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The Thaua/Thawa, also spelt (also spelled Dhawa) and also called Yuin-Djuin, were 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 ...
people living around the
Twofold Bay Twofold Bay is an open oceanic embayment that is located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. The bay was named by George Bass, for its shape of two bights. The northern bight is called Calle Calle Bay; while the southern ...
area of the South Coast of New South Wales.


Language

Thawa is an extinct member of the Yuin–Kuric language family. Its exact status is unknowable, since the only report we have of it is from a brief note in
Alfred William Howitt Alfred William Howitt , (17 April 1830 – 7 March 1908), also known by author abbreviation A.W. Howitt, was an Australian anthropologist, explorer and naturalist. He was known for leading the Victorian Relief Expedition, which set out to es ...
who wrote that Thau-aria was the language of Twofold Bay. It is considered to have been either a dialect of Dhurga, a variety of Dyirringany, or a distinct tongue. The word Yuin in the ethnonym associated with the Thawa meant "man", though among the
Tharawal The Dharawal people, also spelt Tharawal and other variants, are an Aboriginal Australian people, identified by the Dharawal language. Traditionally, they lived as hunter–fisher–gatherers in family groups or clans with ties of kinship, s ...
to the north the term signified "yes".


Ecology

According to
John Blay John Charles Blay, born on 5 October 1944, is an Australian writer and naturalist who has written extensively about the Australian bush and its people in drama, prose and poetry. His work unveiling local landscape has had many consequences inclu ...
The Thawa ranged from
Mallacoota Mallacoota is a small town in the East Gippsland region in the state of Victoria, Australia. At the 2016 census, Mallacoota had a population of 1,063. At holiday times, particularly Easter and Christmas, the population increases by about 8,000 ...
to
Merimbula Merimbula is a town on the Merimbula Lake, located on the Far South Coast or Sapphire Coast of New South Wales, Australia. At the , the population was 3,544. The population within 10 km of the Merimbula Post office is over 18,000 people. ...
, and westwards as far as the borders of Narigo territory in Monaro.
Norman Tindale Norman Barnett Tindale AO (12 October 1900 – 19 November 1993) was an Australian anthropologist, archaeologist, entomologist and ethnologist. Life Tindale was born in Perth, Western Australia in 1900. His family moved to Tokyo and lived ther ...
in his 1974 catalogue of Australian Aboriginal boundaries describes the Thaua country and associated estates as follows:
From north of Merimbula south to Green Cape; west to the scarp of the Dividing Range. Their hordes were divided into two groups, the Katungal'sea coast people,' and the Baianbalor Paienbara the 'tomahawk people,' those who lived in the forests; a third group, the Bemerigal or
mountain people Hill people, also referred to as mountain people, is a general term for people who live in the hills and mountains. This includes all rugged land above and all land (including plateaus) above elevation. The climate is generally harsh, with s ...
at Cooma belonged to the Ngarigo with whom the inland Thaua had some associations.


History

It is often claimed in popular literature, following a conjecture by the amateur historian
Kenneth McIntyre Kenneth Gordon McIntyre OBE, ComIH (22 August 191020 May 2004) was an Australian lawyer and historian. Career McIntyre was born in Geelong in 1910 and graduated from Geelong College as Dux of the School in 1926. He went on to study Arts an ...
in 1977, that the ruins of an old stone building at
Bittangabee Bay Bittangabee Bay is a tiny, picturesque bay on the rugged and remote stretch of coastline south of Eden, New South Wales, Eden in New South Wales, Australia. The bay is located in Beowa National Park, and there is a campground nearby. The facilities ...
represents the remains of a 16th century Portuguese fort, testifying to the putative Portuguese priority in the discovery of Australia. For McIntyre it was a wintering place erected by
Cristóvão de Mendonça Cristóvão de Mendonça (Mourão, 1475 – Ormus, 1532) was a Portuguese noble and explorer who was active in South East Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-easte ...
as he made his imagined way back up the coast from
Corio Bay Corio Bay is one of numerous internal bays in the southwest corner of Australia's Port Phillip, and is the bay on which abuts the City of Geelong. The nearby suburb of Corio takes its name from Corio Bay. Etymology When Hamilton Hume and Willi ...
. The ruin actually is what is left of a structure partially raised, but left unfinished, dating to the 1840s. Twofold Bay was an important area for the whaling industry where the local Aboriginals quickly gained employment not only as crewmen and oarsmen, but also as harpooners. Contemporary writers commented favourably on their industriousness, and, unlike natives working on pastoral leases, they were given parts of the catch, cash and food in exchange for their labour. The area nearby, at Snug Point near Eden, had been taken up by
Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...
,
George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...
and
Peter Imlay Peter Imlay (1797–1881) was a Scottish-born pioneer settler in southern New South Wales. Peter and his brothers Alexander (1794-1847) and George (1794?-1846) operated in the region as pastoralists, whalers and shipbuilders. Life and care ...
, who employed local people. On arriving in Australia, the Scottish immigrant and pastoralist
Benjamin Boyd Benjamin Boyd (21 August 180115 October 1851) was a Scottish entrepreneur who became a major shipowner, banker, grazier, politician and slaver, exploiting South Sea Islander labour in the British colony of New South Wales. Boyd became one ...
squattered land in the area, and became an entrepreneur in the Twofold Bay whaling industry. His companion on the voyage out, the painter
Oswald Brierly Sir Oswald Walters Brierly (19 May 1817 – 14 December 1894), was an English marine painter from an old Cheshire family and he was born at Chester. Life He was the son of Thomas Brierly, a doctor and amateur artist, who belonged to an ol ...
remarked admiringly of the prowess, of both native men and women, in handling whaling boats there.


Notes and references


Notes


References

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External links


Bibliography of Thaua people and language resources
at the
Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies 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, ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thaua People Aboriginal peoples of New South Wales South Coast (New South Wales) Eden, New South Wales