Wiradjuri
Encyclopedia
The Wiradjuri are an Indigenous Australian group of central New South Wales
.
In the 21st century, major Wiradjuri groups live in Condobolin
, Peak Hill
, Narrandera
and Griffith
. There are significant populations at Wagga Wagga
and Leeton
and smaller groups at West Wyalong
, Parkes
, Forbes
, Cootamundra
, Cowra
and Young
.
, are similarly named after their own words for "no".
Attempts to reproduce the name in writing cover more than 60 different ways, including Waradgeri, Warandgeri, Waradajhi, Werogery, Wiiratheri, Wira-Athoree, Wiradjuri, Wiradhuri, Wiradhurri, Wiraduri, Wiradyuri, Wiraiarai, Wiraidyuri, Wirajeree, Wirashuri, Wiratheri, Wirracharee, Wirrai'yarrai, Wirrathuri, Wooragurie.
in the west, north to Nyngan and south to Albury
: the South Western slopes region
.
The Wiradjuri tribal area has been described as "the land of the three rivers, the Wambool later known as the Macquarie
, the Kalare later known as the Lachlan
and the Murrumbidgee
(Murrumbidjeri). The Murray River
forms the Wiradjuri's southern boundary, the change from woodland to open grassland form their eastern boundary."
Occupation of the land by the Wiradjuri can be seen by carved trees
and campsite remainders. Carved trees are more commonly found around the Macquarie and Lachlan rivers in the north rather than the Murrumbidgee in the south. Campsites, which indicate regular seasonal occupation by small groups, have been found on river flats, open land and by rivers.
Norman Tindale
quotes Alfred Howitt
as mentioning several of these local groups of the tribe, for example, the Narrandera (prickly lizard), Cootamundra (Kuta-mundra) from kutamun turtle, Murranbulla or Murring-bulle (maring-bula, two bark canoes). There were differences in dialect in some areas, including around Bathurst and near Albury. The Wiradjuri are identified as a coherent group as they maintained a cycle of ceremonies that moved in a ring around the whole tribal area. This cycle led to tribal coherence despite the large occupied area.
from the rivers. In dry seasons, they ate kangaroos, emus and food gathered from the land, including fruit, nuts, yam daisies (Microseris lanceolata
), wattle seeds, and orchid tubers. The Wiradjuri travelled into Alpine areas
in the summer to feast on Bogong moth
s.
The Wiradjuri were also known for their handsome possum-skin cloak
s stitched together from several possum furs. Governor Macquarie was presented with one of these cloaks by a Wiradjuri man when he visited Bathurst in 1815.
records and from words contributed by several Wiradjuri families, by elder Stan Grant
, a member of the Wiradjuri Elder's Council, and John Rudder
Ph.D., who has previously studied Australian Aboriginal languages
in Arnhem Land
. It is a member of the small Wiradhuric branch
of the Pama–Nyungan family. It is now taught in some primary schools and can be studied at TAFE. One student says "I love singing the songs like 'Heads, shoulders, knees and toes' in Wiradjuri". The copyright for A First Wiradjuri Dictionary is held by the Wiradjuri Council of Elders.
The name of the town of Wagga Wagga comes from the Wiradjuri word Wagga meaning crow, and to create the plural, the Wiradjuri repeat the word. Thus the name translates as "the place of many crows".
s around Mudgee but there were fewer clashes. European settlement had taken hold and the Aboriginal population was in decline.
, a British author who spent his formative years in the Australian outback, where he encountered representatives of many Aboriginal cultures.
In Bryce Courtenay
's novel Jessica
, the plot is centred in Wiradjuri region. Jessica's best friend (Mary Simpson) was from Wiradjuri.
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
.
In the 21st century, major Wiradjuri groups live in Condobolin
Condobolin, New South Wales
Condobolin is a town in the west of the Central West region of New South Wales, Australia, on the Lachlan River. At the 2006 census, Condobolin had a population of 2,847.- History :...
, Peak Hill
Peak Hill, New South Wales
Peak Hill is a town in Parkes Shire in the Central West of New South Wales, Australia. At the 2006 census, Peak Hill had a population of 946 people.It is on the Newell Highway and the Dubbo to Parkes railway line, completed to Peak Hill in 1910...
, Narrandera
Narrandera, New South Wales
-Transport:Narrandera is well served for transport. The Sturt Highway and the Newell Highways cross, just south of Narrandera. Greyhound buses pass daily - note that the destination can be listed as Jillenbah....
and Griffith
Griffith, New South Wales
Griffith is a city in south-western New South Wales, Australia. It is also the seat of the City of Griffith local government area. Like the Australian capital, Canberra and the nearby town of Leeton, Griffith was designed by Walter Burley Griffin. Griffith was named after Sir Arthur Griffith the...
. There are significant populations at Wagga Wagga
Wagga Wagga, New South Wales
Wagga Wagga is a city in New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, and with an urban population of 46,735 people, Wagga Wagga is the state's largest inland city, as well as an important agricultural, military, and transport hub of Australia...
and Leeton
Leeton, New South Wales
Leeton is a town in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Leeton is situated approximately 550 km west of Sydney and 450 km north of Melbourne in the productive Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area. Leeton is administered by Leeton Shire Council...
and smaller groups at West Wyalong
West Wyalong, New South Wales
West Wyalong is a town in New South Wales, Australia which is the main town of the Bland Shire, located in the Central West region of New South Wales. It is located 467 km west of Sydney. It is located on the crossroads of the Newell Highway between Melbourne and Brisbane, and the Mid-Western...
, Parkes
Parkes, New South Wales
- Transport :Parkes has a local bus service provided by Western Road Liners, which acquired Harris Bus Lines in March 2006. The Indian Pacific also stops twice a week, as well as the Broken Hill Outback Xplorer service, run by CountryLink, which heads to Broken Hill on Mondays and Sydney on...
, Forbes
Forbes, New South Wales
-Notable residents:*Carolyn Simpson - Judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales; Member of the first all-female bench to sit in an Australian court*NSW Deputy Premier Carmel Tebbutt was born and raised in Forbes....
, Cootamundra
Cootamundra, New South Wales
Cootamundra is a town and Local Government Area in the South West Slopes region of New South Wales, Australia and within the Riverina. At the 2006 census, Cootamundra had a population of 5,566. It is located on the Olympic Highway at the point where it crosses the Muttama Creek, between Junee and...
, Cowra
Cowra, New South Wales
Cowra is a town in the Central West region of New South Wales, Australia in the Cowra Shire. It is located on the Mid-Western Highway, 317 kilometres west of Sydney on the banks of the Lachlan River at an altitude of 310 metres above sea level. At the 2006 census Cowra had a population of 8,430...
and Young
Young, New South Wales
-Demographics:On census night, 7 August 2001, there were 6,821 people counted in Young. There were 238 people who identified as being of Indigenous origin in the 2001 Census...
.
Name
The Wiradjuri name for themselves is Wirraaydhuurray (northern dialect; pronounced wiraːjd̪uːraj) or Wirraayjuurray (southern dialect; [wiraːjɟuːraj]). This is derived from wirraay, meaning "no" or "not", with the suffix -dhuurray or -juuray meaning "having". That the Wiradjuri said wirraay, as opposed to some other word for "no", was seen as a distinctive feature of their speech, and several other tribes in New South Wales, to the west of the Great Dividing RangeGreat Dividing Range
The Great Dividing Range, or the Eastern Highlands, is Australia's most substantial mountain range and the third longest in the world. The range stretches more than 3,500 km from Dauan Island off the northeastern tip of Queensland, running the entire length of the eastern coastline through...
, are similarly named after their own words for "no".
Attempts to reproduce the name in writing cover more than 60 different ways, including Waradgeri, Warandgeri, Waradajhi, Werogery, Wiiratheri, Wira-Athoree, Wiradjuri, Wiradhuri, Wiradhurri, Wiraduri, Wiradyuri, Wiraiarai, Wiraidyuri, Wirajeree, Wirashuri, Wiratheri, Wirracharee, Wirrai'yarrai, Wirrathuri, Wooragurie.
Territory
The Wiradjuri are the largest Aboriginal group in New South Wales. They occupy a large area in central New South Wales, from the Blue Mountains in the east, to HayHay, New South Wales
Hay is a town in the western Riverina region of south western New South Wales , Australia. It is the administrative centre of Hay Shire Local Government Area and the centre of a prosperous and productive agricultural district on the wide Hay Plains....
in the west, north to Nyngan and south to Albury
Albury, New South Wales
Albury is a major regional city in New South Wales, Australia, located on the Hume Highway on the northern side of the Murray River. It is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of Albury Local Government Area...
: the South Western slopes region
South West Slopes, New South Wales
The South West Slopes is a region predominantly in New South Wales, Australia. It covers the lower inland slopes of the Great Dividing Range extending from north of Cowra through southern NSW into western Victoria...
.
The Wiradjuri tribal area has been described as "the land of the three rivers, the Wambool later known as the Macquarie
Macquarie River
The Macquarie River is one of the main inland rivers in New South Wales. Its headwaters rise in the central highlands of New South Wales near the town of Oberon. The river travels generally northwest past the towns of Bathurst, Wellington, Dubbo, Narromine, and Warren to the Macquarie Marshes...
, the Kalare later known as the Lachlan
Lachlan River
- Course :The river rises in the central highland of New South Wales, part of the Great Dividing Range, 13 km east of Gunning. Its major headwaters, the Carcoar River, the Belubula River and the Abercrombie River converge near the town of Cowra. Minor tributaries include the Morongla Creek...
and the Murrumbidgee
Murrumbidgee River
The Murrumbidgee River is a major river in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory . A major tributary of the Murray River, the Murrumbidgee flows in a west-northwesterly direction from the foot of Peppercorn Hill in the Fiery Range of the Snowy Mountains,...
(Murrumbidjeri). The Murray River
Murray River
The Murray River is Australia's longest river. At in length, the Murray rises in the Australian Alps, draining the western side of Australia's highest mountains and, for most of its length, meanders across Australia's inland plains, forming the border between New South Wales and Victoria as it...
forms the Wiradjuri's southern boundary, the change from woodland to open grassland form their eastern boundary."
Occupation of the land by the Wiradjuri can be seen by carved trees
Scarred trees
Scarred trees are trees which have had bark removed by indigenous Australians for the creation of canoes, shelters, shields and containers, such as coolamons. They are among the easiest to find archaeological sites in Australia....
and campsite remainders. Carved trees are more commonly found around the Macquarie and Lachlan rivers in the north rather than the Murrumbidgee in the south. Campsites, which indicate regular seasonal occupation by small groups, have been found on river flats, open land and by rivers.
Norman Tindale
Norman Tindale
Norman Barnett Tindale was an Australian anthropologist, archaeologist and entomologist. Born in Perth, his family moved to Tokyo from 1907 to 1915, where his father worked as an accountant at the Salvation Army mission in Japan. Soon after returning to Australia, Tindale got a job at the South...
quotes Alfred Howitt
Alfred William Howitt
Alfred William Howitt was an Australian anthropologist and naturalist.-Background:Howitt was born in Nottingham, England, the son of authors William Howitt and Mary Botham. He came to the Victorian gold fields in 1852 with his father and brother to visit his uncle, Godfrey Howitt...
as mentioning several of these local groups of the tribe, for example, the Narrandera (prickly lizard), Cootamundra (Kuta-mundra) from kutamun turtle, Murranbulla or Murring-bulle (maring-bula, two bark canoes). There were differences in dialect in some areas, including around Bathurst and near Albury. The Wiradjuri are identified as a coherent group as they maintained a cycle of ceremonies that moved in a ring around the whole tribal area. This cycle led to tribal coherence despite the large occupied area.
Lifestyle
The Wiradjuri diet included yabbies and fish such as Murray codMurray Cod
The Murray cod is a large Australian predatory freshwater fish of the Maccullochella genus and the Percichthyidae family. Although the species is a called cod in the vernacular, it is not related to the northern hemisphere marine cod species...
from the rivers. In dry seasons, they ate kangaroos, emus and food gathered from the land, including fruit, nuts, yam daisies (Microseris lanceolata
Microseris lanceolata
Microseris lanceolata is a perennial herb also known as murnong and yam daisy.It is found in many forms in Australia and on the island of Tasmania, the Tasmanian form being markedly smaller than the mainland Australian form.-Biological descriptions:A variable species, it has the form of a tufted...
), wattle seeds, and orchid tubers. The Wiradjuri travelled into Alpine areas
Australian Alps
The Australian Alps are the highest mountain ranges of mainland Australia. They are located in southeastern Australia and straddle the Australian Capital Territory, south-eastern New South Wales and eastern Victoria...
in the summer to feast on Bogong moth
Bogong moth
The Bogong moth is a temperate species of night-flying moth notable for appearing in large numbers around major public buildings in Canberra, the capital city of Australia, during spring as it migrates to the High Plains. The moth's name 'Bogong' is the same as the mountain ranges on the High...
s.
The Wiradjuri were also known for their handsome possum-skin cloak
Possum-skin cloak
Possum-skin cloaks were a form of clothing worn by Aborigines in the south-east of Australia – present-day Victoria and New South Wales.The cloaks were made from numerous possum pelts sewn together with kangaroo sinew, and often decorated with significant incisions on the inside such as clan...
s stitched together from several possum furs. Governor Macquarie was presented with one of these cloaks by a Wiradjuri man when he visited Bathurst in 1815.
Wiradjuri Language
The Wiradjuri language had effectively died out of everyday spoken use, but has recently been reclaimed from early European anthropologist'sAnthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
records and from words contributed by several Wiradjuri families, by elder Stan Grant
Stan Grant (Wiradjuri elder)
Stanley Vernard "Stan" Grant, Sr. AM is an Elder of the Wiradjuri tribe of Indigenous Australians from what is now the south-west inland region of the state of New South Wales, Australia.-Background and language work:...
, a member of the Wiradjuri Elder's Council, and John Rudder
John Rudder
John Rudder, Ph.D., has studied the Australian Aboriginal languages, of Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory and the state of New South Wales , Australia.-Work:...
Ph.D., who has previously studied Australian Aboriginal languages
Australian Aboriginal languages
The Australian Aboriginal languages comprise several language families and isolates native to the Australian Aborigines of Australia and a few nearby islands, but by convention excluding the languages of Tasmania and the Torres Strait Islanders...
in Arnhem Land
Arnhem Land
The Arnhem Land Region is one of the five regions of the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located in the north-eastern corner of the territory and is around 500 km from the territory capital Darwin. The region has an area of 97,000 km² which also covers the area of Kakadu National...
. It is a member of the small Wiradhuric branch
Wiradhuric languages
The Wiradhuric languages, or Central inland New South Wales, are a family of Pama–Nyungan languages of Australia. There are three languages:*Gamilaraay*Wiradhuri–Ngiyambaa**Wiradhuri**NgiyambaaAll are now moribund....
of the Pama–Nyungan family. It is now taught in some primary schools and can be studied at TAFE. One student says "I love singing the songs like 'Heads, shoulders, knees and toes' in Wiradjuri". The copyright for A First Wiradjuri Dictionary is held by the Wiradjuri Council of Elders.
The name of the town of Wagga Wagga comes from the Wiradjuri word Wagga meaning crow, and to create the plural, the Wiradjuri repeat the word. Thus the name translates as "the place of many crows".
European settlement
Clashes between European settlers and Aborigines were very violent from 1821 to 1827, particularly around Bathurst, and have been termed the "Bathurst Wars". The loss of fishing grounds and significant sites and the killing of Aboriginal People was retaliated through attacks with spears on cattle and stockmen. In the 1850s there were still corroboreeCorroboree
A corroboree is a ceremonial meeting of Australian Aborigines. The word was coined by the European settlers of Australia in imitation of the Aboriginal word caribberie. At a corroboree Aborigines interact with the Dreamtime through dance, music and costume. Many ceremonies act out events from the...
s around Mudgee but there were fewer clashes. European settlement had taken hold and the Aboriginal population was in decline.
Notable Wiradjuri people
- Wiradjuri elders Isabell Coe and Neville "Uncle Chappy" WilliamsNeville WilliamsNeville "Chappy" Williams is an elder of the Wiradjuri Nation, in Western New South Wales. Known as "Uncle Chappy" to those who follow indigenous Australian customs, he is a regular at the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in Canberra and a key opponent of the Barrick Gold Corporation's gold mine project at...
, leading land activists and proponents in the Lake Cowal Campaign. - WindradyneWindradyneWindradyne was an Aboriginal warrior and resistance leader of the Wiradjuri nation, in what is now central-western New South Wales, Australia; he was also known to the British settlers as Saturday...
, important Aboriginal leader during the Bathurst Wars. - Mum (Shirl) SmithMum (Shirl) SmithShirley Smith , better known as Mum Shirl, was a prominent Aboriginal Australian and activist committed to justice and welfare of Aboriginal Australians...
, community activist in the 20th century. - Linda BurneyLinda BurneyThe Hon. Linda Jean Burney MP, an Australian politician, is a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Canterbury for the Australian Labor Party since 2003...
, member of the NSW Legislative Assembly. - Paul CoePaul CoePaul Coe ', a Wiradjuri man, is an Australian Aboriginal activist. He was the son of Leslie Coe, and the grandson of Paul Joseph Coe and Edith Murray and the great grandson of Thomas Coe and Jessie Mary, née Waggerah ....
, lawyer and activist. - Kevin GilbertKevin Gilbert (author)Kevin Gilbert was a 20th century Indigenous Australian activist, artist, poet, playwright and printmaker. He is also a past winner of the National Book Council prize for writers.- Life :...
, 20th century author. - Evonne GoolagongEvonne GoolagongEvonne Fay Goolagong Cawley, AO, MBE is a former World No. 1 Australian female tennis player. She was one of the world's leading players in the 1970s and early 1980s, when she won 14 Grand Slam titles: seven in singles , six in women's doubles, and one in mixed doubles.-Early life:Goolagong is the...
, one of Australia's most famous tennis players. - Stan Grant, notable Australian journalist.
- The Wiradjuri elder, Stan GrantStan Grant (Wiradjuri elder)Stanley Vernard "Stan" Grant, Sr. AM is an Elder of the Wiradjuri tribe of Indigenous Australians from what is now the south-west inland region of the state of New South Wales, Australia.-Background and language work:...
, has been working on the reconstruction of the language. Elder Geoff Anderson teaches the language to children and adults at Parkes. - Bev Grant Lipscomb, artist and academic
- Anita HeissAnita HeissAnita Heiss is a contemporary Australian author of Austrian and Indigenous Australian descent.Anita Heiss is from the Wiradjuri people though she grew up in and lives in Sydney. Her mother was brought up in a Catholic mission and her father is originally from Austria...
contemporary novelist. - Marcia LangtonMarcia LangtonMarcia Lynne Langton is one of Australia's leading Aboriginal scholars. She holds the Foundation Chair in Australian Indigenous Studies at the University of Melbourne, Australia...
, academic - Harry WedgeHarry WedgeHarry J. Wedge is a Wiradjuri artist.Prior to starting his artwork professionally, Wedge worked as a driver and fruit picker until he headed to Sydney to enroll at the Eora College....
and Brook AndrewBrook AndrewBrook Andrew is a visual artist of Wiradjuri and Scottish descent.Brook Andrew is a conceptually driven artist who challenges cultural and historical perception, using installation, text and image to comment on local and global issues regarding race, consumerism and history...
, notable artists. - Tara June WinchTara June WinchTara June Winch is an Australian writer of Aboriginal and European descent. Her first book, Swallow the Air, won several major Australian literary awards.-Life:...
, author. - Jimmy ClementsJimmy ClementsJimmy Clements was an Aboriginal elder from the Wiradjuri tribe in Australia, and was present at the Opening of the Provisional Parliament House in Canberra on 9 May 1927....
elder, present at the opening of Provisional Parliament HouseOld Parliament House, CanberraOld Parliament House, known formerly as the Provisional Parliament House, was the house of the Parliament of Australia from 1927 to 1988. The building began operation on 9 May 1927 as a temporary base for the Commonwealth Parliament after its relocation from Melbourne to the new capital, Canberra,...
in 1927. - Wally CarrWally CarrWally "Wait-awhile-Wal" Carr is a former boxer. An Aboriginal Australian, he was born 11 August 1954 in Wellington, NSW. Described by Boxing 1970-1980 as having "boxing ability to burn" and "outstanding skills",1 Wally Carr had 101 professional fights...
, Australian Commonwealth Boxing Champion. - Bill OnusBill OnusWilliam Townsend Onus Jr , known as Bill Onus, was an Aboriginal Australian political activist.-Early life and education:...
, activist. - Lin OnusLin OnusWilliam McLintock Onus was a Scottish-Aboriginal Artist of Wiradjuri descent from Melbourne, Australia.-Early life:Born Lin Burralung McLintock Onus, his father was political activist and businessman, Bill Onus...
, artist. - David PeacheyDavid PeacheyDavid Peachey is a former professional rugby league footballer of the 1990s and 2000s. An Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative fullback, he played the majority of his club football in the National Rugby League for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks...
, Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative rugby league player. - Margaret TuckerMargaret TuckerMargaret Lilardia Tucker was an Indigenous Australian activist and writer.Margaret Tucker was born at Warrangesda Mission to William Clements, a Wiradjuri man and Teresa Clements, née Middleton, a Yulupna women...
, co-founder of the Australian Aborigines League and author of If Everyone Cared (1977) one of the first autobiographies to deal with the experience of the Stolen Generations - Dr Sally Goold OAM, Executive Director of CATSIN, Senior Australian of the YearAustralian of the YearSince 1960 the Australian of the Year Award has been part of the celebrations surrounding Australia Day , during which time the award has grown steadily in significance to become Australia’s pre-eminent award. The Australian of the Year announcement has become a very prominent part of the annual...
2006.
Wiradjuri culture in fiction
The short story "Death in the Dawntime", originally published in The Mammoth Book of Historical Detectives (Mike Ashley, editor; 1995), is a murder mystery that takes place entirely among the Wiradjuri people before the arrival of Europeans in Australia. The story prominently features various concepts in Wiradjuri folklore and tradition, such as the ngurupal: this is an area within the tribal territory which is a public assembly space for adult male Wiradjuri who have been formally initiated into manhood, yet which is forbidden ground for females or uninitiated males. Some of the dialogue in this story is in the Wiradjuri language. "Death in the Dawntime" was written by F. Gwynplaine MacIntyreF. Gwynplaine MacIntyre
Fergus Gwynplaine MacIntyre was a journalist, novelist, poet and illustrator, who lived in New York City and said he had lived in Scotland and Wales. MacIntyre's writings include the science-fiction novel The Woman Between the Worlds and his anthology of verse and humor pieces MacIntyre's...
, a British author who spent his formative years in the Australian outback, where he encountered representatives of many Aboriginal cultures.
In Bryce Courtenay
Bryce Courtenay
Arthur Bryce Courtenay AM is a South-African-born naturalized Australian novelist and one of Australia's most commercially successful authors.-Background and early years:...
's novel Jessica
Jessica (novel)
Jessica is a historical novel based in real facts by Bryce Courtenay. It has been published in 1998 and like other works from this author covers several years in the life of the main character: Jessica Burgman. It was adapted into a mini-series starring Leeanna Walsman and Sam Neill which aired on...
, the plot is centred in Wiradjuri region. Jessica's best friend (Mary Simpson) was from Wiradjuri.