Gudjal is the language of the people of the Mural (Charters Towers) region, in western inland north Queensland. The beginnings of this dictionary and learner’s guide were in the 1970s when Gudjal people began working with linguists to record their language. The first dictionary of Gudjal, by William Santo and Cassy Nancarrow, was published in 2006; and so, a language that had been sleeping started to awaken. In Yaru!, the dictionary has been expanded and the first-ever Gudjal grammar is included, as well as four songs and a Welcome to Country.The book has been compiled by Gudjal elder William Santo and linguists Alex Anderson, Cassy Nancarrow and Myfany Turpin. It includes accompanying audio read by Keesha Gordon and Shakira Kelly. The audio is accessed through QR codes in the book and can be downloaded from the associated website. Yaru! will be essential to the Gudjal community and schools in the Charters Towers region to build a new generation of language speakers. It will also be of value to people interested in Australia’s first peoples, their languages and language revival.
