Western Desert Verbal Arts Project Collection: Tjalaku - Joella Butler with Katrina Giles (iPad)

Added by Ngaanyatjarra Council (Aboriginal Corporation)

Description Western Desert Verbal Arts Project Collection

From 2012 - 2017 Ngaatjatjarra linguist Elizabeth Marrkilyi Ellis worked with Inge Kra; and Jennifer Green to document the endangered verbal arts of the Australian Western Desert.

The Western Desert dialects spoken in the Ngaanyatjarra Lands Communities include Ngaanyatjarra, Ngaatjatjarra and Pitjanjatjara.

With women and girls we filmed the traditional practice of mirlpa, or sand storytelling, and with younger storytellers we recorded their adaptation of this drawing practise to iPads.

Made with the support of The Hans Rausing Endangered Languages Project, Australian Government - Australian research Council, Australian National University, The University of Melbourne.