In the late 18th century

In the late 18th century, there were between 350 and 750 distinct Aboriginal social groupings, and a similar number of languages or dialects.[2] At the start of the 21st century, fewer than 150 indigenous languages remain[3] in daily use, and all except roughly 20 are highly endangered. Of those that survive, only 10%, usually located in the most isolated areas, are being learned by children. For example of the 5 least endangered Western Australian Aboriginal languages, 4 belong to the Ngaanyatjarra grouping of the Central and Great Victoria Desert. Bilingual education is being used successfully in some communities; in one case recently near Alice Springs, non-indigenous teachers were required to learn the local language, and Aboriginal parents complained that their children were not learning English at school.[citation needed] Seven of the most widely spoken Australian languages, such as Warlpiri and Tiwi, retain between 1000 and 3000 speakers

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