ABORIGINAL AUSTRALIA

www.aboriginal-art-australia.com/UserFiles/10...

The Aboriginal Flag

red earth, black people, yellow sun

Indigenous Australians: an ancient and continuous heritage

can claim to be the oldest continuous living culture on the planet. archaeological sites on the Australian continent - using thermo-luminescence and other modern dating techniques date for Aboriginal presence in Australia at least 40,000 years Some evidence points to dates over 60,000 years old.

Culture
The hallmark of Aboriginal culture is 'oneness with

nature'. Prominent rocks, canyons, rivers, waterfalls, islands, beaches and other natural features - as well as sun, moon, visible stars and animals - have their own stories of creation and inter-connectedness. To the traditional Aborigine they are all sacred: environment is the essence of Australian Aboriginal godliness. Out of this deep reverence for nature Aborigines learned to live in remarkable harmony with the land and its animals

Nomadic Brilliance
Many traditional Australian Aborigines lived a life of cyclical occupation, following the seasons and the food. With very few simple tools, used with incredible skill, the Aboriginal learned to live in the harsh and inhospitable Australian outback.

Their technology was both simple and sophisticated. Above all, it was appropriate for their way of life. The modern notion of possessions is alien to traditional Aboriginal culture. Material things were shared within groups. The idea that an individual could 'own' land was foreign to Aboriginal thinking.

Seasonal burning is part of Aboriginal land management.

Wisdom and skills obtained over thousands of years enabled the Australian Aborigines to use their environment to the maximum. The Australian Aborigines were true ecologists. The only major modification of the landscape practiced by the Aborigines was the selective burning of undergrowth and dead grass to encourage new growth, which in turn would attract game.

Lifestyle
However, contrary to the nomadic image, some tribes did build permanent dwellings. Remote tribes were linked by the trade routes which crisscrossed the country, dispersing goods and a variety of produced items. Along these trading networks, large numbers of people would often meet for 'exchange ceremonies', where not only goods but also songs and dances were passed on.

Language groups

yolngu.net/Copy%20of%20Aus_map_covered_text

Aboriginal Oral communication

Aboriginal Australia is made up of many different nations, each nation maintained its own language. Most people think that there is only one Aboriginal language in Australia- this is a misconception! The exact number of Aboriginal languages that existed in Australia prior to colonisation is unknown but it is estimated that there may have been around 600.

www.allposters.com/-sp/Aboriginal-Dance-Australia

Aboriginal Dance: nb. Body markings

http://www.digital-photo.com.au/2006/08/14/aboriginal-eldercedric-portrait-of-an-urban-aborigine

Aboriginal Art
Aboriginal Dot and X-Ray style paintings are called tales of the "Dreaming", but these Dreams are extremely different than ours. Dreaming legends explain creation and events in Aboriginal history. This philosophy helps answer questions about existence and the meaning of life.
X-Ray paintings illustrate the skeleton, body cavities, and exterior of an animal that may be their clan or individual totem (a connection to their identity).

Dot style paintings reflect the desert landscape from an aerial perspective and connect people to their Dreaming. They are marked by the use of icons.

Symbols in Aboriginal Art

www.aboriginalartonline.com

www.aboriginalartonline.com

Rock painting, ca. 6000 B.C.E. Archivo Iconografico, S.A./Corbis

Aboriginal "x-ray style" figure. Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory, Australia.
www.nlm.nih.gov/dreamanatomy/d a_g_X-1.html

www.aboriginalartstore.com.au

www.trueblueaboriginalarts.com.au

mrsmacadam.com

tribalworks.com

Aboriginal Rock Art: nb. The scale of the pictures to people

Aboriginal art & craft

The aboriginal didgeridoo is a long, wooden wind instrument or horn used traditionally by the aboriginal people of Northern Australia. Rock paintings on caves have established that the didgeridoo has been used as a musical instrument for at least 20,000 years. It is made from a tree branch, usually eucalyptus, hollowed out by termites. Branches cut into varying lengths produce instruments with different pitches. The mouthpiece is usually made of beeswax or resin.

Into this sophisticated and settled society came the English and their civilisation.

Harmonious Disunity

When Sydney Cove was first settled by the British, it is believed there were about 300,000 Aborigines in Australia. The clan-based, egalitarian nature of their groups meant that a coordinated response to the European colonisers was not possible. Despite the presence of the Australian Aborigines, the new arrivals considered the land to be up for grabs because they saw no recognisable system of government, no commerce or permanent settlements and no evidence of landownership.

Land Acquisition
beautifulplacestovisit.com

Seizure of Australia took place under British law Some traditions with native colonies not used here Invasion & land theft justified by Terra Nullius (unoccupied) Lack of land ownership system Continent progressively stolen over two centuries Australian independence in 1901, Aborigines debarred from being citizens until 1902 constitution Citizenship granted to Aborigines after national referendum in 1967

The Mabo Judgement

On the 3rd of June, 1992, after a decade of litigation, the High

www.indigenous.gov.au

Court ruled that the land title of the Indigenous Peoples, the Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders, is recognised at common law. This Indigenous Peoples' land title, or native title, stems from the continuation within common law of their rights over land which pre-date European colonisation of Australia. In the absence of an effective extinguishment by the crown, this title presents through inheritance the original occupants' right to possession of their traditional lands in accordance with their customs and lore. The judgement has, at long last, rejected the "Terra Nullius " legal fiction, bringing Australia almost in line with remaining common law countries, i.e USA, Canada and New Zealand.

www.utas.edu.au/.../A/images

The effects of White settlement on the native population were disastrous - many were driven from their land by force, many more succumbed to the numerous diseases introduced by the Whites, while others drifted to the fringes of settled areas to obtain useful commodities such as steel and cloth and less useful ones such as alcohol. The delicate balance between nature and the people was broken down. Sheep and cattle destroyed habitats and waterholes which had sustained wildlife and vegetation for tens of thousands of years, and many species disappeared altogether. Aboriginal acts of defiance were met with violent reprisals, and for many years very few Europeans were prosecuted for killing Australian Aborigines, although the practice was widespread.

Stolen Generation
Between 1910 and 1970 up to 100,000 Aboriginal children were taken under duress from their families by police or welfare officers.
Most were raised in Church or state institutions. Some were fostered or adopted by white families.

The Stolen Generation

A National Inquiry was set up in 1995. Its 1997 Report Bringing them

Home found that forcible removal of indigenous children was a gross violation of human rights which continued well after Australia had undertaken international human rights commitments.

Kevin Rudd officially apologised on February 12th 2008 in the

name of Australia and the Australian Government to the Indigenous People.

History: a matter of perspective.

Questions for discussion

What is the Stolen Generation?
What are the likely effects of such a

government policy? What are the implications of the apology?

Apology to stolen generations

1. Who are the stolen generations? 2. How do we know these peoples stories are

true? 3. Why is it important to apologise for to the stolen generations? 4. Why should Australians today apologise for something that were not responsible for? 5. What does an apology mean for an indigenous Australian?