Burarra and Yolŋu Matha of Arnhem Land (northern Australia)

This chapter is an overview of social contact between speakers of Burarra (Maningridan family) and Yolŋu Matha varieties (Pama-Nyungan family) of Arnhem Land in northern Australia. Descriptions are based on the authors’ documentation of Burarra dialects, Yolngu varieties and local language ecologies from the mid- to late 2010s in collaboration with Arnhem Land community members, discussions with other researchers and language workers in the area and earlier (linguistic) anthropological descriptions of the region. Prior to colonisation in the late 18th century subsections of these groups were in long-term close contact, their languages co-existing within a local small-scale egalitarian multilingual ecology. Post-colonially reflexes of this system persist, with continued daily interactions between the groups and both languages common within local multilingual repertoires. Other languages of significance in the local space are Bininj Kunwok, Rembarrnga, Ndjébbana, Gurr-goni and Na-kara, as well as English and Kriol in contemporary times. The domains of local community, family and kin, social exchange and marriage are particularly relevant for social contact between Burarra and Yolŋu people.