A new online dictionary is an excellent tool for anyone learning the Yolngu language.

Students, researchers, Yolngu language workers and the Yolngu community will benefit from the first online searchable and extendable Yolngu Matha (Languages) dictionary.

The dictionary has audio features and can be linked to parsing and translation software, which would greatly enhance the study resources for students and researchers of Yolngu languages.

Yolngu Studies lecturer Yasunori Hayashi said the online dictionary would enable students to use a smart phone to search for Yolngu Matha words.

“It is more interactive and students with minimal internet access can look up the meanings of Yolngu Matha words on their smart phones, tablets and computers,” Mr Hayashi said.

“One of the practical functions of the dictionary is fuzzy search by which students can search words without knowing accurate spellings. This function may support students when they work on transcribing oral stories spoken in Yolngu Matha.”

Anyone wishing to use the dictionary are asked to remember that Yolngu languages are owned by the Yolngu people.

The dictionary is accessible here.