A dillybag or dilly bag is a traditional

Australian Aboriginal Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Islands ...

bag generally woven from plant fibres. Dillybags are mainly designed and used by women to gather and transport food, and are most commonly found in the northern parts of Australia. ''Dilly'' comes from the Jagera word ''dili'', which refers to both the bag and the plants from which it is made. Amongst some Aboriginal peoples dillybags are alternatively known as yakou, yibali, murkutu or but but bags. Some forms of dillybags are worn like a

satchel A satchel is a bag with a strap, traditionally used for carrying books.Satchel
The Cambridge Dictionary. ...

with a cord around the neck; most come in an oval shape with a cord attached for carrying. Dillybags are normally woven out of vines or tough dried grasses. In Arnhem Land, Queensland, the Northern Territory and northern Western Australia, plant species of the ''

Pandanus ''Pandanus'' is a genus of monocots with some 750 accepted species. They are palm-like, dioecious trees and shrubs native to the Old World tropics and subtropics. The greatest number of species are found in Madagascar and Malaysia. Common names ...

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

are often used. They are sometimes lined with feathers or animal fur to stop small pieces of food from falling through holes in the weave. Although mainly used by women to gather food, they are sometimes used by men, such as to help carry tools for hunting. Some dillybags are used to hold personal or sacred artefacts. Today these functional items are also produced for artistic purposes. "Dillybag" is also sometimes used to describe bags that were made and used by non-Aboriginal Australians, for example, a smaller food bag carried by

swagmen A swagman (also called a swaggie, sundowner or tussocker) was a transient labourer who travelled by foot from farm to farm carrying his belongings in a swag. The term originated in Australia in the 19th century and was later used in New Zeala ...

along with their swags. The term is also used by Australians to describe similar bags for other purposes.

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