208 R. H. MATHEWS. 



Phratry Father Mother Son Daughter 



ivn-irr^nn i Kubbi Ippatha Kumbo Butha 



iviumoun | Murri Butlia Ippai ippatha 



It will be observed that the children inherit the name of 

 the other moiety of their mother's phratry. Thus, if a 

 Ngurrawun man, of the section Ippai, marry a Mumbun 

 woman of the section Kubbitha, the offspring will be Mum- 

 bun the same as their mother, but they will not bear the 

 name of her section, but will take the name of the other 

 section in the Mumbun phratry — the sons being called 

 Murri, and the daughters Matha. Again, the children 

 inherit their mother's totem ; for example, if the mother be 

 a pelican, her sons and daughters will be pelicans also. 



Like the people themselves, everything in the universe, 

 animate and inanimate, belongs to one or other of the two 

 phratries, Ngurrawun and Mumbun. And every individual 

 in the community, male and female alike, claims some 

 animal or plant or other object, as his dkingga or totem. 

 The totems of the Ngurrawun phratry are common to the 

 two sections, Ippai and Kumbo, of which it is composed; 

 and the Mumbun totems are common to the sections Kubbi 

 and Murri. 



Among the dhingga or totems of the Ngurrawun phratry 

 may be mentioned the following : — emu with dark head, 

 kangaroo, bandicoot, bilbai, pelican, opossum, swan, plain 

 turkey, mosquito, musk duck, porcupine, bat, dog, kurrea, 

 bulldog-ant, yellow-belly fish. 



The undermentioned totemic names, or dhingga, may be 

 enumerated as some of those belonging to the Mumbun 

 phratry : — emu with grey head, house-fly, tree iguana, 

 ground iguaua, eaglehawk, scrub-turkey, shingleback, large 

 fish-hawk, wanggal or small night-jar, black duck, pada- 

 mellin, crow, carpet snake, codfish, bream. 



