Where outside Africa have click sounds been reported as part of a language?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Outside of Africa, the only reported instance of a language utilizing click sounds is Damin, a ritual vocabulary used by the Lardil people of northern Queensland, Australia.1

While click sounds are a defining feature of the Khoisan languages of Southern Africa, they are not a natural part of the consonant systems of languages outside the African continent, with the exception of this specific, specialized ritual register. In Damin, these clicks are employed as part of a restricted vocabulary used in initiation rituals, often articulated with unusual pronunciations. It is important to note that while clicks are used as interjections in many languages globally—such as the "tsk, tsk" sound of disapproval in English—they do not function as consonants within those linguistic systems.123