Capítulo 5. Resultados sobre la mesa de vibraciones
5.3. Pruebas del error por tiempo de cálculo
The patrilineal clan is the fundamental traditional social category, both in the sense that others can be derived from it, and in terms of functional importance. Clans own tracts of country and are associated with totemic species that are found in that country (see also §3.9). For example, the Kura Tjipmam clan come from a stretch of country Ngudaniman, Yerrpilam (“Fossil Head”) and Kultjil. Their name references dark silty water that enters the sea at Yerrpilam, and they are alternatively known as Kultjil clan. Their totems include ku balli “mud crabs” and ku kanamkek “Rainbow Serpent”. It is not unusual for neighbouring clans to share one or more totems.
12 The MP term kaka traditionally covers both MoBr and WiFa. In the former sense kaka is still used, but in the latter sense the borrowing lamparra is used.
During the Mission 15 clans were identified as populating the settlement (J. Falkenberg, 1962; Stanner, 1936). Curiously, though clans are treated by Wadeye Aboriginal people as things of great permanence, the passing of decades has seen various bifurcations in local accounting of clans. Together with the recognition of slightly more distant groups as having a legitimate place in Wadeye, up to 27 clans are now enumerated, depending on sources (Barwick et al., 2009; Ward, 1983).
Figure 2.6.1 Bush estates of clans populating Wadeye (Barwick et al., 2009; Blythe, 2009; Furlan, 2005; Ward, 1983). Locations are approximate only and do not constitute a claim about actual ownership. Green markers show Wadeye and the two closest towns, Palumpa and Daly River, both of which were also founded as missions.
Clans can be grouped into tribes or “language groups” according to self-‐
identification as speaking the same language. For example, Kuy and Yederr clans both say their language is Magati Ke and agree that they speak the same
Social organisation 42
identify their languages more specifically as Magati Kuy and Magati Yederr. (For most of the language names treated here, the first part means “language”:
murriny, marri, magati, ngan’gi.) The categorization of clans into language groups is not always straightforward, as some clans identify with two or three neighbouring languages either simultaneously, or at different points in time. For example the Papa Ngala clan is recorded as Murriny Kura by Ward (1983), but later in Barwick et al (2009) identified as Ngan’giwumirri; the Pulampa clan is identified by Ward as both Marri Ngarr and Ngan’giwumirri, but by Barwick as Marri Ngarr and Murriny Kura. More distant, perhaps more politically peripheral clans seem to have these more labile language associations, whereas the more strongly represented clans from the area close to Wadeye all associate clearly with just one language. For example the Dimirnin, Nangu and Maniny clans all unambiguously identify as Murrinh Patha people; Wakal Bengkuny and Kungarlbarl clans are equally clear about being Marri Ngarr people. Adding to the difficulty of a stable taxonomy, most clans can be referred to by more than one name, and some of the languages also have multiple designations (cf. Sutton, 1991).
Figure 2.6.2 Approximate indicators of language/land associations in the Wadeye region
(Barwick et al., 2009; Blythe, 2009; Furlan, 2005; Reid, 1990; Ward, 1983)
The language groups that have been most consistently identified for Wadeye people are Murrinh Patha, Murriny Kura, Marri Ngarr, Magati Ke, Marri Tjevin and Marri Amu. To this core list Jaminjung and Mendhe can also be added, though their traditional lands are further away, and speaker numbers are smaller. In the most recent community surveys Ngan’giwumirri and
Ngan’gikurrunggurr are also usually added. Various pairs within this list are closely related dialects – a fact which is readily admitted by speakers themselves. The language groups are listed in Table 2.6.2, showing those which can be paired as dialects, as well as numbers of clans that identify primarily (or most recently) with each language. The use of various Aboriginal languages at Wadeye is
discussed in §4.3.
Social organisation 44
Languages # Clans (Barwick et al.,
2009; Ward, 1983) Core original settlement groups Murrinh Patha Murriny Kura 5 2 Marri Ngarr Magati Ke 7 2 Marri Tjevin Marri Amu 2 2 More peripheral groups Jaminjung 2 Mendhe 1 Ngani’giwumirri Ngan’gikurrunggurr 2 2 Table 2.6.2 Language groups in Wadeye
Another superordinate grouping for clans is into “ceremony groups”, which are activated for initiation rites (§2.6.2), as well as funerary smoking ceremonies and any other events involving traditional dance. The importance of these groups in ceremonial exchange and in transactions with the spirit realm has been
extensively documented by Marett (2005) and Barwick (2006, 2011). The situation with ceremony groups is much as with language groups, with some clans identifying with more than one ceremony group, or changing group over time. The groups Djanba, Wangga and Lirrga are the most solidly attested, though in recent times some clans also identify as Balga or Wurltjirri, both of which may or may not be seen as distinct from Djanba. All of these group names can also be regarded as the names of music/dance genres.
Contemporary kigay are clearly aware of their clan, language and ceremony group affiliations, but these are to some extent associated with a “bush life” which is gradually receding. In §3.9 I argue that it is heavy metal mobs that are the more important social categories for kigay in the contemporary town setting.
Moiety and subsection groups have also been used at Wadeye, but these categories have both fallen into disuse. Karttjin “chicken hawk” and tiwungku
“eagle hawk” were the patrilineal moieties, seemingly well-‐established in the social structure (Stanner 1936), so that it is not obvious why they have ceased to be recognised. Subsections, on the other hand, were an innovation only briefly borrowed in the early twentieth century from the Jaminjung and other groups to the south, being discarded after just a few decades’ currency (Blythe,
forthcoming). Around the same time, some Wadeye men experimented with the penile subincision ceremony they had encountered among people to the south. This too proved a rather brief fad (Mark Crocombe, p.c.).