The following was included in a notice about a future public visit to Muogamarra, dated 15 April 2013:
Muogamarra Nature Reserve is a Protected Place
Muogamarra (pronounced Moo-o-ga-marra) lies between the outer Sydney suburb of Cowan (to the south) and the Hawkesbury River (to the north.)
But is this guide to pronunciation correct?
muogamarra is a word from the Wiradhuri language, and there is only one reference for it:
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Australian
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respelt
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English
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EngJSM
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source
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“Muogamarra”
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muwaga-ma-ra =
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“to keep in reserve for future use.”
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keep :
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Günther (Fraser) [:100:1] [Wira]
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The definition provided by Archdeacon Günther is curiously specific: ‘to keep in reserve for future use’, and this idea is probably what attracted those who bestowed the name on the nature reserve even though the language is inappropriate. The reserve actually falls in Dharug–Kuring-gai country.
The spelling beginning muog– could be rendered either as mug– or muwag-, and there is probably no native speaker today who could say for certain how the word should be pronounced or precisely what it meant. Consequently all that can be done is to look at other words starting more or less the same way, to see if they offer any help as to meaning, and perhaps pronunciation.
There are around eighty such Wiradhuri records to look at in this group. As will be seen, many are variations the one on the other.
The most promising of these is:
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Australian
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respelt
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English
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EngJSM
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source
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“Muoyarra”
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muwa-ya-ra =
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“to tell behind the back; to speak secretly.”
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secret speak:
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Günther (Fraser) [:100:5] [Wira]
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A tenuous connection might be inferred to muogamara.
In ‘Muoyarra’, the suffix –yara is the portion than means ‘speak’. In which case ‘muwa-’ might mean ‘secret’.
In ‘Muogamarra’, the suffix –mara means ‘to do’, ‘to make’. The intermediate suffix –ga might indicate ‘be’. So the whole word might be interpreted as ‘secret-be-make’, and with a stretch of imagination this might yield ‘to keep in reserve for future use’.
As this is admittedly quite a speculative leap, it is worth considering some of the other mug– and muwag– words alluded to above. These follow, being only a few from each group to give the idea, with the number in each group indicated in each heading.
THREE: hatchet
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Australian
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respelt
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English
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EngJSM
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source
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“Moog’ goo”
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mugu =
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“(The stone tomahawk. Cracks or divides. To pierce.”
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hatchet :
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SofM 19020923 [133 Richards] [:134.2:9] [Wira]
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“Mo-gel”
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mugil =
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“stone axe”
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hatchet :
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Garnsey [:27:3] [Wira]
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SIX: find
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“Moog-gaa’”
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mugA =
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“To find.”
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find :
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SofM 19020923 [133 Richards] [:134.2:20] [Wira]
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“Moog-gai’ nyee—dtoo”
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muga-nyi-Du =
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“(I found”
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find did I:
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SofM 19020923 [133 Richards] [:134.2:22] [Wira]
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THREE: blunt
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“mugu”
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mugu =
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“Blunt edge”
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blunt :
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Mathews 1904 [:301:112] [Wira]
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“Mogo”
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mugu =
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“Blunt”
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blunt :
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SofM 19010321 [26 Thomas–Wiraiari] [:27.4:21] [Wira]
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FOUR: medical or inside
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“muguma”
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muguma =
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“Inside”
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inside :
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Mathews 1904 [:290:21.2] [Wira]
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“Moog’ goo-ma”
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muguma =
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“To feel bad or pained. To be stung. To place divided.”
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ill :
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SofM 19020923 [133 Richards] [:134.2:18] [Wira]
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SEVEN: kin terms
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Australian
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respelt
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English
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EngJSM
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source
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“Moog-ging—gaa-lang”
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muging-[G]Alang =
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“Old women. An aged being. One of luck or providence (to have lived so long).”
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matriach :
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SofM 19020923 [133 Richards] [:134.2:26] [Wira]
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“{míkigaŋ, múgugaŋ}”
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mugu-gang =
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“{young woman (unmarried)}”
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lass :
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HALE pace WATSON [:510:12.2] [Wira]
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“muki”
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mugi =
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“Mother’s mother”
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mother mother of:
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Mathews NYMBA 1904 [:225.2:32] [Nymba]
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“muagan”
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muwagan =
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“sister”
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sister :
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KAOL Ridley [WIRA] [:122:13.2] [Wira]
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FOUR: ‘lacking’ (privative) suffix
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“-múgu”
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-mugu =
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“The terminations -mubaġ and -múgu denote the absence of some quality”
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lacking :
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Günther (Fraser) [:65:4.2] [Wira]
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“Mogu”
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-mugu =
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“is affixed to nouns to signify destitution or privation”
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lacking :
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HALE pace WATSON [:501:1] [Wira]
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“[wuttha-muku]”
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-mugu =
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“[Deaf]”
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lacking [ear]:
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Mathews NYMBA 1904 [:230.1:24.2] [Nymba]
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SEVEN: trees and flora
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Australian
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respelt
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English
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EngJSM
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source
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“Moog-gil’ bang”
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mugil-bang =
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“The “wild lemon” tree.”
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tree type:
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SofM 19020923 [133 Richards] [:134.2:16] [Wira]
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“Muogalambin”
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muwaga-la-mbin =
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“a kind of boxtree”
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box fuzzy:
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Günther (Fraser) [:100:19] [Wira]
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“Moog’ garr”
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mugar =
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““Porcupine” grass (spinifex). Possesses to pierce or divide.”
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spinifex :
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SofM 19020923 [133 Richards] [:134.2:13] [Wira]
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NINE: fauna (birds, mammals, insects, reptiles)
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“Múge”
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mugi =
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“an owl”
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owl :
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Günther (Fraser) [:99:15] [Wira]
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“Moog’ gein(y)”
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muginy =
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“Mosquitoes. Who are to pierce.”
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mosquito :
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SofM 19020923 [133 Richards] [:134.2:11] [Wira]
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“Mūgunda”
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muganda =
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“Death adder”
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adder death:
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Mathews 8006/3/7/ – CRITERION [:28.2:2.1] [Wira]
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TWENTY: bodily state (alive, blind, deaf, dumb, sleepy etc.)
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Australian
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respelt
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English
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EngJSM
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source
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“mūun”
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muwan =
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“Alive”
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alive :
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AL&T Honery (Ridley) [NYMBA] [:248.4:1] [Nymba]
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“Mookeen”
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mugin =
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“Blind”
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blind :
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SofM 18960810 [12.7: JM-Wooradjery] [:13.1:42] [Wira]
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“mugudha”
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mugu-Da =
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“Deaf”
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deaf :
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Mathews 1904 [:301:98] [Wira]
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“{Mogle or Neamogle}”
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mugal =
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“{Dumb}”
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dumb :
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SofM 19001121 [166: Thomas–Dubbo] [:167.2:30.1] [Wira]
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“Muggaigawanna”
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muga-gawa-na =
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“to go to sleep.”
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sleep inst :
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Günther (Fraser) [:99:29] [Wira]
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The above are the main categories of words in the collection of around eighty. There are a few others, for ‘luck’, ‘end’, ‘hell’, ‘net’ and one or two others besides.
After having reviewed them all, anyone can form his or her own conclusion as to the real meaning and pronunciation of muogamarra. My own preference at present is for muogamarra to mean ‘secret-be-make’. And note that this is a verb: ‘to make (something) secret).
SECRET, HIDE, CONCEAL
Finally, a search for words meaning ‘secret’, ‘hide’ and conceal’ yielded the following among others.
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Australian
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respelt
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English
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EngJSM
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source
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“Muggugalúrgarra”
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magu galur-ga-ra =
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“to conceal, to keep secret.”
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hide :
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Günther (Fraser) [:99:30] [Wira]
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“Goon’ noong-aa”
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gunu-ngA =
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“Hidden”
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hide did :
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SofM 19020623 [81 Richards] [:82.3:50] [Wira]
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While the first example tends to endorse the notion of muogamarra meaning ‘secret-be-make’ (through magu-), there are no further supporting records.
The second example is one of seven records of similar form, suggesting gununga as a more likely word for ‘hide’. So the idea of ‘hide’ or ‘hiding’ would appear to have nothing to do with muogamarra.
JEREMY STEELE
Monday 15 April 2013
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