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3.1 M U N G O REPORT the Statement of Significance of the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area to Aboriginal People of Western New South Wales statements contributed between 1985 and 1991 update to 2017 production and editorial content by Western Heritage Group BELONGING TO THE WILLANDRA LAKES CHAPTER 323 CONTENTS People of the region Connections from the Darling River Connections from the lower Lachlan and lower Murrumbidgee Rivers Connections from the dry country to the north Connections from the Murray River Interconnections CHAPTER 3 BELONGING TO The Willandra Lakes Aboriginal people always said that the land is our Mother. Elsie Jones (Wilcannia,1985)3.43.5 PEOPLE OF THE REGION What is the most important thing to Aboriginal people? The land. Everything depends on the land. Aboriginal people are the people who belong with this land. It doesn’t matter whose country it is - it’s the Aboriginals’! It’s their country. Johnny Quayle (Wilcannia 1985) There are thousands of Aboriginal people who belong to the land now known as the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area, because their ancestors belonged to that land. The Willandra Lakes region connects with the land of several Aboriginal groups. At this time [1985-91] most Aboriginal people who feel closely associated with the Willandra Lakes state their group identity by using one of the names from the three surrounding culture groups: Paakantji, Mathi Mathi and Ngiyampaa. Other people who have connections with the Willandra Lakes identify as Latji Latji, Wemba Wemba and Yorta Yorta. For these reasons this Chapter on Belonging has to refer to a wider area than the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area itself. This is consistent with the evidence from oral history about the relationships of Aboriginal people to this land through connections such as birthplace, time spent, work, family graves and ancestral ties. Map showing Aboriginal people’s usual way of naming ties to the Willandra Lakes region in 1985 to 1991 and showing the towns where most people live. Menindee Broken Hill Ivanhoe Balranald Swan Hill Robinvale Mildura Wentworth Pooncarie Wilcannia Cobar Lake Caragelligo Hillston Grith Hay Oxley Cummeragunja Darlington Point Dareton Most people with ties to the Willandra Lakes are living today [1985-91] in nearby towns, though a lot are living further away for reasons such as work or marriage. MATHI MATHI P A A K A N T J I N G I Y A M P A A See Chapter 8 ‘Update to 2017’ for discussion about how people continue the search for information about belonging and how they have stated their group identity in more recent years.3.63.7 CUTHERO MANFRED CLARE Menindee Balranald Dareton CONNECTIONS FROM THE DARLING RIVER Today [1985-91] most Aboriginal people (Wiimpatja) of the Darling River culture group call themselves Paakantji. But in the past, local groups of Wiimpatja used different names. Some of these local group names are Kurnu, Wilyakali, Pantjikali and Marrawarra. Though people might no longer use a local group name, they still trace connection to these local areas. Wiimpatja of the lower Darling region have always cared for, visited, lived and worked in areas to the east of the Darling River, as far as the Willandra Lakes. In the past, people living in the scrub country to the east of the lower Darling River described themselves and their country as Parrintji (meaning people of the scrub) rather than Paakantji (meaning people of the river). Some 19th century writers heard the name Parrintji. It is not used much today [1985-91]. Connections to land can be seen by the way people took their names from stations where they lived and worked. Often the station names came from traditional place names. From Jim Whyman’s statement, we can see that his family’s connections extended from west of the Darling River to the east, near the Willandra Lakes. Paakantji and Parrintji are the same, as far as I can understand it from what the old people told me, only some words are just a little bit different. But Paakantji and Parrintji people would have always mixed in a lot. Elsie Jones (Wilcannia,1985) I was born at Cuthero. My grandfather was Cuthero Jimmy, and my grandmother was Cuthero Mary. Manfred Mary was my aunty. Jim Whyman (Wilcannia, 1985) The station name ‘Cuthero’ is derived from the Paakantji word Kathurru , the prickly wattle (Acacia victoriae). Well, Paakantji people could’ve gone further than Manfred and Clare if they wanted to, but that was the limit in their belief. And from what I can remember that Aunty Nellie Johnson and Aunty Maggie Brody told me, and Granny Kate Bugmy, the Paakantji people used to live all along Willandra Creek and around Lake Mungo. Those old ladies knew a lot. You could ask Granny Kate anything you wanted to know about the old days, and she could tell you. Elsie Jones (Wilcannia, 1985) Manfred and Clare was the limit to where people went from the [Darling] River. Gertie Johnson (Wilcannia, 1985)3.83.9 CONNECTIONS FROM THE LOWER LACHLAN AND LOWER MURRUMBIDGEE RIVERS From Grandfather Charlie Kirby we know that people living to the south-east of the Willandra Lakes called themselves Yitha Yitha. The lower Lachlan and lower Murrumbidgee Rivers gave them access to permanent water in dry times. Some place names, such as Tin Tin, between Balranald and Mungo, are clearly Yitha Yitha language. There are memories about Grandfather Charlie Kirby’s father, Jeremiah Kirby. Charlie Kirby and his wife, Clara Walters, had ten children. There are many descendants of those children. All of them proudly claim descent from Grandfather Charlie, but when interviews were done [1985-91], none of these descendants named themselves Yitha Yitha. This is probably because most of them married people from other groups and lived in those other countries. This fits the practice in western New South Wales that people often name their identity in terms of the land where they were born or grew up. Yitha Yitha people and their neighbours, the Mathi Mathi, shared country and kinship ties. When interviews were done [1985-91], people in Balranald, including those with a Yitha Yitha background, were identifying as Mathi Mathi. Tin means ‘foot’ in Yitha Yitha language. My mother is Charlie Kirby’s daughter Nancy. I’m Mathi Mathi. I come from Balranald. William Murray (Wilcannia, 1986) Charlie Kirby & some of his family The Mathi Mathi people are the direct descendants of the people who lived at Mungo 40,000 years ago. I believe that the Mungo woman is the ancestor of the Mathi Mathi people. I believe I am directly descended from the Mungo woman. She and I are the same type of people - she’s small, like me. She probably even looked like me. She’s very important to me. My word she is. She’s a very vital link. Mary Pappin (Balranald, 1990) I was told that great-grandfather Jeremiah Kirby and his family pushed down from Clare to Yanga. Alice Kelly (Balranald, 1986) I’m a Yitha Yitha black and I come from the Lachlan where they talk backwards! Charlie Kirby, born 1870 My grandfather was Jeremiah Kirby. He talked Yitha Yitha language. He’s buried at Oxley. My father Charlie Kirby marked a Coolibah near his grave. Len (‘Baschie’) Kirby (Murrin Bridge,1985) CLARE YANGA (Station) OXLEY (Station) OXLEY (Village) Menindee Balranald Dareton Tin Tin3.103.11 KUULANKIRRAN (Site) TRIDA KEEWONG MARFIELD KILFERA MANFRED Menindee Balranald Dareton Ivanhoe The Trida Mob was a big mob of the King family. They are Pilaarrkiyalu, like the Keewong Mob. They belong to the belah tree. The Marfield Mob belong to the nelia tree country, so they’re Nhiilyikiyalu. Liza Kennedy (Wagga Wagga, 1986) Dad and Grandfather were working out on Manfred and Kilfera. Joe Smith (Merbein,1985) CONNECTIONS FROM THE DRY COUNTRY TO THE NORTH In our grandparents’ young days, there were three mobs of Ngiyampaa people living in our country south of Cobar. They called themselves the Keewong Mob, the Trida Mob and the Marfield Mob. Max Harris (Griffith, 1986) Knowledge handed down from old Ngiyampaa people shows that peoples’ personal identity is closely tied to named places. For example, in the 1970s Sarah Johnson told Tamsin Donaldson that Uncle Pluto Williams sang out ‘Kuulankirran’ at ceremony to show that he belonged to that waterhole. This was one of the many place names that Tamsin learnt from old people. People from some Ngiyampaa groups went close to the Willandra Lakes. Sarah Johnson near Euabalong West, 1970s Marfield Geordie of the Marfield Mob Lizzie Williams of the Keewong Mob Archie King of the Trida Mob Pilaarr is the Ngiyampaa word for Belah tree (Casuarina cristata) Nhiilyi is the Ngiyampaa word for Nelia tree (Acacia loderi) Kuulankirran is a swamp about 10 km west-north-west of Trida3.123.13 CONNECTIONS FROM THE MURRAY RIVER There was always contact between Murray River groups and people further up into New South Wales and back, obvious contact between what we now call Victorian and New South Wales tribes. Wayne Atkinson (Melbourne, 1986) I’m Wemba Wemba too. My mother is Wemba Wemba. Kelly Koumalatsos (Melbourne, 1986) I’m Wemba Wemba from around Swan Hill. We used to go over the river, up into New South Wales to go hunting with our family up there. The Kirbys, Claytons, Coombs and Murrays travelled and camped together. Stewart Murray (Melbourne 1986) I would say that Yort Yorta people [from around Cummeragunja] would have had links with Mungo through inter-tribal gatherings and trade, mainly for social, economic or trade relations. Yorta Yorta would always have had ceremonial ties with Lake Mungo. Wayne Atkinson (Melbourne, 1986) Contemporary [1985-91] and remembered relationships and patterns of movement show that the people of the Murray River often see their connections and responsibilities back to the Willandra Lakes. Menindee Balranald Dareton Ivanhoe Cummeragunja Maloga Swan Hill Robinvale Darlington Point See Chapter 5 Working on Stations, where Kirbys, Claytons and Murrays are remembered as working on Clare Station. 3.143.15 INTERCONNECTIONS Aboriginal associations with the Willandra Lakes come from cultures to the north, south, east and west. Many people have connections to several cultural groups and this has probably always been the case. Jeremiah Kirby was the father of Charlie Kirby who called himself Yitha Yitha. Alice Kelly’s words show an example of connections between the people of the country to the west of the lower Lachlan River (Yitha Yitha) with the people of the country along and to the east of the lower Darling River (Paakantji and Parrintji). Emily Wise (Wilcannia, 1991) Jeremiah Kirby is the person standing. Emily Tharlpa Wise is my step granddaughter, and now she’s our adopted daughter. On her mother’s side she is descended from several Paakantji groups. On her father’s side she is descended from Mathi Mathi and southern Ngiyampaa people. Peter Thompson (Wilcannia, 1991) I was told that great-grandfather Jeremiah Kirby and his family pushed down from Clare to Yanga. I was told that great- grandfather Jeremiah Kirby’s mother was Parrintji. Alice Kelly (Balranald,1986) My father was mixed Wangaay and Wiradjuri, and my mother was Wemba Wemba. When I was young, the Kirbys, Claytons, Coombs and Murrays travelled and camped together. Stewart Murray (Melbourne,1986) When I think about how our people lived in harmony with the land, peace with the land. Peace with themselves. They were here in harmony all those years. I think about that a lot... If you go right back into family trees, you’ll find that just about all the Aboriginal people in western New South Wales are connected up somehow. Alice Kelly (Balranald, 1986) ‘Wangaay’ and ‘Wangaaypuwan’ are other ways southern Ngiyampaa people describe themselves. There’s evidence in early documents of contact between people from Maloga and Cummeragunja with Darlington Point and Cowra. We also know that the Yorta Yorta had married into the Latji Latji and Wemba Wemba groups. There would also have been inter-tribal relations between the Murray River people migrating further up, visiting or trading. My father is an example of a Yorta Yorta person with that sort of contact - he wished to be buried in Robinvale, because he had developed links, affinity with the place. Wayne Atkinson (Melbourne, 1986)Next >