Thalanyji language

Thalanyji (also spelt Dhalandji, Thalanyji, and other variations) and Binigura/Pinikura (also spelt Pinigura, Binnigoora, and other variations) are two closely related languages from the Pilbara region of Western Australia. They are part of the Kanyara subgroup of the Pama–Nyungan language family.

Dhalandji–Binigura
Thalanyji–Pinikura
Native to	Australia
Ethnicity	Thalanyji, Yinikutira, Binigura
Native speakers	6 (2005)[1]
Language family	Pama–Nyungan Kanyara–Mantharta Kanyara Dhalandji–Binigura
Dialects	Dhalandji Pinigura
Language codes
ISO 639-3	Either: dhl – Dhalandji pnv – Pinigura
Glottolog	dhal1245  Dhalandji pini1244  Pinigura
AIATSIS[1]	W26 Thalanyji, W34 Binigura/Pinikura
ELP	Thalanyji
	Pinikura[2]

They are spoken by the Thalanyji and Pinikura peoples respectively. Both languages are thought to be extinct; there were six speakers of Thalanyji recorded in 2004/5,^[3] and ten speakers of Pinikura recorded in 1975, but none since in either language.^[4]

According to Peter Austin, Pinikura, Thalanyji, Payungu and Purdana "should probably be classified as belonging to the Kanyara subgroup".^[4]

Phonology

Consonants

	Peripheral		Laminal		Apical
	Labial	Velar	Dental	Palatal	Alveolar	Retroflex
Stop	b	ɡ	d̪	ɟ	d	ɖ
Nasal	m	ŋ	n̪	ɲ	n	ɳ
Lateral			l̪	ʎ	l	ɭ
Rhotic					r
Approximant	w			j		ɻ

Vowels

	Front	Central	Back
High	i iː		u uː
Low		a aː