The Gia people, also known as Giya, Kia, Bumbarra, and variants, are an
Aboriginal Australian people of the state of
Queensland. Little is known of them.
Language
The Gia spoke
Giya/Bumbarra, a dialect of the
Biri language, belongs to the Proserpine subgroup of the
Maric languages
Maran or Maric is an extinct branch of the Pama–Nyungan family of Australian languages formerly spoken throughout much of Queensland by many of the Murri peoples. The well attested Maric languages are clearly related; however, many languages ...
.
AIATSIS
The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS), established as the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies (AIAS) in 1964, is an independent Australian Government statutory authority. It is a collecting, ...
, in its
AUSTLANG
The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS), established as the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies (AIAS) in 1964, is an independent Australian Government statutory authority. It is a collecting, ...
database, assigns a separate code to
Ngaro
Ngaro ("vanished") is mentioned as a delicacy of the dead in a Māori legend from the far north of the North Island of New Zealand.
Te Atarahi was five days and five nights in Te Reinga, the place from where the spirits of the dead leap into ...
, but its status is shown as unconfirmed, as the only source for it is a wordlist by Tindale.
Country
According to
Norman Tindale, the Gias' lands extended over some of land from
Bowen Bowen may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Bowen, Queensland, a town
* Bowen Hills, Queensland, a suburb
** Bowen Hills railway station, a railway station in Bowen Hills
** Bowen Park, Brisbane, a park in Bowen Hills
* Bowen Bridge, crossing the Derw ...
to
St. Helens and
Mount Dalrymple. Inland they reached the
Clarke Range. They were present at
Proserpine,
Gloucester Island
Gloucester Island is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 950 km northwest of Brisbane. It is visible from the town of Bowen. The island was seen and erroneously named "Cape Gloucester" by British explorer James Cook
James C ...
, and
Repulse Bay.
Tindale registered this as a distinct tribe, directly south of
Port Denison, but this has been questioned by Barker.
Although Ngaro is given as a synonym for Gia, and vice versa, it appears that the
Ngaro people inhabited the
Whitsunday Islands.
The
Yuwibara people occupied land to their south.
A
Traditional Owner Reference Group consisting of representatives of the Yuwibara,
Koinmerburra,
Barada Barna,
Wiri,
Ngaro
Ngaro ("vanished") is mentioned as a delicacy of the dead in a Māori legend from the far north of the North Island of New Zealand.
Te Atarahi was five days and five nights in Te Reinga, the place from where the spirits of the dead leap into ...
, and those Gia and
Juru people whose lands are within Reef Catchments Mackay Whitsunday Isaac (MWI) region, helps to support
natural resource management and look after the
cultural heritage sites in the area.
Earliest description
In response to inquiries made by
Edward Micklethwaite Curr, Sergeant B. Shea, a resident of the Gia area, provided a sketch of the natives of his district. He identified them as the Bumbarra tribes. He provided the names of the tribal divisions: those applying to men were ''Karilla'' and ''Whychaka'', while women belonged either to the ''Denterbago'' or ''Helmerago,'' Marriage was contracted when girls reached the age of 12.
Alternative names
* ''Kia.''
* ''Bumbara, Bumbarra.''
Some words
* ''wina.'' (fish)
* ''pigina.'' (mosquito)
* ''kroopulla.'' (fly)
* ''worniwoma.'' (black woman)
* ''yaboo.'' (father)
* ''yanga.'' (mother)
* ''koloona.'' (young man)
* ''kutha.'' (old man)
* ''kummi.''(old woman)
* ''korea.''(head)
* ''dilli.'' (eye)
* ''wolloo.'' (ear).
* ''dongalla.'' (excrement)
* ''nikkana.'' (food)
* ''kangoola.'' (thirsty).
* ''wangalla.''(boomerang)
Notes
Citations
References
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{{authority control
Aboriginal peoples of Queensland