Injinoo (formerly Cowal Creek) is a coastal town in the

Northern Peninsula Area Region The Northern Peninsula Area Region is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia, covering areas on the northwestern coast of Cape York Peninsula. It was created in March 2008 out of three Aboriginal Shires and two autonomous Isl ...

and a

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localities (Australia), in which a locality is a geographic subdivis ...

split between Northern Peninsula Area Region and the

Shire of Torres The Shire of Torres is a local government area located in Far North Queensland, Australia, covering large sections of the Torres Strait Islands and the northern tip of Cape York Peninsula north of 11°S latitude. It holds two distinctions—it ...

in Far North

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, Australia. It is on the north-western coast of

Cape York Peninsula Cape York Peninsula is a large peninsula located in Far North Queensland, Australia. It is the largest unspoiled wilderness in northern Australia.Mittermeier, R.E. et al. (2002). Wilderness: Earth’s last wild places. Mexico City: Agrupación ...

. In the , Injinoo had a population of 561 people.

History

'' Luthigh'' (also known as ''Lotiga'', ''Tepiti'' and ''Uradhi'', see also '' Uradhi'' related languages) is an

Australian Aboriginal language The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

spoken by the Luthigh people. The traditional language area for Luthigh includes landscape within the local government boundaries of the

Cook Shire The Shire of Cook (The Shire) is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia. The Shire covers most of the eastern and central parts of Cape York Peninsula, the most northerly section of the Australian mainland. It covers an area ...

: Eastern Cape York,

Ducie River The Ducie River is a river located on the Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, Australia. Formed by the confluence of the Palm Creek and South Palm Creek, the headwaters of the Ducie River drain the Richardson Range, part of the Great ...

, Northern Peninsula, New Mapoon, Injinoo, and

Cowal Creek Injinoo (formerly Cowal Creek) is a coastal town in the Northern Peninsula Area Region and a Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality split between Northern Peninsula Area Region and the Shire of Torres in Far North Queensland, Far North Que ...

. '' Uradhi'' (also known as ''Anggamudi'', ''Ankamuti'', ''Atampaya'', ''Bawtjathi'', and ''Lotiga)'' is an Australian Aboriginal language of the Western Cape York Peninsula. The traditional language region includes north of Mapoon and

Duyfken Point Duyfken Point is a Point (geography), point in the Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality of Mission River, Queensland, Mission River, Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia (). Geography Duyfken Point is on the western coast of Cape York ...

and east of the coast strip to the north of Port Musgrave (Angkamuthi country) incorporating the mouth of the

, the lower reaches of the Dulhunty River and the upper reaches of the Skardon River in the north. Following the displacement of Indigenous people by British settlement, it was also spoken in the

including the communities of New Mapoon, Injinoo and

. Injinoo Aboriginal Community was an Aboriginal settlement and later Anglican

mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

established on Cape York by a community led by a

Wuthathi The Wuthathi, also known as the Mutjati, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the state of Queensland. Anthropologist Norman Tindale distinguished the Mutjati from the Otati, whereas AIATSIS treats the two ethnonyms as variants related to th ...

man,

Allelic Whitesand An allele (, ; ; modern formation from Greek ἄλλος ''állos'', "other") is a variation of the same sequence of nucleotides at the same place on a long DNA molecule, as described in leading textbooks on genetics and evolution. ::"The chro ...

. Although self-sufficient, through fishing and gardening, the Community made requests to the then

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

to establish a mission and

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

Queensland government The Queensland Government is the democratic administrative authority of the Australian state of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary constitutional monarchy was formed in 1859 as prescribed in its Constitution, as amended fr ...

officials allowed the community to function through an elected Council. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, which saw a considerable military presence in the area, many

Torres Strait Islanders Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often grouped ...

began moving into Injinoo. Settlements were subsequently built at

Bamaga Bamaga ( , ) is a small town and locality about from the northern tip of Cape York in the north of Queensland, Australia. It is within the Northern Peninsula Area Region. It is one of the northernmost settlements in continental Australia and i ...

, New Mapoon and

Umagico Umagico is a town and coastal locality in the Northern Peninsula Area Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Umagico had a population of 427 people. Umagico is one of the five communities which collectively form the Northern Peninsula Area, al ...

to relocate evicted people from this and other areas of the Cape. In 1948 a reserve was created, with control of the area having been taken over by the Queensland Department of Native Affairs. The official name of the community was changed from Cowal Creek to Injinoo on 2 September 1989. AIn the , Injinoo had a population of 416. In the , the locality of Injinoo had a population of 561 people.

Facilities

In 2012, the Indigenous Knowledge Centre was opened at Injinoo, operated by the Northern Peninsula Area Regional Council. It has produced a video detailing traditional bush foods as part of a children's language workshop.

References

External links

{{authority control Towns in Queensland Australian Aboriginal missions Indigenous Australian reserves Far North Queensland Aboriginal communities in Queensland Shire of Torres Northern Peninsula Area Region Coastline of Queensland Localities in Queensland