Edge Rewrite
everything Source code View original
// HTMLRewriter · presentation

This page was redesigned at the edge.

Cloudflare fetched the original article and streamed it through HTMLRewriter to apply an entirely new visual system without rebuilding the source page.

// request.cf · coarse context

A page that knows where it met you.

Only coarse request metadata is shown. This demo does not display or persist visitor IP addresses.

Country
US
Cloudflare location
CMH
Connection
HTTP/2
Language
Not provided

Ray ID: a231457b98232877

Jump to content

// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhat did the Awabakal say to the baker? "Aboriginal-y love your bread

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Awabakal people
Awabagal, Awaba, Kuri, Minyowa, Minyowie [1]
Painting of Awabakal people using fire to hunt kangaroos by Joseph Lycett c.1817
Hierarchy
Language family:Pama–Nyungan[2]
Language branch:Yuin–Kuric
Language group:Kuri
Group dialects:Awabakal
Area (approx. 1,800 km2 or 690 sq mi)
Bioregion:Lower Hunter River and Lake Macquarie
Location:Hunter Region, New South Wales
Coordinates:33°5′S 151°30′E / 33.083°S 151.500°E / -33.083; 151.500[1]
Other geological:Lake Macquarie[1]
Notable individuals
Biraban

The Awabakal people /əˈwɒbəɡæl/, are a group of Indigenous Australians and their descendants from eastern Australia who spoke the Awabakal language. Their traditional territory consists of the coastal area of New South Wales located between what is now known as the Hunter River and the Gosford region. This includes the Watagan Mountains to the west, Newcastle and Lake Macquarie to the north, and the Wyong and Tuggerah areas to the south.

Name

[edit]

The term Awabakal was first coined by the ethnologist John Fraser in 1892, who assisted in the publication of a thorough study on the Awabakal language by Lancelot Threlkeld. In this language, awaba was the word for Lake Macquarie, meaning flat or plain surface. With the addition of the suffix -kal, a term was created which referred to the people native to that area.[3]

It is not known exactly how the Awabakal people collectively called themselves, but from their word for man, kuri, the term Kuri-nggai (also written as Ku-ring-gai or Guringai), has often been used as a collective denominator of the Awabakal and several other linguistically related coastal tribes in this region. Although the anthropologist Norman Tindale has challenged the validity of this classification, he agrees that the Kuri-nggai was synonymous with Awabakal.[1] However, the linguist, Arthur Capell, asserted with minimal evidence that Kuri-nggai was a language distinct from Awabakal, which was spoken by the Garigal clan from the Broken Bay region.[4]

In the present day, it is generally accepted that the language known as Awabakal was spoken by the coastal Indigenous people inhabiting the region from the lower Hunter River, south to Broken Bay. The people around the southern limits of this area, ie. the Garigal clan, may have spoken a dialect referred to as Kuri-nggai. Occasionally, the overall term Katungal is used to describe all the related local coastal languages, including Awabakal.[5]

Language

[edit]
Traditional lands of Australian Aboriginal tribes around Newcastle, New South Wales

The Awabakal language was extensively studied and recorded in the 1830s by the missionary, Lancelot Threlkeld. He was able to do this mostly through his close association with a leading Awabakal man called Biraban. Threlkeld's work was published under the title An Australian language as spoken by the Awabakal, the people of Awaba or Lake Macquarie. This collection was one of the first comprehensive records of any Indigenous language in Australia.[6]

From this study, Awabakal terms for well known local geographical locations can be derived:[7]

The general term, Koori, used in modern times to describe Indigenous Australians from all of southeast Australia, comes from the Awabakal word, kuri, meaning man.[4]

Country

[edit]

The Awabakal were bounded to the northwest by the Wonnarua, the Worimi to the northeast, the Darkinung peoples to the west, and the Dharug-Eora to the south. This region includes what is now Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Wyong, Tuggerah and Gosford.[8]

Tindale estimated Awabakal territory to cover some 1,800 square kilometres (700 mi2).[1] More recent estimates are that Awabakal territory covers 2870 square kilometres.

Clans

[edit]

During the early stages of British colonisation, the Awabakal were categorised into several tribes and clans based upon location as follows:[9][10]

Awabakal Tribe:

  • Ash Island clan (located around what is now Kooragang Island)
  • Pambalong clan (located around what is now Hexham Swamp)
  • Five Islands/Mount Sugarloaf clan (located around the north of Lake Macquarie and Mount Sugarloaf)
  • Bahtahbah clan (located on the eastern side of Lake Macquarie)
  • Kurungbong clan (located around what is now the Cooranbong area)

Kuringgai Tribe:

As noted previously, there is some speculation that the Kuringgai tribe was distinct, however most researchers regard this tribe as being linguistically and culturally contiguous with Awabakal.[11][8]

Culture and traditions

[edit]

Beliefs

[edit]

The eaglehawk or wedge-tailed eagle has special significance for the Awabakal people. Ko-un, their "celestial entity" or creator figure, looks like an Aboriginal man, but in flight resembles an eagle-hawk.[12][13][page needed]

Nobbys Head (Whibayganba) at the entrance of the Hunter River was traditionally believed to be the home of an immense subterranean kangaroo that occasionally shakes himself causing local earthquakes.[14]

An important creation story is that of Belmont Lagoon being formed by the tears of the moon. The male moon spirit named Pontoebung became saddened by not being as radiant and appreciated as the female sun spirit named Punnal. He withdrew in loneliness for days and began to weep, his tears falling back down to earth forming Belmont Lagoon. Pontoebung eventually decided to return and as he got closer to earth, he heard the Awabakal people rejoicing. They were happy that a freshwater lagoon had been formed, which made him overjoyed. He could see his full reflection in the water and his happiness made his face beam. From then on, whenever the moon passed over Belmont Lagoon, Pontoebung would shine his brightest and the Awabakal clans would hold a large corroborree to honour his brightness.[15]

A small lake now known as Freemans Waterhole, was called Wauwarun by the Awabakal and they believed it to be unfathomable while also containing a man-eating monster named wauwai. A similar monster lived in the depths around Pulbah Island in Lake Macquarie.[14]

Food and land management

[edit]
Painting by Joseph Lycett of an Awabakal man climbing a tree by cutting steps into the trunk in order to hunt possum c.1820

Like other First Nations Australian people, the Awabakal played a significant part in shaping the environment of their region. They practised fire-stick farming extensively, which helped them to hunt and to navigate through dense prickly scrub along the coast and riverways.[16] One of Newcastle's main city thoroughfares, Watt Street, was built over an Awabakal path from the shore to the top of a hill.[17]

The abundant possum (willai) was the main source of daily protein, and was hunted through trapping and by climbing trees with the assistance of a small stone axe (baibai) to cut footholds into the trunk. They also hunted kangaroo (moani) and emu (kogkorog) by using fire (koiyug) to flush the animals out into the open where they would be killed by boomerang (turruma), waddy (kotara) or spear (wairai).[18]

Painting of Awabakal people night fishing with fire torches on Lake Macquarie by Joseph Lycett c.1817

Fishing, particularly for oysters (munbonkan), was a significant part of the Awabakal people's diet and culture pre-colonisation.[19] The Awabakal also caught fish (makoro) using hook-and-line or a specialised fish spear called a motig or kullara. They also hunted waterfowl such as the black swan (kunbul) and ate turtle (yunug), eel (kaneen) and whale (toroggun) when the opportunity arose. Fishing from bark canoes (cooeyung) was often done at night (tokoi) with the assistance of a flame torch. The fish were cooked in the canoe on a small clay hearth.[20]

Various root vegetables such as the waiyog were harvested for carbohydrate, as was the honey (kirika) of the native bee (nukkung). The people generally went naked but wore cloaks of possum or kangaroo fur when cold.[21]

Ceremonial rites

[edit]
Painting of an Awabakal funeral procession by Joseph Lycett c.1817

The Awabakal practised initiation rites on adolescent males whereby tooth avulsion was performed in a ceremonial area called a yulung. The removal of the tooth was done to condition the youths to pain and also protect them from the evil spirit named Puttikan.[21]

In regards to death, the Awabakal performed both burial and cremation rites dependent upon the situation. If burial was performed, the corpse would be wrapped in sheets of paperbark and placed in a sandy grave lined with soft leaves. The mourners would decorate themselves with a white ochre called pitto.[21]

Poetry and song

[edit]

As with many other First Nation Australian peoples, the Awabakal would transmit knowledge and entertainment through large singing and dancing ceremonies performed at night generally known as corroborees. An Awabakal man named Wullati was a respected composer of verse for these ceremonies and an extract of one of his poems was recorded:[22]

Nung-ngnun nge a runba wonung bulkirra umbilinto bolwarra! Pital burra kultan wirripang buntoa.
Nung-ngnun nge a runba turrama berrambo, burra kilkoa; kurri wi raratoa yella walliko, yule moani, woinyo, birung poro bulliko.

(Here is a song of our home where the hills join on high! A joyful place where the eagle strikes.
Here is a song of our home where the boomerang lies like a resting serpent, and the fluttering of the pigeon's wings sweeps the wallaby's footprint from the glistening grass.)

Conflict and justice

[edit]

The Awabakal, in pre-colonisation times, were noted as being strong and determined defenders of their territory. They had possession of the coastal territory for thousands of years, during which time they successfully repelled incursions by the neighbouring Gamilaraay people and established places of defence, "virtual armouries", high in the Watagan Mountains.[13] The wommera spear-throwing tool is derived from the Awabakal word wommurur.[23]

If a crime or transgression was deemed to have occurred, the culprit would be made to stand and face a pre-determined number of spears thrown in his direction with only a small wooden shield known as a koreil for protection.[24]

Population

[edit]

The overall population of the Awabakal at the onset of British invasion and colonisation is uncertain but has been estimated to have been around 2,000 people.[10] This figure is likely to be an underestimate due to the British introduction of smallpox early on in the colonisation process in 1789.[25][26] The release and spread of the disease from Port Jackson just to the south of traditional Awabakal lands has been estimated to have caused a mortality rate of around 50% of the Aboriginal people residing in an extensive area of southeastern Australia.[27][28]

History since colonisation

[edit]

Early encounters with the British

[edit]
Sketch by Captain John Hunter of the encounter with a Garigal woman suffering from smallpox at Pittwater in 1789

The first documented contact between the two cultures appears to have occurred in June 1789, when Governor Arthur Phillip and Captain John Hunter led a party of ten men to explore Broken Bay. They encountered a Garigal woman recovering from smallpox at Pittwater and conversed with around twenty Aboriginal people whom they met within the shoaly harbour later known as Brisbane Water. These people spoke words such as baato (water) and makoro/magro (fish) which are shared in the Awabakal and Eora languages.[29]

In 1796, a fishing vessel from the military convict outpost at Sydney was driven by bad weather into a river-mouth at what is now Newcastle, New South Wales. The fishermen found considerable amounts of coal there, but "conducted themselves improperly" while ashore, causing conflict with the Awabakal. Two of the fishermen were subsequently wounded, one of them fatally.[30]

The colonists soon started to send vessels to the Hunter River to extract coal and cedarwood. In March 1799, the colonial enforcer, Henry Hacking, was ordered to investigate claims of British sailors being trapped at the mouth of the Hunter River. Hacking encountered a group of Awabakal men who informed him that the sailors had departed endeavouring to walk back to Sydney. Hacking did not believe them, and became agitated, shooting dead three Awabakal men. The sailors in question did in fact later arrive in Sydney, having walked the distance.[30]

Awabakal in the modern day

[edit]

Descendants of Awabakal people who survived the British invasion and subsequent massacres of Aboriginal Australians, especially during the land grab of 1826, are direct descendants of Margaret and Ned or Mahrahkah. These descendants are connected through their families/family culture together and represented by the Awabakal Descendants of the Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation.[citation needed]

These Awabakal people are considered as the traditional owners of the Awabakal region and have lived there from at least since the last Ice Age, 11,800 years ago.[citation needed]

Recently settled Aboriginal people in this region partake in community support organisations like 'The Awabakal Newcastle Aboriginal Cooperative Limited', which is a not-for-profit community controlled organisation operating in the Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and Hunter Region. It was established in 1976. It is responsible for the delivery of community and health services to Aboriginal people in this region, including:

  • The Awabakal Medical Centre
  • The Awabakal Disability Service which provides "short to medium term support to young people living with a disability"
  • Culturally appropriate care for older people
  • Child care services[31]

Butterfly Cave

[edit]

The Butterfly Cave at West Wallsend is part of "women's business" related to birthing, and has been the subject of decades of active protection by women. However, the site sits on privately owned land allotted for a growing housing estate, owned by Hammersmith Management which is owned by the Roche Group. As of late 2021, women must seek permission to cross the owned land, despite the site being a protected site under the Federal Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection (ATSIHP) Act and was recognised as a New South Wales 'Aboriginal Place' in 2013.[32] In 2019, the cave and its surrounds were recognised by the federal government as a significant Aboriginal area.[33]

Following 13 years of local activism,[34] representation, and negotiation with the former owners, the NSW Government acquired a parcel of land surrounding the Butterfly Cave that was earmarked for development by Hammersmith Management, which is owned by the Roche Group.[33]

The 25.74-hectare [63.6-acre] plot, purchased by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service protects the Cave and the surrounding cultural landscape, including vital elements such as aquifers, traditional journey paths, creeks, stone arrangements and food source areas. The land will be managed by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service and permanently protected under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974. The NSW Government will consult with the local Aboriginal community on future management of the site and protection of the surrounding cultural landscape.[35]

Centres

[edit]

The Awabakal Environmental Education Centre began operating in 1976. It is an NSW Department of Education and Communities facility.[36] The centre provides opportunities for teachers and students in the Hunter Region to learn about the environment and human interactions with the natural world.[37] Wollotuka, meaning an 'eating and meeting place' originally began as a support programme in 1983 to assist and promote university studies for indigenous people. Wollotuka's all indigenous staff moved into their new building, Birabahn in 2002, and the Wollotuka Institute was officially established in 2009.[38][39]

Native title

[edit]

In 2013 an association of Awabakal and Guringai descendants laid claim to native title over land from Maitland to Hornsby.[40] The claim was opposed by representatives of the Worimi and Wonnarua as asserting rights over their own traditional territories.[41] In 2017 the claim was withdrawn after the NSW government claimed that, while the claim group, the Descendants of the Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation had shown descent from the original people indigenous to the area, it was argued that they had failed to demonstrate continuous preservation of customary laws and practices since the onset of white colonization.[42]

Notable Awabakal people

[edit]
  • Biraban – a recognised headman of the Awaba clan[43] who assisted the Rev Lancelot Threlkeld compile the first grammar of an Aboriginal language in Australia[44]
  • Bob Barrett – a colonial enforcer who worked with the British to capture convicts at Newcastle and Port Macquarie

Alternative names

[edit]
  • Awaba (Awabakal toponym designating Lake Macquarie)
  • Awabagal
  • Kuri (generic term for "man")
  • Kuringgai
  • "Lake Macquarie, Newcastle" tribe
  • Minyowa (Awabakal horde at Newcastle)
  • Minyowie

Source: Tindale 1974, p. 191

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]

Citations

[edit]
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Tindale 1974, p. 191.
  2. ↑ Lissarrague 2006.
  3. ↑ Threlkeld 1892, p. xv.
  4. 1 2 Attenbrow 2010, p. 33.
  5. ↑ Attenbrow 2010, p. 34.
  6. ↑ Threlkeld 1892, p. xi.
  7. ↑ "Aboriginal Culture". Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  8. 1 2 Attenbrow 2010, pp. 30–35.
  9. ↑ Threlkeld 1974, pp. 3–5.
  10. 1 2 Kohen 1996, pp. 12–13.
  11. ↑ Threlkeld 1974, p. 5.
  12. ↑ Threlkeld 1974, pp. 3, 5, 66.
  13. 1 2 Maynard 2014.
  14. 1 2 Threlkeld 1974, p. 65.
  15. ↑ Maynard & Campbell 2014, p. 110.
  16. ↑ Maynard & Campbell 2014, p. 30.
  17. ↑ Duncan 2013.
  18. ↑ Maynard & Campbell 2014, pp. 25–37.
  19. ↑ Maynard & Campbell 2014, p. 56.
  20. ↑ Maynard & Campbell 2014, pp. 53–78.
  21. 1 2 3 Threlkeld 1974, pp. 43–80.
  22. ↑ Threlkeld 1974, p. 58.
  23. ↑ Threlkeld 1974, p. 67.
  24. ↑ Threlkeld 1974, p. 60.
  25. ↑ Butlin 1993, pp. 102–125.
  26. ↑ Diamond 1997, p. 320.
  27. ↑ Nitschke, Williams & Ingrey 2026.
  28. ↑ Butlin 1993, p. 124.
  29. ↑ Hunter 1793.
  30. 1 2 Collins 1798.
  31. ↑ Awabakal.
  32. ↑ Wellington, Shahni; Wellauer, Kirstie (30 November 2021). "Aboriginal sacred sites across Australia still at risk as traditional owners 'locked out' of reforms". ABC News. Retrieved 2 August 2024. Archived 1 December 2021 at the Wayback Machine, Shahni Wellington and Kirstie Wellauer, ABC News Online, 2021-12-01
  33. 1 2 "'Wonderful' news for Indigenous women as NSW reclaims sacred Butterfly Cave from developer". 17 June 2024 – via www.abc.net.au.
  34. ↑ "Save The Butterfly Cave". www.savethebutterflycave.info.
  35. ↑ "Sacred Butterfly Cave safeguarded for future generations". NSW Environment and Heritage. 19 June 2024.
  36. ↑ "Home – Awabakal Environmental Education Centre". awabakal-e.schools.nsw.gov.au. Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
  37. ↑ AwabakalEEC.
  38. ↑ Wollotuka1.
  39. ↑ Wollotuka2.
  40. ↑ Kelly 2013.
  41. ↑ Connor 2016, p. 111.
  42. ↑ Fellner 2017.
  43. ↑ Maynard 2014, p. ?.
  44. ↑ Van Toorn 2006, p. 43.

References

[edit]
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Awabakal&oldid=1365736931"