Childrens Illustrated Encyclopedia

Land cLaims

When British settlers arrived in

australia, they seized sacred sites

and other land that belonged to

aboriginal people. With the help

of aboriginal lawyers, aboriginal

australians campaigned to get

the land back. in 1976, the

australian government agreed

that aboriginal people have

rights to their tribal territories,

and some land was returned.

as well

as the curved

returning boomerang, aboriginal

australians use a straight, non-returning

boomerang as a weapon for fighting and

for hunting mammals such as kangaroos.

9

australia

Africa, history of 14-

dance

musical instruments

myths and legends

Find out more

The firsT inhaBiTanTs of australia were nomadic (wandering) people

who reached the continent from southeast asia about 40,000 years ago. When

europeans settled in australia at the end of the 18th century, they called these

native inhabitants “aboriginals,” meaning people who had lived there since the

earliest times. Today, there are about 670,000 aboriginals in australia. most live

in cities, but a few thousand still try to follow a traditional way of life. They travel

through the bush, hunting with spears and boomerangs (throwing sticks)

and searching for food such as plants, grubs, and insects. They have few

possessions and make everything they need from natural materials. This way

of life does not change or harm the fragile environment of the australian

outback (the interior). The well-being of the land, and its plants and

animals, are vital and sacred to the aboriginal people.

UrBan Life

The majority of aboriginal australians live in cities and towns. some

have benefited from government education and aid programs and

have careers as teachers, doctors, and lawyers. many, though, are poor

and isolated from white society. They have lost touch with traditional

aboriginal tribal ways, and because they do not fit neatly into white

australian society, they cannot always share its benefits. however,

there are now campaigns among urban aboriginal people to

revive interest in the tribal culture of their ancestors.

The curved returning Boomerangs

boomerang is used

only for sport.

dreamTime

aboriginal australians believe that they have animal, plant, and human

ancestors who created the world and everything in it. This process of creation

is called dreamtime. There are many songs and myths about dreamtime,

which generations of aboriginal people have passed down to their children.

Private ceremonies and secret

rituals are an important

part of Aboriginal life.

Through dancing,

singing, and

chanting, young

Aboriginal people

learn about

Dreamtime.

The didjeridoo, a wooden wind

instrument, is used to play basic

rhythms in Aboriginal music.

Dancers, singers, and musicians paint

their bodies with elaborate patterns.

Aboriginal Australians

arT

aboriginal

art is mostly

about

dreamtime

and is made

as part of the ceremonies celebrating

dreamtime. Paintings of the people,

spirits, and animals of dreamtime

cover sacred cliffs and rocks in tribal

territories. The pictures are made in

red and yellow ocher and white clay,

and some are thousands of years old.

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