Wirlomin Noongar Language & Stories

Lab 385 partnered with the Wirlomin Noongar Language and Stories to build a culturally-sensitive digital platform that preserves endangered language, integrates authentic audio pronunciation, and empowers the community with full ownership and control of their linguistic heritage.

The Opportunity

Preserving endangered Indigenous language
through culturally-sensitive technology

The Wirlomin Noongar Language and Stories Project faced a critical preservation challenge. Their extensive collection of Noongar language resources, including historical recordings, existed in scattered documents, audio files, and elders' memories without centralised, accessible organisation.

The opportunity extended beyond simple digitisation. Traditional Western alphabetical ordering conflicted with Noongar cultural concepts, where words naturally group by relationships to land, family, and spiritual connections. Community educators repeatedly explained pronunciation while younger generations had limited access to authentic language resources.

Representing over 80 community members across Perth, Albany, and regional centres, the organisation needed a culturally-appropriate platform that could preserve linguistic heritage while empowering community ownership and accessibility. The vision was clear: create technology that honours cultural protocols while making language preservation sustainable for future generations.

Cultural Preservation

Protecting endangered language through digital means.

Community Empowerment

Enabling self-management and knowledge sharing.

Audio Integration

Preserving oral tradition through pronunciation guides.

Our Approach

Cultural Custodianship Through Technology

Lab 385 approached the project as cultural custodianship, reimagining how Indigenous language preservation could work online while respecting cultural protocols and empowering community ownership.

Cultural Consultation

  • Community stakeholder engagement
  • Linguistic relationship understanding
  • Sensitive content identification
  • Pronunciation importance learning
1

Information Architecture

  • Semantic categorisation design
  • Cultural concept groupings
  • Relationship taxonomies
  • Abandoning Western structures
2

Platform Development

  • WordPress implementation
  • Advanced Custom Fields setup
  • Audio system development
  • Password protection creation
3

Content Integration

  • Historical recordings digitisation
  • Word page creation
  • Pronunciation guide integration
  • Bilingual content support
4

Training & Handover

  • Comprehensive manual creation
  • Hands-on CMS training
  • Community member empowerment
  • Ongoing support establishment
5
The Solution

Culturally-Authentic Digital Platform

Lab 385 delivered a sophisticated platform that honours Noongar worldview through semantic categorisation, integrated audio preservation, and community-controlled content management.

Semantic Categorisation

Cultural concepts replacing Western alphabetical structure

Audio Pronunciation

Every word with authentic pronunciation guides

Relationship Taxonomy

Meaningful connections between related terms

Protected Content

Culturally sensitive materials with access controls

Bilingual Resources

Six published books with digital integration

Community Control

Self-managed platform with comprehensive training

The Results

Cultural Heritage Preserved and Accessible

Community reach transformed completely. Over 80 active community members now access centralised language resources that were previously scattered across manual documents and individual memories. Six bilingual books have been published with full digital integration, while historical recordings have been preserved and made accessible through the platform. The transformation from fragmented resources to comprehensive digital preservation ensures linguistic heritage remains available for future generations.
Educational capabilities revolutionised. Teachers no longer need to repeatedly explain pronunciation, with one-click audio guides providing instant, authentic language learning. Young people can independently explore their heritage through intuitive navigation that respects cultural concepts. The semantic categorisation system allows learners to understand words within their cultural context rather than abstract alphabetical listings, creating deeper connection with language meaning.
Cultural authenticity maintained throughout. The platform successfully abandoned Western organisational structures in favour of Noongar worldview categorisation. Words group naturally by relationships to land, family, and spiritual connections, reflecting actual language use and understanding. Password-protected sections ensure culturally sensitive materials remain accessible only to appropriate community members while public resources promote broader language awareness.
Community ownership achieved sustainably. Through comprehensive training and intuitive content management systems, the Wirlomin team maintains complete control over their digital presence. The platform adapts to evolving needs, later serving as foundation for related projects. Lab 385's ongoing support partnership ensures technical stability without creating dependency, empowering the community to preserve and share their linguistic heritage on their own terms. The project stands as a model for culturally-sensitive technology implementation in Indigenous language preservation.

Industry

Cultural Education
Indigenous Language

Location

Perth, Albany
Regional WA

Services

Website Development
CMS Training
Cultural Technology

Website

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