ACTIVIDADES DE DESARROLLO

There is very little substantive linguistic data from the period 1793 to 1804. However, there is sufficient data to make the claim that an early form of NSW Pidgin had its inception in the Sydney area during this period. There is also a little evidence which demonstrates that some Aboriginal people of the south coast acquired some knowledge of the emergent pidgin. The north coast people were almost unacquainted with the pidgin during this time.

3.3.1.1 Anecdotal comment

In 1793, Spanish visitors to Sydney (see 3.2.1.1) observed that Aboriginal people in the colony spoke to them in English— 'at times we have heard entire Families salute us with several shouts in English' (Malaspina 1793a: 106). The Spanish were not fluent speakers of English themselves, as their commander Malaspina observed (Malaspina

1793b: 144). Therefore, it is likely that the 'English' spoken by Aboriginal people was the jargon which had developed in Sydney out of contact between Aboriginal people and colonists (as discussed in Chapter 2). Malaspina believed that the local Aboriginal people had decided that the Spanish 'did not understand how to speak' because they could not communicate easily with the English. However, the people treated the Spanish with the same familiarity as they did the English and overcame the lack of a common language by using 'a thousand strategems'. For example, when one of the Spanish officers 'was presented by an Englishman to an Indian [Aboriginal] Friend of his, he was most friendly toward him, and not having anything to present as a gift to him he asked the Englishman for a Duck which he had caught to present to our comrade, saying that it was necessary to give something to the visitor' (Malaspina

1793b:149).

The Spanish did not record examples of the speech of Aboriginal people. However, they did note the word beriguet 'biscuit' (possibly a rendition of 'very good') as an item in the vocabulary of the people.

They put in their insatiable bellies whatever they come across— Bread, a Cob of Maize, and even a tallow candle are delicious foods, but nothing equals a Biscuit dipped in salty water, which is the most agreeable to them: they know it by the name 'Berriguet', not being able to pronounce its English name. (Malaspina

1793b: 148)

In September 1796, Collins observed that a mixed language had developed out of attempts by colonists and Aboriginal people to communicate with each other.

By slow degrees we began mutually to be pleased with, and to understand each other. Language, indeed, is out of the question; for at the time of writing this (September 1796) nothing but a barbarous mixture of English with the Port

Jackson dialect is spoken by either party; and it must be added, that even in this the natives have the advantage, comprehending with much greater aptness than we can pretend to, every thing they hear us say. From a pretty close observation,

however, assisted by the use of the barbarous dialect just mentioned, the following particulars respecting the natives of New South Wales have been collected.

(Collins, vol. 1, 1975:451)

The language referred to by Collins was likely to have been the earliest form of NSW Pidgin. He added that the Aboriginal population had gained the greatest facility with the language. Collins stated that he used the language to gather ethnographic information. This in spite of his previous studies and growing facility with the Sydney Language. Evidently the mixed language was already obviating the need for colonists to learn the vernacular. The ethnographic information Collins collected encompassed pragmatic as well as esoteric subjects. He provided a lengthy discourse on a comparison between Christian and Aboriginal philosophy (Collins, vol. 1,

1975:454-55). The mixed language must have been quite stable for Collins to have been able to discuss complex points of religious philosophy with Aboriginal people.

Colonists who had some experience with people of the Pacific islands used their knowledge in communicating with Aboriginal people. For example, while exploring a river off Frederick Henry Bay in Tasmania in late 1798, George Bass encountered an Aboriginal man whom he 'addressed.. .in several of the dialects of New South Wales, and some few of the most common words of the South Sea Islands' (2:20).

Unfortunately, there is no further information about 'South Sea Island words' that were used by people such as Bass.

Anecdotal comments made by writers in the very early nineteenth century reinforce these eighteenth century observations. The collective evidence suggests that, by the turn of the century, NSW Pidgin had gained common usage amongst Aboriginal people who lived in and around the settlement of Sydney. In the early 1800s the

Aboriginal population had become very useful to the colonists since they had begun 'to understand the English language a little'. Many of them lived 'regularly at the settlement on the earnings of their own industry' (3:12). Attempts to educate some Aboriginal children had been successful and they spoke English, at least in an

interlanguage form. One of the greatest successes was a highly intelligent Aboriginal boy who lived with Marsden and spoke English fluently (3:16). Nicolas Baudin, commander of the French scientific expedition that arrived in Sydney in 1802, commented that Aboriginal people had made more progress in the English language than the English had in Aboriginal languages (Homer 1987:260).

The term 'broken English' was first used in NSW to describe the speech of

Bennelong (see 2.2.9). In the late 1790s, it was applied to the contact induced register spoken by the Aboriginal population. In 1802, Flinders observed that Bungaree attempted unsuccessfully to use 'broken English' with some Aboriginal people of Sandy Cape in Queensland when he found that he 'did not understand a word of their language' (2:44). George Bond, of the NSW Corp, recounted an incident that occurred before 1803 in which an Aboriginal man from the town of Sydney spoke to some inland Aboriginal people 'in broken English' (2:46). Flinders' and Bond's comments suggest that Aboriginal people were already using NSW Pidgin amongst themselves as a lingua franca. James Grant believed that the soldiers who

accompanied his expeditions could speak the Aboriginal language of Sydney. However, his data indicates that they spoke NSW Pidgin. Grant's comments also indicate that the colonists in general relied on NSW Pidgin as the lingua franca for cross-cultural communication.

3 .3 .1 .2 Aboriginal linguistic practices which promoted English borrowings

It was mentioned earlier (2.2.15) that the colonists early discovered that Aboriginal people were excellent mimics able to replicate both speech and mannerisms with great accuracy. Mimicry was an important potential catalyst for borrowings into any

developing contact language and the colonists encouraged the practise (2:10). Some Aboriginal people developed routines which they performed to gain favours from the colonists. For example, Bungaree became a famous Sydney identity for his ability to perform accurate impersonations of the governors (Troy 1993b). In satirising the colonists Aboriginal people may have been attempting to understand their behaviour as for example in the imitation of the colonists' religious rituals.

The young people who resided in our houses were very desirous of going to church on Sundays, but knew not for what purpose we attended. I have often seen them take a book, and with much success imitate the clergyman in his manner (for better and readier mimics can no where be found), laughing and enjoying the applause which they received. (Collins, vol. 1, 1975:455)

In the last chapter (2.2.6.3) it was also noted that Aboriginal people who became closely acquainted with the colonists habitually traded names with their particular friends or gave them an Aboriginal kin name such as 'father'. Although the

phenomenon was one of the processes of language contact it is difficult to assess any possible contribution name exchanging may have made to the development of NSW Pidgin. However, it is very likely that some lexical borrowings were facilitated by the process. Certainly, name exchanging as a process of incorporation confirmed the intimacy of relationships between Aboriginal people and the colonists. Malaspina noted, in 1793, that 'they are appreciative enough to those who treat them well, and one of their greatest courtesies is that of exchanging names and they keep them until they are supplied with a new change' (Malaspina 1793b: 149). Name changing remained popular throughout the late eighteenth and the nineteenth centuries (2:2). English names became very popular with Aboriginal people. Most of the well known Aboriginal people in Sydney adopted an English name. For example, Gnung-a gnung-a Mur-re-mur-gan became 'Collins' after David Collins, Carradah became 'Midjer Bool' after Mr Ball commander of the Supply (Collins, vol. 1, 1975:275) and one man took on the name of a ship 'Willamanan' after the transport William and Anne