Noongar pronunciation guide for Smashing Serendipity
The memoir of Binjarib Nyoongar woman Louise K. Hansen, Smashing Serendipity: The Story of One Mooorditj Yorga was published by Fremantle Press in February 2023. Louise never got to see the publication of her book, passing away just after the final manuscript got sent to the printer, but her daughter, Alice Kearing, helped to make sure the Noongar glossary for Smashing Serendipity was recorded and shared.
Louise was a Traditional Owner of the Binjarib people of the South West of WA and had strong connections to the Palyku people from the Pilbara. As a wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, family was very important to Louise, and so was sharing her culture. She saw her story as no more remarkable and every bit as extraordinary as those of other moorditj yorgas who carried their families and their culture through the second half of the twentieth century. As a natural-born teacher who taught in classrooms and beyond, Louise made sure her culture was passed on to all of her children. She would have been proud to know that Alice, another moorditj yorga, recorded this pronunciation guide for her.
