The Pakadji people, also known by the southern tribal

exonym An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group, ...

as the Koko Yao (Kuuku Yau), are an

Aboriginal Australian 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 ...

group 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 northern

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_ ...

. The

ethnonym An ethnonym () is a name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms (whose name of the ethnic group has been created by another group of people) and autonyms, or endonyms (whose name is created and used ...

''Koko Yao'' is said literally to mean " talk, speech" (''koko''/''kuku'') 'this way' (''yao''), though this has been questioned.

Language

Pakadji The Pakadji people, also known by the southern tribal exonym as the Koko Yao (Kuuku Yau), are an Aboriginal Australian group of Cape York Peninsula in northern Queensland. The ethnonym ''Koko Yao'' is said literally to mean " talk, speech" (''kok ...

is one of the Umpila group of dialects within the

North Cape York Paman languages The North Cape York Paman languages are a subdivision of the Paman languages consisting of forty languages, all spoken on the Cape York Peninsula of Queensland, Australia. The languages are grouped largely according to R. M. W. Dixon. The only e ...

. They had a highly developed

sign language Sign languages (also known as signed languages) are languages that use the visual-manual modality to convey meaning, instead of spoken words. Sign languages are expressed through manual articulation in combination with non-manual markers. Sign l ...

, but used generally only one hand, with rapid movements, and little secondary reinforcement by physical or facial tics or gestures.

Country

Pakadji territory embraced roughly an area of 1,300 sq. miles around

Weymouth Bay Weymouth Bay is a sheltered bay on the south coast of England, in Dorset. It is protected from erosion by Chesil Beach and the Isle of Portland, and includes several beaches, notably Weymouth Beach, a gently curving arc of golden sand which str ...

, the

Pascoe River The Pascoe River is a river located in Far North Queensland, Australia. The headwaters rise under Mount Yangee in the Table Range, part of the Great Dividing Range at the northern end of Cape York Peninsula. The river initially flows south t ...

, and Temple Bay. It reached northwards as far as

Cape Grenville Cape Grenville (), is a small, east-facing promontory along the Queensland, Australia coast of Cape York Peninsula. It lies between Shelburne Bay to the north and Temple Bay to the south. The nearest significant settlement is Weipa, along the w ...

; and ran to the southeast at Cape Weymouth. Inland it extended to the

Dividing Range The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills, that runs rough ...

Lifestyle and economy

The Pakadji were one of the

Kawadji The Uutaalnganu people, also known as Night Island Kawadji, are an Aboriginal Australian group of Cape York Peninsula in northern Queensland. The name is also used collectively for several peoples in this area, such as the Pontunj / Jangkonj (Y ...

, or sandbeach people. These coastal tribes basically exploited the rich food resources on and off the sea-line facing the

Coral Sea The Coral Sea () is a marginal sea of the South Pacific off the northeast coast of Australia, and classified as an interim Australian bioregion. The Coral Sea extends down the Australian northeast coast. Most of it is protected by the Fre ...

. The year was divided into two seasons, the ''kawali'' or dry season that began with the onset of the south-east trade winds, from April through to November, and ''wullo wantjan''/''wullo waiyin'' ('when thunder cries') the season ushered in with the arrival of the northwest

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscil ...

, beginning in late November/early December. In the ''kawali'' period they were often venture inland to harvest vegetables (''mai'yi''), yams (''dampu'') and bush honey, and construction materials like spear wood and weaving grasses.

Ceremonies

Donald Thomson Donald Finlay Fergusson Thomson, OBE (26 June 1901 – 12 May 1970) was an Australian anthropologist and ornithologist who was largely responsible for turning the Caledon Bay crisis into a "decisive moment in the history of Aboriginal-Europea ...

gained the confidence of the Pakadji while spending 4 months with them during the season in which their initiation ceremonies (''Okainta'') were held, and was permitted to be present during the rites. He focused in particular on stories related to ''Iwayi'' (Old Man Crocodile).

Native title

On 25 November 2021, of land on the eastern side of the

were handed back to the Kuuku Ya'u people, at the same time as ( were awarded to the Uutaalnganu people, in a

native title Aboriginal title is a common law doctrine that the land rights of indigenous peoples to customary tenure persist after the assumption of sovereignty under settler colonialism. The requirements of proof for the recognition of aboriginal title, ...

claim that was lodged seven years prior. The landmark ruling was delivered by Justice

Debra Mortimer Debra Sue Mortimer is an Australian judge. She was born in New Zealand but has practised law in Australia. She has been a judge of the Federal Court of Australia since 2013, having previously been a Senior Counsel practising at the Victorian Bar ...

of the

Federal Court of Australia The Federal Court of Australia is an Australian superior court of record which has jurisdiction to deal with most civil disputes governed by federal law (with the exception of family law matters), along with some summary (less serious) and indic ...

, sitting at the

Supreme Court of Queensland The Supreme Court of Queensland is the highest court in the Australian State of Queensland. It was formerly the Brisbane Supreme Court, in the colony of Queensland. The original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court allows its trial division to he ...

Cairns Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...

Language

Country

Lifestyle and economy

Ceremonies

Native title

Some words

Notes

Citations

References