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NAIDOC WEEK: OUR LANGUAGES MATTER

Our languages matter [Credit: naidoc.org.au]

Our languages matter [Credit: naidoc.org.au] Source: Our languages matter [Credit: naidoc.org.au]

Between 250 to 700 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages existed before European settlement depending on which linguist you speak with. More than two centuries later, only 150 of those traditional languages survived according to the 2016 Census. But the real state of Australias native languages is bleaker with just 14 still being actively taught to children.


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By Bogdan Rudnytski

Source: SBS



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Between 250 to 700 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages existed before European settlement depending on which linguist you speak with. More than two centuries later, only 150 of those traditional languages survived according to the 2016 Census. But the real state of Australias native languages is bleaker with just 14 still being actively taught to children.



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