Jawi[ or Djawi] or Djaui,[ is a nearly extinct dialect of the Bardi language of Western Australia, the traditional language of the Jawi people. There are no longer any known fluency speakers, but there may be some partial speakers.]
The name has also been spelt Chowie, Djaoi, Djau, Dyao, and Dyawi.[
]
Classification
Jawi is a Non-Pama–Nyungan language of the Nyulnyulan family, most closely related to
Bardi language.
[ Bowern discusses how Jawi and Bardi may have converged within the last hundred years.][Bowern, C. "A Grammar of Bardi" Berlin: Mouton, 2012, Chapter 1.] Jawi people were hit hard by influenza[Sunday Island Mission Records] in the early years of the 20th century. Their traditional lands are Sunday Island and the islands of the Buccaneer Archipelago to the northeast.
Cited references
General references
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Bird, W.; Hadley, S. (not dated). "Native vocabulary: Sunday Island", unpublished manuscript.
Further reading