Of the 250 or so Aboriginal languages once spoken in Australia, two-thirds are extinct or moribund. Coastal languages were usually the first to go, with settlement patterns matching patterns of extinction. In Western Australia, the former of approximately 110 Aboriginal languages, 45 were presumed extinct, and another 30 were on the verge of extinction. Wajuk, the original language of Perth, was dead. Nyungar, the language of the southwestern tip of the continent, was gone. Mirning, the language of Eucla, had disappeared with barely a trace. Witjaari, once spoken north of Wajuk, was now a ghost language. And the list went on. I had come to a land of linguistic devastation.
Sherman’s memoirs, as literature far superior to Grant’s, create an unforgettable autoportrait of this brilliant, angry, ruthless warrior.
Around 1.2 million people in Xiong'an New Area -- a new economic zone 100 kilometres southwest of Beijing -- are no longer allowed to enter or leave their residential compounds, local virus prevention staff confirmed to AFP on Friday.
While recent lockdowns in China are publicly announced and widely reported by state media, the Xiong'an restrictions appear to have been introduced by stealth with no public announcements -- sparking confusion among some residents of the area.
…While there have been a number of national-level New Areas across China, Xiong'an stands out with its location personally designated by President Xi Jinping, according to state media.
And for a moment it seemed that everything would be all right, that we were traveling back in time to that idyllic farm near a drinkwater town in Iowa, back to my boyhood, and that Mina would always smile up at me from her bed.
