To help preserve a critically endangered language, the Nyiyaparli Living Language Project (NLLP) has been launched as a smartphone game that teaches words and meanings to new generations.
With only eight fluent Nyiyaparli speakers remaining from their 41,000-year-old culture – down from 11 speakers just 18 months ago – this grassroots initiative harnesses technology as a force for cultural preservation.
Karlka Nyiyaparli Aboriginal Corporation RNTBC, representing the Nyiyaparli community, partnered with global digital agency DEPT to develop the game through a community-led process. Early in development, DEPT team members traveled to Western Australia to spend time with the community and attend community meetings.
The project arose from the insight that when a language disappears, a community loses not just words, but the cultural heartbeat of their identity, the stories of their ancestors, and the very sense of belonging that binds them to their country and to themselves.
“We keep telling kids to get off their phones – but here’s a story where staying on the phone might just help save a language and the cultural knowledge it unlocks,” Leonard Michael Stream, a member of the Nyiyaparli Living Language Project Cultural Working Group said.
Nyiyaparli Widi (‘widi’ means game in Nyiyaparli) transforms language learning into a mobile experience that combines exploration gameplay with cultural education – think location-based adventure gaming meets language immersion. The game features real words from the endangered Nyiyaparli language, spoken by Nyiyaparli senior language speakers, kids and adults,
It also sees real Pilbara locations and sites of Nyiyaparli cultural significance are used as in-game missions, voices of elders passed, Senior Language speakers, parents, and kids, and “Paathupaathu Points” (respect points) earned for collecting Nyiyaparli cultural items.
Players explore Nyiyaparli Yurlu (country) in Western Australia’s Pilbara region, traveling from Ngawanykurrana (14-Mile) stockyards to significant locations including the Chichester Ranges, Ethel Creek Station, and Newman township.
“This project shows that when technology serves culture rather than consuming it, innovation can breathe new life into critically endangered languages. Technology becomes truly transformative when it’s guided by community wisdom and authentic collaboration. Working with the NLLP team and Nyiyaparli community taught us that the most meaningful digital experiences come from genuine partnership,” Evan Davey, head of Australia & New Zealand, DEPT said.
DEPT ensured every design decision reflected real Nyiyaparli Country locations and lived experiences. The collaboration prioritised cultural authenticity and community ownership over external creative direction.
Nyiyaparli Widi is now available on the Apple iOS Store and Google Play
