Anglo-Australian media reports sort of seem… abrupt?

Some language groups/clans have a dummy name that is used to refer to someone whose name is bound by a curse. Otherwise they use relative terms like ‘my cousin’ (remember that everyone in a community has a first-order kin relationship to everyone else) or they might skirt around the naming of the individual by using other terms, like ‘that old man, the one from that country’, and so on.

It’s a fascinating aspect of culture and I’m particularly interested in its marriage with Anglo-Australian culture. I think only now are news media beginning to observe these cultural norms. In a recent case, a famous singer/songwriter from Elcho Island died, and was referred to in the media by George R, before the family decided on a name that they could use. So thereafter he was referred to as George Burrarrawanga, the name of his clan, I believe. I was shocked then, to hear on ABC news a few days later, his full aboriginal name (I won’t repeat it here). But at the end of the report it became clear that in his will, he gave express permission for his name to be used on the day of his funeral only. But they appear to have left his name on the ABC website.

I suspect that was the first of the two sorry days here this week as there’s a substantial population of Jawoyn people. Though very few of them, if any, could be considered speakers. Ironically, one of the best Jawoyn speakers around here is a balanda. I thought he was full of it – a whitefella thinking he was a blackfella – but since I’ve been speaking to him a lot recently, I think he’s genuine.

And a correction, the second death actually occurred two weeks ago but the news only arrived here on thursday.

Perhaps the most significant from a linguist’s point of view is the death of the last identified fluent speaker of Jawoyn.