Trial 18. Mätjarra from Ramingining 220409

This is an advanced Yolŋu studies class (Wednesday night), so the students speak a little Yolŋu matha (language) and two of them are known to the people at Raminginiŋ.

We have Mätjarra (M) at Raminginiŋ with her new computer, the old lady (OL), and lots of other people at Raminginiŋ (?). In Darwin we have Yiŋiya (Y) – the lecturer and sister to the OL, John (J), the Yolŋu studies coordinator, and later the students (Ss), Ernie (E), Anna (A) and Peter (P).  Michael (MC) is drawn in at the end.

When the video starts, the old lady is sitting with Mätjarra at Ramingining.  Her name is ?Yarrkaliwuy, although that is never mentioned. Mätjarra’s first task after making contact with John, is to tune the old lady in to what’s happening.  She links the OL with John. John calls Mätjarra ‘dhuway’ – sister-in-law. Yiŋiya calls the old lady ‘sister’. As so often in the Yolŋu world, the introductions start with discussion of alternative ways of doing kinship. John, because of his history, really thinks of OL as his waku, and makes that clear.

Before long, it becomes clear that (for cultural reasons to do with how brothers and sisters relate,) it is important that the old lady knows that her brother is sitting in the classroom in Darwin, listening. This work occupies the first few minutes.

When all the kin relations and appropriate behaviours are sorted out, Mätjarra tells a story about a meeting in the community, and the students ask some questions.

In this transcription there may be a lot of confusing words which are not translated.  These are mostly words which work to position ideas at the discourse level, and do not need to be translated for you to understand the gist of what’s going on.  These words include nhawi, nhakun, ŋunhi, bitjarr. Sometimes they are transcribed, sometimes not. If they are not translated, they are not necessary to understand what’s happening

M

Dhuwayŋali

Mätjarra is linking the old lady with John. She says to John: She’s your dhuway (sister in law)

J

Way, yow yow dhuwaydja ŋarraku yurr wiripudja waku, yothu ŋarraku.

Oh yes yes yes, actually she is my dhuway but also my waku, my (sister’s) child.

M

Yow

Yes

OL

Djaŋu ŋaya ga nyena djaŋu Raminginiŋ.

I’m living here at Raminginiŋ.

J

Dhaŋu ŋaya. Yow waku.

I’m here, waku.

OL

Yow Djaŋum

Yes, here (I am).

J

Nhawu nhunu yaka djinala yaka nyena.

Why are you living there?

OL

Nhä?

What?

J

Nhätha nhunu ŋarru ditjun Mäpurul

When will you go back to Mäpuru?

OL

Dhaŋu ŋaya ga gurruŋgul nyena

0:30 I’m staying here with (your) gurruŋ

J

Yow yow. Marŋgi nhunu, ga waŋganyma banha?  John

Yes, you know. And where is the other?

OL

Nhuma yäku gurruŋ, ga ŋunha Lake Evella.

With the same name as you, gurruŋ?  Over at Lake Evella.

J

Eh?

OL

Oh buku-djararrk ŋarrakalaŋa.

Of poor face!  My own one! Terms of affection.

Y

Way!  Way!

Yiŋiya remonstrating in the background.

?

??? ? märr-djulkthun

Disbelieve.

J

Ya’ Wäwa!  Dhuwana wäwaŋali.

1:00 John has forgotten to let the old lady know that her brother is there in the room.

Y

Gaŋga nhuma yay’yayyun manapan napurr ga ????

Yiŋiya calming the excitement down to prevent any embarrassment. Don’t shout too loud, we’re also trying to….

M

????? wäwa.  Yiŋiya’

Mätjarra is telling the old lady that her brother is talking to her from Darwin. (There are important cultural reasons for letting people know when a brother is in earshot of his sister)

OL

Wäwa!  Marrkapmirr wäwa!

Brother! My beloved brother!

J

Sorry ŋarra menguŋal.

John apologising to Yiŋiya: Sorry I forgot (to tell her that you are here)

Excited children yelling in the background.

M

Ma’ yow, ŋani?

Okay, so yes eh? (should we start?)

OL

Dhuwal ŋarra wäwa!

Here I am brother!

Y

Yow, walŋa yän nhe gurrupuruŋu!

To his sister: Yes you’re still alive you poor thing.

OL

??

Y

Yow yow

Yes yes

M

(To OL) Yow yow, ŋayi bitjarra

‘Yes yes’, he said. Telling the old lady that Yiŋiya had acknowledged her.

OL

 laughs

Y

Ŋäma napurr ga.

1:30 We can hear (you all) Making sure she knows that people are listening.

OL

Marrkap! Buku-mälu!

Beloved! Face like our father!

M

Ma’ yow, ŋani?

Okay, so yes eh? (Should we start?)

Y

Yow

M

Bulany

Attracting John’s attention by using his skin name

J

Yow.

Yes?

M

Limurr dhu start-nha?

Shall we start now?

J

Ŋi, dhäwu nheny dhu lakaram?

Yes, are you going to tell a story?

Y

Ŋi, ŋanydja, yol mala ga nhinany?

Yes, but who’s over there?

J

Good.  Like to introduce yourselves?

To students

M

Start with introducing napurr (us) to the students…. to us?

J

How about, dhuway,

2:00

?

… yol yätjuwan?

.. who’s yelling?

J

Dhuway, I’ll let these people, these students introduce themselves…

E

I’m Ernie. … ŋarra Ernie. 

M

Ŋunha wäwa Ernie ŋunha…

Telling to others at Ram that it’s Ernie on the screen.

E

Nhe marŋgi?

Do you know (me)?

M

Wäwa.  Burralaŋ?  Ŋani, Burralaŋ?

2:30 Brother, Burralaŋ?  Are you Burralaŋ?(skin name)

E

Yow.

?

… buku nhäŋal

… saw your face

M

Yow

A

Yow, ŋarrany Anna, Gutjan.

I’m Anna (skin name), Gutjan

M

A ma’  (to others) Anna…

?

Jeffrey, ??? John…

M

Yaka, ŋunha ŋunha yapa, ga Yol wiripuny,

Okay so that’s her, sister, who else is there?

Y

Bulany

J

(to Peter) Introduce yourself…

P

Yow walal!

Y

Ŋäku walal!

3:00 Listen you all! Yiŋiya telling the people at Ram to listen.

P

Ŋarra Bulany, Peter.

I am Peter (and skin name) Bulany

M

Ga ŋunhany Bulany, Peter. Yow.  Ga ŋarrany, I’m Mätjarra, Garrawurra, storyteller. Yow ŋarrany Mätjarra. And these are my nhawi, family.  My niece Shaneen Gaykamaŋu, ga Rrikili, Rrikili one of my sisters, ga nhuma back nhawi Yol dhuwal wiripuya?  ŋathil ga nhawi Gabrielle, one of my sister’s daughter, dhuwal this one here.  Ga dhuwandja all these other kids they just come around, and play with us or they are playing ?chasey with these other kids.

Repeating the information for the people at Ram.

3:30
you at the back…. Who else is here? Maybe I’ll…

4:00

S

Manymak…

M

University. ??? The other, all my brothers and sisters are at their homes or doing something else.

Explaining that we are at the university in Darwin.

?

Wanha walal ga waŋa?

Where are they talking from?

?

University…

M

Ga yän muka at the moment-tja – not quite much to tell about.  We’ve got a big story for you to tell, we had a meeting today, we had a meeting today, and we were just doing nhawi mala, strangers towards petrol sniffing today. We had a big meeting and all the community …???. All the people got together and we had visitors coming from Darwin today,

4:30

5:00

J

Yo yow.

M

Ga nhamunha’ … eh?

.. how many… - what?  

J

Yow djutjutj,

Keep going…

M

.. nha yow yow djutjutj. Nhawiŋur from “Alcohol and other drugs” they came and talked to us, and they sort of listened to us and there are nhawi people, and that’s a that was a first time to have a meeting like that, on concerns like petrol, and other issues too.

5:30

????

??

?

?  Way mukthurr, napurru dhuwal ga ŋunha school!

Hey Shut up! We’re doing school here!

?

Ya! Sorry!

Whoops! Sorry!

M

Ga nhä wiripuny?  Ga those lot of nhakun nhawi like lot of sort of, lot of stories ga concerns, coming from the old people old people nhakun and also all the departmentals were closed for today, today’s meeting, like nhawi clinic was closed, the shops, homeland resource centre and the council here was closed, and we had to come to, we had all the young adults that the secondary students come to that meeting too.  And they were the people who come to listen to us, like the people from “Alcohol and drugs”, were listen to us, to nhawi get nhawi nhakun story, nhä what we can sort of what ????  meetings.

And what else?

6:00

6:30

Kids

shouting

7:00

M

Meetings, tried to … barrku!  We tried to nhawi people shared their stories and we was trying to get something to …. something to …. Some stories from a lot of old people and bulu staff, yow and there was a lot of information coming from overseasŋur, ga nhawi mala staffs about that. Like the first time meeting like that (barrku!) first time meeting like that was here, that was really nhawi, ringing noise --- nhawi dhäwu was nhawiku, like people were thinking about sending young people, ????  to outstations, like Laŋarra, or other maybe mainland mala outstations but we were concerned that if we were sending them to other outstations near here, they’d be coming back, walking back here and going into nhawi again – sniffing petrol, or breaking in, so that’s the big story for today was, and bulu (also) a lot of old people are concerned that they want to do something for them, and one of the some of the people here thought and gave their concern and they thought that one of the strategies would be groups of families or clan groups getting together and just talking about issues, problems. Like petrol sniffing with the young people, they were thinking about having a family healing committee, for the community, and everybody was happy about that, every was happy about that to have that going and also if there was another was to have ongoing ongoing activities for the community for young people like school sports and works, djäma mala jobs, young people doing jobs, so that was one of the ideas for that problem.  Yow and we were I myself was very happy to have this meeting with the people like families, people that are trying to hep us to settle these problems so. Yow, that was the big thing I thought to share with you for us.  Yow. Ŋani, Bulany?

Go away! (to the kids)

7:30

Go away! (to the kids)

8:30

9:00

9:30

10:00

10:30

J

Dhuway, would you be happy for us to ask you some questions about the meeting.

11:00

M

Bulu, bulu waŋi. Bäyŋu ŋarra ŋänha.

Say it again I didn’t hear you…

J

Would you be happy for us to ask you some questions about the meeting?

M

Yow manymak babalamirr.  I’ll try to answer them.

Yes okay, whatever…

J

Anybody would like to ask something?

P

Yeah I’ve got one question…

J

Just introduce yourself.

11:30

Lots of talking in the background.

‘Those balanda are talking on the computer. ‘

P

Yow.  Dhuwandja Bulany, Peter, yow…

Here I am, I’m Bulany.

M

Yow…

P

Manymak Ŋarra nhuna ŋäŋ’thun…  I was just going to ask you Where the meeting was today.  Wanhaŋur walal gan waŋanhamin?

Is it okay if I ask you….

Where were you talking today?

M

Ma’ yow the meeting was at the front of the nhawuŋur the Bulapula Arts Centre and the Shire Council office.  Just in the park area.

12:00

P

Ya bitjan.  And I’ve got another question if that’s all right

I see..

M

Manymak

P

I heard on the radio a few months ago that Bulapula had closed, but is the Art Centre open again?

M

Yeah I think, not I think, but yeah I went there one time to get mum to get ready, my mother to get ready for Canberra to do that um yarn selling that fibre, pandanus fibre and she went into Canberra and I went in there at it was just sort of tidying up to be opened, they are were just setting up when I went in there to get some packing stuffs, and I think there’s someone working there now. And I’m, I don’t know yet whether it’s open, the time when I went they were just cleaning up and getting ready to be open again.

13:00

13:30

P

Yow manymak, thanks,

Yes, good

A

Ŋarranydja Gutjan, Anna. I’ve got one question.  Who called the meeting? Who wanted the meeting.

I’m Gutjan

P

Yow I think it was the community because we had a long time problem, the petrol sniffing, so the members of the council, community members of the council were talking about it and then they called the meeting and rang up people to be there at the meeting and then they were there talking about it. Told them to come over and talk with us here we were just sort of rang them and asked them to come over to listen and maybe advise us of any ways they could help.  Yow the community called the meeting-dja yow.

14:00

14:30

E

Yow, Ŋarra Ernie, Burralaŋ, ga ŋarraku question….

I am Ernie, my skin is Burralaŋ and my question is…

P

Yol bili ŋunhi – Ernie?

Passer-by recognises Ernie. Who’s that?  Ernie?

M

Ŋi

Yeah

E

… Bili nhe ŋäma Opal Fuel?

15:00 Have you heard about Opal Fuel?

M

Nhä Opal-dja?

What? Opal?

E

Ŋi.  Nhe marŋgi Opal fuel?

Do you know about Opal fuel?

M

Yow yow yow eh,

Yes, yes

E

Do you have that at Raminginiŋ?

M

Opalnydja li ga selling fuel Opaldja, nhawiŋur Homeland Resource Centre, ga dhuwal bala Shireŋur Councilŋur ga bäyŋu, they got super yän ga rest of the nakun staff wala ga ordering nhawi super own personal order their super.

They are selling Opal at the Homeland Resource Centre but not here at the Shire Council, they just sell Super, and the rest of the staff order their own Super.

E

You know that Opal fuel that’s mak (maybe) specially to stop petrol sniffing, that’s why they made it.

16:00

M

Yeah, because Dhulumburrk was telling his side of the story about the djamarrkuli, they been looking at his fuel cans and drums of petrol they probably checked it, and they found out that it was Opal so they’ve been going to other places and when he was talking to them he was ‘How come you’re leaving my fuel alone?’  He just had it one tank. He was sharing that at the meeting. And they told him ‘Yaka! That fuel is yellow’, they told him, and he asked them ‘What are you using?’ bitjarra, and they told him, they using red, the red one.  Yow.  So. One of the strategies of that meeting was that the gonna put one type of petrol just Opalnha – tell all the staffs to order one type-na.  Just to order one nhawi, type petrol even the shire council, can do that too.

Dhulumburrk – Raminginiŋ elder

16:30

(to steal petrol for sniffing)

17:00

E

Ŋi,  manymak

M

Yow   

17:30

J

That’s good dhuway, just before you go, can you just lower your screen a little bit.?

M

Nhä

What?

J

Can you turn your screen down a little bit.

M

Ya Bitjan

Yes I see…

J

We’re just wondering how we could still see you.  But it’s getting dark outside.

M

Yow, bilin?  Manymak wo bäyŋu?

18:00 Okay, I’ve done it.  Was it good or not?

J

Manymak mirithirr. It’s a really good story and it’s really good to talk to you.

Very good.

M

Yow, manymak. Barrku ye’  That’s one of the little ones. Putting over the screen…. (to the kid) Nhäma nhuna ga bitjaŋur walal! Ma yow, ŋani?

Okay good. (To the kid)  Go away! A kid puts something over the screen and camera, everyone laughs. They can see you on their screen!

J

Yow.

Kid’s eyeball appears on screen.

M

Yow

J

Ma thankyou, dhuway.

Sister-in-law 18:30

M

Yow dhuwali ŋarraku story.

Yes, that’s my story.

J

Goodbye.

Ss

Thankyou, ta ta

kids

Ta ta

From Raminginiŋ

J

Do you know how to turn it off?

M

Yow dhuwal go to the nhawi redlili.  Nhuma manymak?  Manymak nhuma djutjutjnha?

Yes, here, on the red (button).  Are you right?  Okay?  See you?

J

yow djutjutj,

Yes, keep on!

M

Yow djutjutj….

J

ma’ ŋarra mukmaram

Okay, I’ll switch it off.

Goodbyes from Raminginiŋ kids.

Skype off noise

19:00

J

(to students) What did you think

P

Yeah, nice one, yeah, it was great.

J

What did you like about it?

A

They were so … wired!

J

Yeah literally straight off the wires.

E

Fresh!

J

Better th..

Long pause

A

A nice way to meet, we haven’t met…

J

We haven’t met Mätjarra before, Ernie would know Mätjarra, and you wouldn’t Peter you wouldn’t have met her before?

19:30

P

No, I was mistaking her for someone from Galwin’ku until she said Bulapula and then I realised we were at Rammo, at Ramingining because I was out there, so yeah.

J

What do you like about it. What did you think about last week.  We did the same last week when you weren’t here.

20:00

E

Was Dhäŋgal using more Yolŋu matha?

Yolŋu language

J

Well she was talking about kinship and talking about place names, so I guess she was.

MC

Yes I think Dhäŋgal naturally uses the Yolŋu matha a lot more, doesn’t she. That’s just her style.  Did you turn the screen flow off?

J

No I haven’t.  No. And none of these people knows about this being a project.  So we should have a bit of talk about it.

M

No and they haven’t signed a consent form either. Um

20:30   Laughter

M

… but we’ll do that next week.

J

Well did you want to talk about it briefly? Or should I..

Oh… Um it’s a program for - you were here last week, weren’t you? – we were talking to Dhäŋgal at Gäluru. It’s basically a program for looking at the possibilities for engaging Yolŋu in very remote places to become active in teaching and looking at whole lot of issues like knowledge and how that works, how technology facilitates knowledge, how knowledge works across boundaries and across spaces and then things to do with Intellectual property provisions, things to do with how to work out good ways of paying people in the ways they want to be paid and in a way which respects their knowledge. And um so there’s the technical stuff, there’s the Intellectual Property stuff, there’s the payment stuff and there’s the epistemological stuff about what happens to knowledge and where it comes form and how it’s produced, and particularly how it affects students and their feelings about what’s going on.  And there is a website, that you are encouraged to have a look at. 

21:00

21:30

J

I’ll just go to it…

22:00

M

I’ll write the URL down here. And in a little while we will hopefully be asking the students, for some feedback on who they felt about it and what sort of differences it might have made, but that’s the website up there, and all these trials, including the one tonight will be on the trials page there. So that we’ve got… Most of them are from Tuesday night classes there will be now a couple from the Wednesday night because last Wednesday we started because last Tuesday we had a technical hitch.  I was in Gove and we got Dhäŋgal to do it twice and it was interesting and fun.

22:30

J

So here’s like…

(John plays one of the trials from the website as an example)

M

“epistemological, knowledge issues cultural issues…” That’s my spiel…  “you name it…”  and that there’s a screen shot of John fiddling around trying to get the Skype up so while I’m explaining he’s…

Voice from the website.

23:00

J

See here I am in here…. Doing this over…

M

“are you happy to do that….?”

Voice from the website.

S

Yes.

M

So that’s the Skype, and that’s me talking to one student who was late and she hadn’t signed the consent form.

J

“Some of you would already have been to this website”

Voice from the website.

M

And that’s a full transcription you can scroll down and go all the

23:30

J

So that’s the whole text from that video…

M

… and you can see in some of them especially Dhäŋgal’s one, where you can see she’s speaking quite a bit in Yolŋu matha, so I’ve had to try to put a translation I’m getting my style a little bit better so I put the translation over on the right hand side and the um transcription on the left hand side, so it would be quite interesting as a study, as a resource for looking at how language works where people change and the way they use English in the middle of their words, and when John changes from English to Yolŋu matha, and why. And some of he technical things are really interesting too. All right I’ll leave you to it.  Thankyou And next week I’ll get you a consent from to sign.

24:00

Ss

It’s fine, I’m happy to…. We’re happy, that’s all right, you’re right…

24:30

M

Thanks John…

J

Ma’