NGULNGAWA : THE BUNURONG ALPHABET
Each letter combination has only one pronunciation in all contexts. This is not like English, where one letter can have multiple pronunciations (for example, ‘u’ in ‘bus’ vs ‘u’ in ‘bush’).
a
like the ‘uh’ sound in ‘bud’.
aa
like the ‘aah’ sound in ‘bard’.
b
like the ‘b’ sound in ‘bot’.
d
like the ‘d’ sound in ‘dock’.
dh
like the ‘d’ sound in ‘width’, with your tongue flat against your teeth.
dj
like the ‘j’ in ‘jam’.
e
like the ‘eh’ sound in ‘bed’.
g
like the ‘g’ sound in ‘guy’.
i
like the ‘ih’ sound in ‘bid’.
ii
like the ‘ee’ sound in ‘bead’.
k
like the ‘k’ sound in ‘sky’.
l
like the ‘l’ sound in ‘look’.
m
like the ‘m’ sound in ‘mess’.
n
like the ‘n’ sound in ‘not’.
ng
like the ‘ng’ sound in ‘sing’.
nh
like the ‘ny’ sound in ‘canyon’.
p
like the ‘p’ sound in ‘spot’.
r
like the ‘r’ sound in ‘red’, but a little further back in the mouth.
rd
like the ‘rd’ sound in ‘heard’ in American English, with a hard ‘r’.
rn
like the ‘rn’ sound in ‘burn’ in American English, with a hard ‘r’.
rr
like a trilled ‘r’ in Spanish or Italian.
rt
like the ‘rt’ sound in ‘hurt’ in American English, with a hard ‘r’.
t
like the ‘t’ sound in ‘stock’.
u
like the ‘u’ sound in ‘bush’.
uu
like the ‘oo’ sound in ‘book’, but a little longer.
w
like the ‘w’ sound in ‘water’.
y
like the ‘y’ sound in ‘yellow’.
yt
like the ‘ight’ sound in ‘light’, but with your tongue flat against your teeth.
HAVE A GO AT PRONOUNCING THESE COMMON WORDS!
Try pronouncing these words, then click the arrow to see how they are pronounced.
Wumindjika (Welcome)
WOO-min-JEE-kuh (not WUH-min-JEE-kuh)
The ‘u’ is like the ‘u’ in ‘bush’, not the ‘u’ in ‘bus’ or the ‘oo’ in ‘moon’.
Bundjil (Wedge-tailed Eagle)
BOON-jill (not ‘BUN-jill’)
The ‘u’ sound is like the ‘u’ in ‘bush’, not the ‘u’ in ‘bun’ or the ‘oo’ in ‘moon’.
Naarm (Port Phillip Bay)
NAARM (with a hard ‘r’, like in American English).
WHO MADE THIS SPELLING SYSTEM?
This spelling system for Bunurong was designed and approved by seventeen Bunurong Elders and Knowledge Holders in June 2025.
Individual Bunurong peoples may choose to spell Bunurong in their own way, but this is the spelling approved by the majority of Bunurong Elders and Knowledge Holders, and which is used in the Bunurong dictionary.