The Handbook volumes offer the only detailed and accurate records of many Australian languages that are extinct or on the verge of extinction. This volume provides a new introduction that discusses some of the main characteristics of Australian languages. Each grammatical sketch includes an illustrative text--demonstrating the use of the language--and a basic vocabulary listing. Also, each example is accompanied by a morpheme-by-morpheme glossary, providing a definitive account of the languages of the Aborigines of Sydney, Melbourne, and Adelaide.