Wenamba

Last updated

The Wenamba are an indigenous Australian people of the central eastern edge of Western Australia in the Goldfields Region.

Contents

Language

The Wenamba spoke a dialect similar to that of the Pintupi.

Country

The Wenamba ranged over an estimated 10,000 square miles (26,000 km2). Norman Tindale places them to the north of the Rawlinson Ranges [1] and Lake Neale and Lake Hopkins, extending northwards to the area of Lake Macdonald. Their western limits are set at a place called Kurultu/Kurultja, believed to be somewhere around the Baron Range. [2]

People

The Wenamba, though tribally distinct, were closely affiliated to the Pintupi. The Pitjantjatjara name for them was A:wuntara, from their word a:wu, meaning 'yes', implying that they were 'yes people' since they were said to reply to any and every inquiry by responding in the affirmative. The Wenamba were one of several desert tribes known generically as Kalgonei/Kalgoneidjara, One telling term used of them, Mangawara meant 'chignon bearers' referring to their dressing their hair in buns, which in turn served to hold some of their possessions. [3]

History

The police ranger Walter MacDougall was the first white man known to have contact with the Wenamba. While camping one night near the Rawlinson Ranges, his attention was drawn to a shuffling noise, and he looked up and noticed a little native girl quietly walking towards the campfire. He broke the tension by remarking in Pitjantjatjara on the tjilka (prickly) seeds strewn over the ground made walking barefoot difficult. At that point, the Wenamba father drew near, his hands splayed to show he carried no weapons. The 'drifters' spoke a dialect distinct from Ngadadjara and Pitjantjatjara, though they could understand the latter. With an amicable rapport established the father then fetched his three-barbed spear, unlike the single barb deployed by the other two tribes. [1]

In 1950, some Wenama were reported to have moved over to the Northern Territory to settle at the Yuendumu Government Station, and, after a further stay at Haasts Bluff to have upped stakes and moved back to their traditional lands, preferring to return to their nomadic ways.

Alternative names

Tjurti. (Pintupi exonym). [4]

Notes

    Citations

    1. 1 2 Tindale 1974, p. 144.
    2. ↑ Tindale 1974.
    3. ↑ Tindale 1974, p. 144,.
    4. ↑ Tindale 1974, pp. 259–260.

    Sources

    Related Research Articles

    The Koara people, more recently spelt Kuwarra, are an Indigenous Australian people living in the Kuwarra Western Desert region of Western Australia. In its fullest extent it would constitute portions of land in the Pilbara, Mid West, and Goldfields-Esperance regions of Western Australia.

    Keiadjara, also rendered Kiyajarra, were an indigenous Australian people of the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

    The Ngadju are an indigenous Australian people of the Goldfields-Esperance region of the Western Australia.

    The Waljen are an indigenous people of Western Australia, in the Goldfields-Esperance area.

    The Kalamaia are an indigenous Australian people of the Wheatbelt and Goldfields-Esperance regions of Western Australia.

    The Yeidji, also spelt Yiiji and other variants, commonly known as Gwini/ Kwini, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Kimberley area of Western Australia, who also self-identify as Balanggarra.

    Nimanburru

    The Nimanburu were an indigenous Australian people of the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

    The Tenma or Thiin were an indigenous Australian people of the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

    The Widi were an indigenous Australian people of the Mid West region of Western Australia.

    The Ildawongga are an indigenous Australian people of the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

    The Ngaatjatjarra are an Indigenous Australian people of Western Australia, with communities located in the north eastern part of the Goldfields-Esperance region.

    The Nakako are an indigenous Australian people of Western and Southern Australia.

    The Mandjindja or Mantjintjarra are an Aboriginal Australian people of Western Australia belonging to the Western Desert cultural bloc.

    The Pindiini, also spelt Bindinini, are an Aboriginal Australian people of Western Australia.

    The Ngalia, or Ngalea, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Western Desert cultural bloc resident in land extending from Western Australia to the west of South Australia. They are not to be confused with the Ngalia of the Northern Territory.

    The Kalaako (Kalarko) were an indigenous Australian people of the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia.

    The Yankuntjatjarra, otherwise written Jangkundjara, are an indigenous Australian people of the state of South Australia.

    The Matuntara are an Indigenous Australian people of the Northern Territory.

    The Luritja or Loritja people, also known as Kukatja or Kukatja-Luritja, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Northern Territory. Their traditional lands are immediately west of the Derwent River, that forms a frontier with the Arrernte people, with their lands covering some 27,000 square kilometres (10,300 sq mi). Their language is the Luritja dialect, a Western Desert language.

    This page is based on this Wikipedia article
    Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
    Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.