![Merri Creek Plenty Ranges-Troedel](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Merri_Creek_Plenty_Ranges-Troedel.jpg)
The Wurundjeri people are an
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 ...
people of the
Woiwurrung language group, in the
Kulin nation
The Kulin nation is an alliance of five Aboriginal nations in south central Victoria, Australia. Their collective territory extends around Port Phillip and Western Port, up into the Great Dividing Range and the Loddon and Goulburn River valley ...
. They are the
Traditional Owners
Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have rights ...
of the
Birrarung
The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, (Kulin languages: ''Berrern'', ''Birr-arrung'', ''Bay-ray-rung'', ''Birarang'', ''Birrarung'', and ''Wongete'') is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia.
The lower str ...
(Yarra River) Valley, covering much of the present location of Narrm (
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
). They continue to live in this area and throughout Australia. They were called the Yarra tribe by early European colonists.
The
was established in 1985 by Wurundjeri people.
Ethnonym
According to the early Australian ethnographer
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 ...
, the name Wurundjeri, in his transcription ''Urunjeri'', refers to a species of eucalypt, ''
Eucalyptus viminalis
''Eucalyptus viminalis'', commonly known as the manna gum, white gum or ribbon gum, is a species of small to very tall tree that is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It has smooth bark, sometimes with rough bark near the base, lance-shaped to c ...
'', otherwise known as the manna or white gum, which is common along
Birrarung
The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, (Kulin languages: ''Berrern'', ''Birr-arrung'', ''Bay-ray-rung'', ''Birarang'', ''Birrarung'', and ''Wongete'') is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia.
The lower str ...
. Some modern reports of Wurundjeri traditional lore state that their
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 ...
combines a word, ''wurun'', meaning ''Manna Gum'' and ''djeri'', a species of grub found in the tree, and take the word therefore to mean "
Witchetty Grub
The witchetty grub (also spelled witchety grub or witjuti grub) is a term used in Australia for the large, white, wood-eating larvae of several moths. In particular, it applies to the larvae of the cossid moth ''Endoxyla leucomochla'', which fee ...
People".
Language
Wurundjeri people speak
Woiwurrung
The Woiwurrung, also spelt Woi Wurrung, Woiwurrong, Woiworung, Wuywurung, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin people, Kulin alliance.
The Woiwurrung people's territory in Central Victoria (Austral ...
, a dialect of
Kulin Kulin may refer to:
Places
*Kulin, Western Australia, a small town in Australia
** Shire of Kulin, a local government area
*Kulin, Iran, a village near Tehran
*Kulin, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, a village in south-west Poland
*Kulin, Kuyavian-Pome ...
. Kulin is spoken by the five groups in the Kulin nation.
Clans
There are several distinct clans of Wurundjeri people with different territories:
Wurundjeri balluk: Their territory covers the area from Mount Baw Baw to Healesville and the northern tributaries of the Birrarung (Yarra River), to the eastern side of the Mirrangbamurn (
Maribyrnong River
The Maribyrnong River is a perennial river of the Port Phillip catchment, located in the northwestern suburbs of Melbourne, in the Australian state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria.
Course
The Maribyrnong River draws its headwaters from near ...
) and up to
Gisborne.
Wurundjeri Willum: Their territory includes the site of Narrm (Melbourne), up to the east side of the Maribyrnong River and its western branch and along to Geboor (
Mount Macedon
Mount Macedon ( Aboriginal Woiwurrung language: ''Geboor'' or ''Geburrh'') is a dormant volcano that is part of the Macedon Ranges of the Great Dividing Range, located in the Central Highlands region of Victoria, Australia. The mountain has ...
). It also includes the western half of country from the Kurrum (Plenty River) to the Maribrynong River. Their name comes from ''wilam'' meaning 'camp/shelter'.
Marin balluk: From the western side of the Maribyrnong River, centred around Koorakoorakup (
Sunbury) and the watersheds of Geboor (Mount Macedon). Their name means 'Maribrynong River'.
Gunung Willum balluk: from the adjoining Wurundjeri country on the west side of Geboor (Mount Macedon) through to Balitgurrk (
Bullengarook) and Munal (
Daylesford). Their name means 'river shelter swamp'
Balluk Willum: from the
Cranbourne area. Their name means 'swamp shelters' and refers to the swamp that occupied the area before it was drained by colonists.
Ngaruk Willum: from the south side of Corhanwarrabul (the
Dandenong Ranges
The Dandenong Ranges (commonly just The Dandenongs) are a set of low mountain ranges, rising to 633 metres at Mount Dandenong, approximately east of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The ranges consist mostly of rolling hills, steeply weathere ...
).
Kurung Jang baluk: from the Melton area. Their name comes from ''gurrong'' (canoe) and ''baluk'' (swamp).
Country
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 ...
estimated Wurundjeri lands as extending over approximately . These took in the areas of the Yarra and Saltwater rivers around Melbourne, and ran north as far as
Mount Disappointment, northwest to
Macedon
Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled by ...
,
Woodend, and
Lancefield. Their eastern borders went as far as
Mount Baw Baw
Mount Baw Baw is a mountain summit on the Baw-Baw Plateau of the Great Dividing Range, located in Victoria, Australia. The name is from the Woiwurrung language spoken by Eastern Kulin people. It is of uncertain meaning, but possibly signifie ...
and
Healesville
Healesville is a town in Victoria, Australia, 52 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district, located within the Shire of Yarra Ranges local government area. Healesville recorded a population of 7,589 in the 2021 census.
He ...
. Their southern confines approached
Mordialloc
Mordialloc is a beachside suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 24 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Kingston local government area. Mordialloc recorded a population of 8,886 at the . ...
,
Warragul
Warragul is a town in Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne. Warragul lies between the Strzelecki Ranges to the south and the Mount Baw Baw Plateau of the Great Dividing Range to the north. As of the , the town had a population of 19,8 ...
, and
Moe.
The Wurundjeri-balluk and Wurundjeri-willam people occupied the area from the
Yarra Valley/Yarra River catchment area to
Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...
.
In June 2021, the boundaries between the land of two of the
traditional owner
Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have rights ...
groups in
greater Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metrop ...
, the Wurundjeri and Boonwurrung, were agreed between the two groups, after being drawn up by the
Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Council
The ''Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006'' (AHA) of the state of Victoria, Australia was enacted "to provide for the protection of Aboriginal cultural heritage in Victoria". It established Registered Aboriginal Parties to act as the "primary guardian ...
. The new borderline runs across the city from west to east, with the
CBD,
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
and
Hawthorn
Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to:
Plants
* '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae
* ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...
included in Wurundjeri land, and
Albert Park,
St Kilda and
Caulfield on Bunurong land. It was agreed that
Mount Cottrell
Mount Cottrell is a town in Victoria, Australia, west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Melton and Wyndham local government areas. Mount Cottrell recorded a population of 496 at the 2021 census.
It is n ...
, the site of a
massacre in 1836 with at least 10 Wathaurong victims, would be jointly managed above the line. The two
Registered Aboriginal Parties
A Registered Aboriginal Party (RAP) is a recognised representative body of an Aboriginal Australian people per the ''Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006'' (Vic.), whose function is to protect and manage the Aboriginal cultural heritage in the state o ...
representing the two groups were the
Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation
The Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation is a Registered Aboriginal Party and incorporated association representing the Bunurong (Boon wurrung) community in the state of Victoria, Australia, particularly in matters relating to the Victori ...
and the
. However, these borders are still in dispute among several prominent figures and Wurundjeri territory has been claimed to spread much further west and south.
History
The earliest European settlers came across a park-like landscape extending inland from Melbourne, consisting of large areas of grassy plains to the north and southwest, with little forest cover, something thought to be testimony of indigenous sheet burning practices to expose the massive number of
yam daisies (''murnong'') which proliferated in the area. These murnong roots and various tuber lilies formed a major source of starch and carbohydrates. Seasonal changes in the weather, availability of foods and other factors would determine where campsites were located, many near the Birrarung and its tributaries.
The Wurundjeri and Gunung Willam Balug clans mined
diorite
Diorite ( ) is an intrusive igneous rock formed by the slow cooling underground of magma (molten rock) that has a moderate content of silica and a relatively low content of alkali metals. It is intermediate in composition between low-silic ...
at
Mount William stone axe quarry
The Mount William stone axe quarry is an Aboriginal Australian archaeological site in Central Victoria, Australia. It is located northeast of Lancefield, off Powells Track, north of Romsey and from Melbourne. Known as ''Wil-im-ee Moor-ring'' ...
which was a source of the highly valued greenstone hatchet heads, which were traded across a wide area as far as New South Wales and Adelaide. The mine provided a complex network of trading for economic and social exchange among the different Aboriginal nations in Victoria. The quarry had been in use for more than 1,500 years and covered 18 hectares including underground pits of several metres. In February 2008 the site was placed on the
Australian National Heritage List
The Australian National Heritage List or National Heritage List (NHL) is a heritage register, a list of national heritage places deemed to be of outstanding heritage significance to Australia, established in 2003. The list includes natural and ...
for its cultural importance and archeological value.
Settlement and dispossession of the Wurundjeri lands began soon after a
ceremony
A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion.
The word may be of Etruscan origin, via the Latin '' caerimonia''.
Church and civil (secular) ...
in which Wurundjeri leaders conducted a ''tanderrum'' ceremony, whose function was to allow outsiders temporary access to the resources of clan lands.
John Batman
John Batman (21 January 18016 May 1839) was an Australian grazier, entrepreneur and explorer. He is best known for his role in the founding of Melbourne.
Born and raised in the then-British colony of New South Wales, Batman settled in Van Die ...
and other whites interpreted this symbolic act, recorded in
treaty form, as equivalent to medieval
enfeoffment
In the Middle Ages, especially under the European feudal system, feoffment or enfeoffment was the deed by which a person was given land in exchange for a pledge of service. This mechanism was later used to avoid restrictions on the passage of ti ...
of all Woiwurrong territory. Within a few years settlement began around
Pound Bend with
Major Charles Newman at
Mullum Mullum Creek
Mullum Mullum Creek is a creek in the outer eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is the main watercourse of the Mullum Mullum Valley, a tributary of the Yarra River and Yarra Valley. For tens of thousands of years it was used ...
in 1838, and James Anderson on
Beal Yallock, now known as Anderson's Creek a year later. Their measures to clear the area of aborigines was met with guerrilla skirmishing, led by Jaga Jaga, with the appropriation of cattle and the burning of fields. They were armed with rifles, and esteemed to be excellent marksmen, firing close to Anderson to drive him off as they helped themselves to his potato crop while en route to
Yering in 1840. A trap set there by Captain Henry Gibson led to Jaga Jaga's capture and a battle as the Wurundjeri fought unsuccessfully to secure his release. Resistance was broken, and settlements throve. One elder, Derrimut, later stated:
You see…all this mine. All along here Derrimut's once. No matter now, me soon tumble down…Why me have no lubra? Why me have no piccaninny? You have all this place. No good have children, no good have lubra. Me tumble down and die very soon now.
Coranderrk
In 1863 the surviving members of the Wurundjeri tribe were given "permissive occupancy" of
Coranderrk
Coranderrk was an Aboriginal reserve run by the Victorian government between 1863 and 1924, located around north-east of Melbourne. The residents were mainly of the Woiwurrung, Bunurong and Taungurong peoples, and the first inhabitants chose ...
Station, near
Healesville
Healesville is a town in Victoria, Australia, 52 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district, located within the Shire of Yarra Ranges local government area. Healesville recorded a population of 7,589 in the 2021 census.
He ...
and forcibly resettled. Despite numerous petitions, letters, and delegations to the Colonial and Federal Government, the grant of this land in compensation for the country lost was refused. Coranderrk was closed in 1924 and its occupants bar five refusing to leave Country were again moved to
Lake Tyers in
Gippsland
Gippsland is a rural region that makes up the southeastern part of Victoria, Australia, mostly comprising the coastal plains to the rainward (southern) side of the Victorian Alps (the southernmost section of the Great Dividing Range). It covers ...
.
Wurundjeri today
All remaining Wurundjeri people are descendants of Bebejan, through his daughter Annie Borate (Boorat), and in turn, her son Robert Wandin (Wandoon). Bebejan was a
Ngurungaeta
An Ngurungaeta is a Woiwurrung head man or tribal leader of clans of the Woiwurrung tribes and Taungurung Ngurai-illum Wurrung. Ngurungaeta held the same tribal standing as an Arweet of the Bunurong and Wathaurong people. The current Ngurungaeta is ...
of the Wurundjeri people and was present at
John Batman
John Batman (21 January 18016 May 1839) was an Australian grazier, entrepreneur and explorer. He is best known for his role in the founding of Melbourne.
Born and raised in the then-British colony of New South Wales, Batman settled in Van Die ...
's "treaty" signing in 1835.
Joy Murphy Wandin
Joy Murphy Wandin is an Indigenous Australian, Senior Wurundjeri elder of the Kulin alliance in Victoria, Australia. She has given the traditional ''welcome to country'' greeting at many Melbourne events and to many distinguished visitors where ...
, a Wurundjeri elder, explains the importance of preserving Wurundjeri culture:
In the recent past, Wurundjeri culture was undermined by people being forbidden to "talk culture" and language. Another loss was the loss of children taken from families. Now, some knowledge of the past must be found and collected from documents. By finding and doing this, Wurundjeri will bring their past to the present and recreate a place of belonging. A "keeping place" should be to keep things for future generations of our people, not a showcase for all, not a resource to earn dollars. I work towards maintaining the Wurundjeri culture for Wurundjeri people into the future.
In 1985, the
Wurundjeri Tribe Land Compensation and Cultural Heritage Council was established to fulfil statutory roles under Commonwealth and Victorian legislation and to assist in raising awareness of Wurundjeri culture and history within the wider community.
Wurundjeri elders often attend events with visitors present where they give the traditional
welcome to country
A Welcome to Country is a ritual or formal ceremony performed as a land acknowledgement at many events held in Australia. It is intended to highlight the cultural significance of the surrounding area to the descendants of a particular Aborigina ...
greeting in the
Woiwurrung language
The Woiwurrung, also spelt Woi Wurrung, Woiwurrong, Woiworung, Wuywurung, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin alliance.
The Woiwurrung people's territory in Central Victoria extended from north ...
:
: ''Wominjeka yearmenn koondee-bik Wurundjeri-Ballak'', which simply means, ''Welcome to the land of the Wurundjeri people''
Notable people
![William Barak, 1902](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/William_Barak%2C_1902.jpg)
:
*
Bebejan (?-1836): , and William Barak's father and Billibellary's brother
*
Billibellary
Billibellary (c. 1799–10 August 1846) was a song maker and influential ngurungaeta of the Wurundjeri-willam clan during the early years of European settlement of Melbourne. He was known by various names including Billi-billeri, Billibellary, Jik ...
(1799–1846): of the Wurundjeri-willam clan.
*
Simon Wonga
Simon Wonga (1824–1874), ngurungaeta and son of Billibellary, was an Aboriginal Australian elder, elder of the Wurundjeri people, who lived in the Melbourne area of Australia before European settlement. He was resolute that his people would su ...
(1824–1874): by 1851 until his death. Billibellary's son.
*
William Barak
William Barak, named Beruk by his parents, (1823 – 15 August 1903), the "last chief of the Yarra Yarra tribe", was the last traditional ngurungaeta (elder) of the Wurundjeri-willam clan, the pre-colonial inhabitants of present-day Melbourne, A ...
(1824–1903): of the Wurundjeri-willam clan from 1874 until his death.
*
James Wandin
James Wandin (28 July 1933 – 20 February 2006), also known as Jim, Jimmy, or Juby, was the ngurungaeta of the Wurundjeri till his death in February 2006. He was the first Australian rules footballer of Aboriginal descent to play with St Kild ...
(1933–2006): until his death, and an
Australian rules football
Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...
er
*
Murrundindi
Murrundindi, also known as Gary Hunter, is the ngurungaeta of the Wurundjeri people and a descendant of William Barak. He succeeded James Wandin in this position in February 2006.
Murrundindi and his brother Warendj regularly conduct cultural e ...
: from 2006 until present
Other notable Wurundjeri people include:
*
Tullamareena
Tullamareena (or Tullamarine, Dullamarin) was a senior man of the Wurundjeri, a Koori, ( Aboriginal) people of the Melbourne area, at the time of the British settlement in Victoria, Australia, in 1835. He is believed to have been present at ...
: present during the founding of Melbourne
*
Derrimut
Derrimut is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Brimbank Local government area. Derrimut recorded a population of 8,651 at the 2021 census.
Located on the l ...
(1810–1864): a
Bunurong
The Boonwurrung people are an Aboriginal people of the Kulin nation, who are the traditional owners of the land from the Werribee River to Wilsons Promontory in the Australian state of Victoria. Their territory includes part of what is now the c ...
elder associated with the Woiwurrung, present during British invasion
*
Diane Kerr: elder
*
Winnie Quagliotti (1931–1988): elder
*
Joy Murphy Wandin
Joy Murphy Wandin is an Indigenous Australian, Senior Wurundjeri elder of the Kulin alliance in Victoria, Australia. She has given the traditional ''welcome to country'' greeting at many Melbourne events and to many distinguished visitors where ...
: senior elder
Alternative names/spellings
* ''Coraloon'' (?)
* ''Gungung-willam''
* ''Kukuruk'' (northern clan name)
* ''Mort Noular'' (language name)
* ''Ngarukwillam''
* ''N'uther Galla''
* ''Nuthergalla'' (''ngatha'' = ''juða'' "no" in the Melbourne dialect).
* ''Oorongie''
* ''Urunjeri''
* ''Waarengbadawa''
* ''Wainworra''
* ''Wairwaioo''
* ''Warerong''
* ''Warorong''
* ''Warwaroo''
* ''Wavoorong''
* ''Wawoorong, Wawoorong''
* ''Wawurong''
* ''Wawurrong''
* ''Woeworung''
* ''Woiworung'' (name for the language they spoke, from ''woi'' + ''worung'' = speech)
* ''Woiwurru'' (''woi'' = no + ''wur:u'' = lip)
* ''Woiwurung, Woiwurong, Woiwurrong''
* ''Wooeewoorong''
* ''Wowerong''
* ''Wurrundyirra-baluk''
* ''Wurunjeri''
* ''Wurunjerri''
* ''Wurunjerri-baluk''
* ''Yarra Yarra''
* ''Yarra Yarra Coolies'' (''kulin'' = man)
See also
*
Wurundjeri Tribe Land Compensation and Cultural Heritage Council
*
Batman's Treaty
Batman's Treaty was an agreement between John Batman, an Australian grazier, businessman and coloniser, and a group of Wurundjeri elders, for the purchase of land around Port Phillip, near the present site of Melbourne. The document came to ...
*
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
*
Australian Aboriginal enumeration The Australian Aboriginal counting system was used together with message sticks sent to neighbouring clans to alert them of, or invite them to, corroborees, set-fights, and ball games. Numbers could clarify the day the meeting was to be held (in a n ...
*
Battle of Yering
The Battle of Yering was a conflict between Indigenous Australians of the Wurundjeri nation and the Border Police which occurred on 13 January 1840, on the outskirts of Melbourne.Kath Gannaway, Important step for reconciliation' Star News Group, ...
*
Possum-skin cloak
Possum-skin cloaks were a form of clothing worn by Aboriginal people in the south-east of Australia – present-day Victoria and New South Wales.
The cloaks were made from numerous possum pelts sewn together with kangaroo sinew, and often dec ...
*
Bunurong
The Boonwurrung people are an Aboriginal people of the Kulin nation, who are the traditional owners of the land from the Werribee River to Wilsons Promontory in the Australian state of Victoria. Their territory includes part of what is now the c ...
*
Gunai people
The Gunaikurnai or Gunai/Kurnai ( ) people, also referred to as the Gunnai or Kurnai, are an Aboriginal Australian nation of south-east Australia. They are the Traditional Custodians of most of present-day Gippsland and much of the southern slop ...
Notes
Citations
Sources
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* cited in
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
{{Authority control
Aboriginal peoples of Victoria (Australia)
History of Melbourne