Wudjari

Last updated

The Wudjari were an Aboriginal Australian people of the Noongar cultural group of the southern region of Western Australia.

Contents

Country

The Wudjari's traditional lands are estimated to have extended over some 6,900 square miles (18,000 km2), encompassing the southern coastal area from the Gairdner River eastwards, as far as Point Malcolm. The inland extension was to about 30 miles (48 km). Kent, Ravensthorpe, Fanny Cove, Esperance, and Cape Arid all have been developed over the old Wudjari lands. [1]

Early history

There was a western/eastern divide among the Wudjari bands.[ when? ] At the earliest point of contact with white explorers, it was noted that the western divisions were on the move, shifting towards Bremer Bay. The groups to the east of Fanny Cove and the Young River, on the other hand, had adopted circumcision as part of their tribal initiatory rites, a transformation that earned them the name of Bardonjunga/Bardok among those Wudjari who refused to absorb the practice. This customary scission, according to Norman Tindale, perhaps marked the inchoate genesis of a new tribal identity among the easterners, who had also adopted a differential ethnonym for themselves, Nyunga. [a] These Wudjari Njunga contested the terrain between Mount Ragged and Israelite Bay [b] with the Ngadjunmaia. [1]

Curiosity

In 1855 an edited account was published of a shipwrecked castaway, called William Jackman, purporting to relate 18 months of captivity among Australian cannibal tribes somewhere on the Great Australian Bight. [2] The story proved very popular, and the narrative seen as fascinating, but suspicions have long existed as to its authenticity. In 2002, the historian Martin Gibbs analysed both the book and its historical background and context, and concluded that some elements certainly bore traces of familiarity with the Nyungar cultural bloc. In particular he conjectured that parts of the tale might well reflect experience of living among the Wudjari, or Nyunga, or even the Ngadjunmaia. [3]

Alternative names

Source: Tindale 1974 , p. 261

Some words

Source: Chester 1886 , p. 390

Notes

  1. ↑ The autonym means "man" an assertive self-definition to defend themselves against charges by neighbouring circumcising tribes (for example the Ngadjunmaia called them derisively "women") that they were less than men. (Tindale 1974, p. 41)
  2. ↑ The name aptly demarcates the cultural border between the circumcising and non-circumcising tribes of the area. (Tindale 1974, p. 41)
  3. ↑ nunga = nonga = 'njonga = 'njunga = 'njungar, meaning "man" (Tindale 1974, p. 261)

Citations

  1. 1 2 Tindale 1974, p. 261.
  2. ↑ Jackman 1855.
  3. ↑ Gibbs 2002, p. 12.

Sources

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Koreng</span> Aboriginal group of Western Australia

The Koreng, also spelled Goreng, are an indigenous Noongar people of south-west of Western Australia.

The Mirning, also known as the Ngandatha, are an Aboriginal Australian people whose traditional lands lay on the coastal region of the Great Australian Bight extending from Western Australia into south-west South Australia.

Before the arrival of Europeans, the land now known as Western Australia was home to a diverse range of traditional Australian Aboriginal cultures, spread across numerous language groups, many of which remain today. The border delimiting Western Australia from South Australia and the Northern Territory was drawn by the British colonists, at the 129th meridian east, without regard to the boundaries of existing Aboriginal groups. Consequently Aboriginal cultural groupings are not limited by it; some "Western Australian" Aboriginal groups extend across the border into other states.

The Barungguan are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Cape York Peninsula of Northern Queensland. The name is associated with three languages: Ganganda, Umpithamu and Morrobolam.

The Niabali, otherwise written Nyiyaparli, are an indigenous Australia tribe of the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

The Ngadju or Ngadjumaya are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wiilman</span> Indigenous people in Western Australia

Wiilman are an indigenous Noongar people from the Wheatbelt, Great Southern and South West regions of Western Australia. Variant spellings of the name include Wilman, Wirlomin, Wilmen and Wheelman. Wiilman is the endonym.

The Njunga or Nyunga are an indigenous Noongar people of Western Australia.

The Bailgu are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

The Wilawila are an indigenous Australian tribe of the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

The Unggumi, also written Ongkomi, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

The Walmadjari (Walmajarri) people, also known as Tjiwaling and Wanaseka, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

The Nokaan or Nhugarn were an Aboriginal Australian people of the Mid West region of Western Australia.

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

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

The Pini or Nana, or more specifically the Birniridjara, also spelt Piniridjara and Biniridjara, are an Aboriginal Australian people of Western Australia.

The Tjalkadjara or Tjalkanti were an indigenous Australian tribe of Western Australia.

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

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wirangu people</span> Aboriginal Australian people of South Australian west coast

The Wirangu are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Western coastal region of South Australia.

Neridup is a rural locality of the Shire of Esperance in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia. A large part of the Kau Rock Nature Reserve is located in the north-east of Neridup.

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.