Lag PI is a farewell song performed by the Geia family and was composed in the 1970s during a performance trip to Mt Isa with the Palm Island-based Torres Strait Islander dance troupe called Waiben. The song reflects the moment when the singing and dancing have come to an end, and it’s time to return home - in this case, back to Palm Island. The “PI” in the title stands for Palm Island. This is a farewell song.

Lyrics excerpt (translated):

Lag PI kuniya wana

Home, Palm Island - leave behind

Yagar farewell to the Isa

Sorry, farewell to Mt Isa

Minasin ngalmun sagul

Finished, our dance

Kuniya ngalmun lag PI e

Leave behind our home, Palm Island

The song is sung in Kala Lagaw Ya, the Western Island language of the Torres Strait. This language belongs to the Pama-Nyungan family and is primarily Aboriginal in grammar (around 60%), with about 30% influence from Papua New Guinea languages, and unique phonetic features of its own, including the distinctive ‘z’ sound. There are three main dialects of Kala Lagaw Ya: Kaurareg, Mabuyag, and Kala Kawaw Ya.