom contributed chapters to this volume. Their contributions are a testament to the indelible effect that Rigsby has had on the study of language and culture in this fascinating region of Australia.
The editors have divided the collection into five sections, the first of which focuses on ‘reconstructions’ of language and social organisation by historical, archaeological and linguistic means. Barry Alpher applies comparative linguistic techniques to a number of languages of the southern inland region of Cape York Peninsula, proposing a genetic grouping ‘Alaya-Athima’. Noelene Cole surveys genres of rock art in the Laura Basin, observing zones of continuity and discontinuity of stylistic features. Peter Sutton provides a profile of the history and social organisation of the Flinders Island and Cape Melville peoples, based on historical and anthropological sources. Paul Memmott, Erich Round, Daniel Rosendahl and Sean Ulm challenge the existing account of population movement and linguistic diversification in the Tangkic language family, incorporating concepts of cultural and linguistic ‘fusion’.
A chapter by Benjamin R. Smith on traditional and modern Kaanju social organisation begins the book's second section on ‘world views’. Alice Gaby explores the relationship between kin terms across various linguistic modes (signed, spoken) and pragmatic contexts (bereavement, vocative, referential) in Kuuk Thaayorre. Mary Laughren compares possessive constructions in Kuku Thaypan, and two Northern Territory languages, Warlpiri and Waanyi. Francesca Merlan explores the uses of demonstratives in Jawoyn, suggesting that spatial functions derive from non-spatial functions.
The third section, on contacts and contrasts, explores early contact between Indigenous peoples and European invaders. Marcia Langton employs perspectives provided by botanists working on the Queensland frontier to investigate the interaction between pre-existing Indigenous plant food economies and expanding European agriculture. Jonathan Richards explores police archival records to investigate the methods and consequences of forced Aboriginal removals from Coen and the Batavia goldfields in the early twentieth century. Chris Anderson compares various attitudes towards human interaction with the Daintree Rainforest. Finally, David Trigger explores concepts of indigeneity in the Gulf Country as expressed by Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal occupants of the region.
The section on ‘transformations’ considers the effects that European invaders have had on Indigenous societies and languages. Nicholas Evans describes the land tenure system and changes to the traditional naming practices of the Kaiadilt people of the South Wellesley Islands. Ray Wood explores the issue of ‘tribal names’ in historical sources exemplified by the Kuku Yalanji region. David Thompson describes the transformation of the Lockhart River community and diaspora as a result of increased mobility and modern technologies. Ilana Mushin, Denise Angelo and Jennifer Munro use language contact histories to explain the variable forms of contact in three Indigenous communities of Queensland: Yarrabah, Cherbourg and Woorabinda. Finally, Helen Harper provides a description of language history and ecology at Injinoo, providing context for Goodie Massey's telling of a multilingual story (Atambaya, Creole, English), revealing language attitudes accompanying processes of language shift.
The final section of the volume on ‘repatriations’ features two chapters on the return of archival material to their owners. Lindy Allen details a mutually beneficial relationship between the Lamalama Nation and museums in which records of its cultural heritage are housed, highlighting the importance of exchange between curators, anthropologists and the owners of the collections. John B. Haviland's chapter documents the process resulting in restriction of repatriated Guugu Yimidhirr materials due to dynamic and nuanced concepts of intent and ownership.
This well-written and thoughtful volume brings together a wellspring of explorations of the themes central to Rigsby's rich and diverse research history in North Queensland. The collection's breadth ensures that this book not only provides rich insights into particular fields of specialisation, but also encourages a holistic and cross-disciplinary approach, of which Rigsby was a great proponent.
