86-705: The National Indigenous Music Awards ( NIMA ), also known as the NT Indigenous Music Awards from 2004 to 2008, are music awards presented to recognise excellence, innovation and leadership among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander musicians in Australia. The inaugural event was held in 2004, launched as the NT Indigenous Music Awards. In 2008 the awards went national and were renamed the National Indigenous Music Awards. Just
172-405: A humpy , gunyah, or wurley. Clothing included the possum-skin cloak in the southeast, buka cloak in the southwest and riji (pearl shells) in the northeast. There is evidence that some Aboriginal populations in northern Australia regularly traded with Makassan fishermen from Indonesia before the arrival of Europeans. At the time of first European contact, it is generally estimated that
258-441: A consultancy in early 2014, but there was no one to implement it. On 24 May 2022 Mungo Lady and Mungo Man were reburied. In a statement, Heritage NSW, which had custody of the remains, said the state government “did not authorise, conduct, or endorse the removal and subsequent burial of any remains on 24 May”. Lake Mungo 3 (LM3) was discovered by ANU geomorphologist Jim Bowler on 26 February 1974 when shifting sand dunes exposed
344-761: A couple of weeks before the scheduled date of the 2021 event on 7 August, it was announced that it would be postponed until later in the year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic flaring in New South Wales . The National Indigenous Music Awards are awarded during the Darwin Festival and run by MusicNT in association with the Northern Territory Government . They recognise excellence, innovation and leadership among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander musicians from throughout Australia. The Awards are presented at
430-549: A keeping-place, and on 17 November 2017 the remains were buried directly in the earth in a casket of ancient red gum . Oral historian Louise Darmody was commissioned by the State Library of New South Wales to record interviews with 12 people involved in the repatriation process. These included Paakantji , Ngiyampaa and Muthi Muthi people recognised as the traditional owners of Mungo National Park. Also interviewed were Professor Jim Bowler and other scientists associated with
516-553: A land bridge between the island and the rest of mainland Australia during the last glacial period . Estimates of the population of the Aboriginal people of Tasmania, before European arrival, are in the range of 3,000 to 15,000 people. However, genetic studies have suggested significantly higher figures, which are supported by Indigenous oral traditions that indicate a decline in population from diseases introduced by British and American sealers before settlement. The original population
602-645: A location several hundred kilometres from the site. The bones were unconditionally repatriated in 1992 to the traditional owners , an alliance called the Three Traditional Tribal Groups (3TTG), consisting of the Paakantji , the Muthi Muthi , and the Ngiyampaa . LM1 had become a symbol of the long Aboriginal presence in Australia, and an important icon for both archaeologists and Indigenous Australians. LM1
688-631: A reanalysis was performed on the sequences derived from the 2001 study. The 2016 report of this study stated that the sequence for LM3 could have been contaminated with mtDNA of modern European origin, and it was uncertain if any of the DNA analysed in the 2001 study was ancient DNA. The authors did recover ancient mtDNA from the Willandra Lakes skeleton WLH4 specimen, "estimated to be late Holocene in age (~3,000–500 y B.P.)" and determined it to be of haplogroup S2 , of Aboriginal origin. On discovery in 1974, LM3
774-668: A single founding Sahul group with subsequent isolation between regional populations which were relatively unaffected by later migrations from the Asian mainland, which may have introduced the dingo 4–5,000 years ago. The research also suggests a divergence from the Papuan people of New Guinea and the Mamanwa people of the Philippines about 32,000 years ago, with a rapid population expansion about 5,000 years ago. A 2011 genetic study found evidence that
860-476: A sophisticated and artistic burial practice. This ritual burial aspect of the discovery has been particularly significant to Aboriginal Australians , since it indicates that certain cultural traditions have existed on the Australian continent for much longer than previously thought. At the time of LM3's discovery, it was believed that Aboriginal peoples had arrived in Australia from Asia around 20,000 years ago. Since
946-608: A special event in August as part of the Darwin Festival in Darwin, Northern Territory , and feature the best of Indigenous music talent. To be eligible, the associated release or achievement must have taken place from July (the year prior) to June (the year of the awards). The categories have changed over the years, but the main categories in the ceremony include Artist/Act of the Year, Album of
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#17328528510301032-564: A time when changes in tool technology and food processing appear in the Australian archaeological record, suggesting that these may be related. Mallick et al. 2016 and Mark Lipson et al. 2017 study found that the bifurcation of Eastern Eurasian and Western Eurasian dates back to least 45,000 years ago, with Australasians nested inside the Eastern Eurasian clade. Aboriginal Australian men have Haplogroup C-M347 in high frequencies with peak estimates ranging from 60.2% to 68.7%. In addition,
1118-425: Is arrived at from the recent breakthrough of widespread genetic investigation. In the model, humans then fairly quickly spread over the whole globe, from that starting point or bottleneck. This explains the controversy of Thorne and other's older dates for LM3 - the establishment of (fully modern) human settlements in the different continents, could have happened only after (although perhaps remarkably shortly after)
1204-649: Is complex and multi-layered, but a few examples are Anangu in northern South Australia , and neighbouring parts of Western Australia and Northern Territory ; Arrernte in central Australia; Koori (or Koorie) in New South Wales and Victoria ( Aboriginal Victorians ); Goorie (variant pronunciation and spelling of Koori) in South East Queensland and some parts of northern New South Wales; Murri , used in parts of Queensland and northern New South Wales where specific collective names are not used; Tiwi people of
1290-533: Is estimated that people migrated from the Indonesian archipelago and New Guinea to mainland Australia about 70,000 years ago, as of 2020 evidence of human settlement in the Torres Strait has only been uncovered by archaeologists dating back to about 2500 years ago. Aboriginal people in some regions lived as foragers and hunter-gatherers , hunting and foraging for food from the land. Although Aboriginal society
1376-547: Is in New South Wales , Australia , specifically the World Heritage listed Willandra Lakes Region . Mungo woman (LM1) was discovered in 1968 and is one of the world's oldest known cremations . The remains known as Lake Mungo 2 (LM2) were recovered at the same time as LM1, and consist "...of approximately thirty small fragments, mostly of the cranium and vertebrae". The remains designated Mungo man (LM3) were discovered in 1974, and are dated to around 40,000 years old,
1462-464: Is now estimated that all but 13 remaining Indigenous languages are considered endangered. Aboriginal people today mostly speak English, with Aboriginal phrases and words being added to create Australian Aboriginal English (which also has a tangible influence of Indigenous languages in the phonology and grammatical structure). Around three quarters of Australian place names are of Aboriginal origin. The Indigenous population prior to European settlement
1548-508: Is now in a locked vault at the Mungo National Park exhibition centre. The vault has a double lock and can be opened only if two keys are used. One key is controlled by archaeologists, the other by the local Indigenous peoples. In late 2013, the NSW government, dismissed all management structures, leaving nothing in place to own or care for the remains. A new plan of management was delivered by
1634-470: Is required. Genetic studies have revealed that Aboriginal Australians largely descended from an Eastern Eurasian population wave during the Initial Upper Paleolithic , and are most closely related to other Oceanians , such as Melanesians . The Aboriginal Australians also show affinity to other Australasian populations, such as Negritos or Ancient Ancestral South Indians groups, such as
1720-621: Is sometimes used as part of a wider social movement (seen in terms such as " Blaktivism " and "Blak History Month" ). The term was coined in 1991 by photographer and multimedia artist Destiny Deacon , in an exhibition entitled Blak lik mi . For Deacon's 2004 exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art , blak was defined in a museum guide as: "a term used by some Aboriginal people to reclaim historical, representational, symbolical, stereotypical and romanticised notions of Black or Blackness. Often used as ammunition or inspiration." Deacon said that removing
1806-454: Is the Mungo layer, deposited between 50,000 and 25,000 years ago. The most recent is the pale brown Zanci layer, which was laid down mostly between 25,000 and 15,000 years ago. The Mungo layer, which was deposited during the last glacial period , is archaeologically the richest. Although this layer corresponds with a time of low rainfall and cooler weather, more rainwater ran off the western side of
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#17328528510301892-473: Is the central feature of Mungo National Park , and is one of seventeen lakes in the World Heritage listed Willandra Lakes Region . Sediments at Lake Mungo have been deposited over more than 100,000 years. There are three distinct layers of sands and soil forming the Walls around the edge of the lake. The oldest is the reddish Gol Gol layer, formed between 100,000 and 120,000 years ago. The middle greyish layer
1978-510: Is unlikely as the Indigenous custodians are not expected to allow further invasive investigations. It is generally believed that Aboriginal people are the descendants of a single migration into the continent, a people that split from the ancestors of East Asians. Recent work with mitochondrial DNA suggests a founder population of between 1,000 and 3,000 women to produce the genetic diversity observed, which suggests that "initial colonisation of
2064-719: The Aboriginal Australians of the mainland and many islands, including Tasmania , and the Torres Strait Islanders of the seas between Queensland and Papua New Guinea , located in Melanesia . 812,728 people self-identified as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin in the 2021 Australian Census, representing 3.2% of the total population of Australia. Of these Indigenous Australians, 91.4% identified as Aboriginal; 4.2% identified as Torres Strait Islander; while 4.4% identified with both groups. However,
2150-693: The Andamanese people , as well as to East Asian peoples . Phylogenetic data suggests that an early initial eastern non-African (ENA) or East-Eurasian meta-population trifurcated, and gave rise to Australasians (Oceanians), the Ancient Ancestral South Indians, Andamanese and the East/Southeast Asian lineage including the ancestors of Native Americans , although Papuans may have also received some geneflow from an earlier group (xOOA) as well, around 2%, next to additional archaic admixture in
2236-477: The Great Dividing Range during that period, keeping the lake full and teeming with fish and waterbirds. It supported a significant human population and had abundant resources, as well as many varieties of Australian megafauna . During the last ice age period, the water level in the lake fell, and it became a salt lake . This made the soil alkaline , which helped to preserve the remains left behind. LM1
2322-496: The Latin ab (from) and origo (origin, beginning). The term was used in Australia as early as 1789 to describe its Aboriginal peoples . It became capitalised and was used as the common term to refer to both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. Today the latter peoples are not included in this term. The term "Aborigine" (as opposed to "Aboriginal") is often disfavoured, as it is regarded as having colonialist connotations. While
2408-610: The Pila Nguru of Western Australia ). Several settlements of humans in Australia have been dated around 49,000 years ago. Luminescence dating of sediments surrounding stone artefacts at Madjedbebe , a rock shelter in northern Australia, indicates human activity at 65,000 years BP. Genetic studies appear to support an arrival date of 50–70,000 years ago. The earliest anatomically modern human remains found in Australia (and outside of Africa) are those of Mungo Man ; they have been dated at 42,000 years old. The initial comparison of
2494-461: The Pleistocene epoch , and are the oldest Homo sapiens (human) remains found on the Australian continent. Lake Mungo is a dry lake located in south-eastern Australia, in the south-western portion of New South Wales . It is about 760 kilometres (470 mi) due west of Sydney and 90 kilometres (56 mi) north-east of Mildura , and 110 kilometres north-west of Balranald . The lake
2580-535: The Sahul region. Rasmussen et al. 2011 shows that Aboriginal Australian have a lower proportion of European alleles compared to Asians, which they believe is indicative of a multiple dispersal model. Genetically, while Aboriginal Australians are most closely related to Melanesian and Papuan people, McEvoy et al. 2010 believed there is also another component that could indicate Ancient Ancestral South Indian admixture or more recent European influence. Research indicates
2666-469: The Tasmanian catastrophe genocide". A woman named Trugernanner (often rendered as Truganini ), who died in 1876, was, and still is, widely believed to be the last of the "full-blooded" Tasmanian Aboriginal people. However, in 1889 Parliament recognised Fanny Cochrane Smith (d. 1905) as the last surviving "full-blooded" Tasmanian Aboriginal person. The 2016 census reported 23,572 Indigenous Australians in
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2752-891: The Tiwi Islands off Northern Territory; and Palawah in Tasmania . The largest Aboriginal communities – the Pitjantjatjara , the Arrernte, the Luritja , and the Warlpiri – are all from Central Australia . Throughout the history of the continent, there have been many different Aboriginal groups, each with its own individual language , culture, and belief structure. At the time of British settlement, there were over 200 distinct languages. The Tasmanian Aboriginal population are thought to have first crossed into Tasmania approximately 40,000 years ago via
2838-569: The c from black to "de-weaponise the term 'black cunt ' " was "taking on the 'colonisers' language and flipping it on its head". Contemporary Aboriginal arts in the 21st century are sometimes referred to as a "Blak" arts movement, expressed in names such as BlakDance, BlakLash Collective, and the title of Thelma Plum 's song and album, Better in Blak . Melbourne has an annual Blak & Bright literary festival, Blak Dot Gallery, Blak Markets, and Blak Cabaret. Aboriginal peoples of Australia are
2924-435: The didgeridoo . Although there are a number of cultural commonalities among Indigenous Australians, there is also a great diversity among different communities. The 2022 Australian census recorded 167 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages used at home by some 76,978 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. At the time of European colonisation, it is estimated that there were over 250 Aboriginal languages . It
3010-509: The exodus of the original (perhaps remarkably small) group of humans who left Africa via the middle-East. In 2001, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from the Lake Mungo 3 (LM3) skeleton was published and compared with several other sequences. It was found to have more than the expected number of sequence differences when compared to European human DNA ( CRS ). Comparison of the mitochondrial DNA with that of ancient and modern Aboriginal peoples led to
3096-519: The language group (such as Arrernte ), or demonym relating to geographic area (such as Nunga ), is considered best practice and most respectful. European colonials from their early settlement used the term "Black" to refer to Aboriginal Australians. While the term originally related to skin colour and was often used pejoratively, today the term is used to indicate Aboriginal heritage or culture in general. It refers to any people of such heritage regardless of their level of skin pigmentation. In
3182-409: The message stick . Weapons included boomerangs , spears (sometimes thrown with a woomera ) with stone or fishbone tips, clubs, and (less commonly) axes. The Stone Age tools available included knives with ground edges, grinding devices, and eating containers. Fibrecraft was well-developed, and fibre nets, baskets, and bags were used for fishing, hunting, and carrying liquids. Trade networks spanned
3268-403: The mitochondrial DNA from the skeleton known as Lake Mungo 3 (LM3) with that of ancient and modern Aboriginal peoples indicated that Mungo Man is not related to Australian Aboriginal peoples. However, these findings have been met with a general lack of acceptance in scientific communities. The sequence has been criticised as there has been no independent testing, and it has been suggested that
3354-625: The 1970s, with a rise in Aboriginal activism, leaders such as Gary Foley proudly embraced the term "Black". For example, writer Kevin Gilbert 's book of that time was entitled Living Black . The book included interviews with several members of the Aboriginal community, including Robert Jabanungga , who reflected on contemporary Aboriginal culture. Use of this term varies depending on context, and its use needs care as it may be deemed inappropriate. The term "Black" has sometimes caused confusion as being applied to contemporary African immigrants rather than
3440-506: The 1974 discovery and subsequent research. All these were added to the Library's Indigenous Collecting Strategy and can be heard and transcribed through the Amplify website. In 1989, the skeleton of a child believed to be contemporary with Mungo man was discovered. Investigation of the remains was blocked by the 3TTG with the remains subsequently protected but remaining in-situ . An adult skeleton
3526-455: The 21st century there is consensus that it is important to respect the "preferences of individuals, families, or communities, and allow them to define what they are most comfortable with" when referring to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The word ' aboriginal ' has been in the English language since at least the 16th century to mean "first or earliest known, indigenous". It comes from
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3612-507: The Aboriginal population. Nevertheless, a population collapse, principally from new infectious diseases, followed European colonisation. A smallpox epidemic spread for three years after the arrival of Europeans. Massacres , frontier armed conflicts and competition over resources with European settlers also contributed to the decline of the Aboriginal peoples. From the 19th to the mid-20th century, government policy removed many mixed heritage children from Aboriginal communities, with
3698-597: The Aboriginal, Papuan and Mamanwa peoples carry some of the alleles associated with the Denisovan peoples of Asia, (not found amongst populations in mainland Asia) suggesting that modern and archaic humans interbred in Asia approximately 44,000 years ago, before Australia separated from New Guinea and the migration to Australia. A 2012 paper reports that there is also evidence of a substantial genetic flow from India to northern Australia estimated at slightly over four thousand years ago,
3784-470: The Government has stated that as of 30 June 2021, there are 983,700 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, representing 3.8% of the total population of Australia, as the "final 2021 Census-based estimated resident population". Of these, 91.7% identified as Aboriginal; 4.0% identified as Torres Strait Islander; 4.3% identified with both groups. The term Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples or
3870-502: The Indigenous people of Australia in 1992. A lack of a detailed description of the remains along with a limited distribution of casts with no access to the original material makes it difficult to assess the published material. The reconstruction and description were mainly done by Alan Thorne at the Australian National University . LM1 was an early human inhabitant of the continent of Australia . Her remains are one of
3956-457: The Mungo people) to collaborate on a final determination of the skeleton's age. They reached a consensus that LM3 is about 40,000 years old. This age largely corresponds with stratigraphic evidence using four different dating methods. The age of 40,000 years is currently the most widely accepted age for the LM3, making LM3 the second oldest modern human fossil east of India. The study also found that LM1
4042-575: The Murray. There is some evidence that, before outside contact, some groups of Aboriginal Australians had a complex subsistence system with elements of agriculture, that was only recorded by the first European explorers. One early settler took notes on the life styles of the Wathaurung people whom he lived near in Victoria. He saw women harvesting Murnong tubers, a native yam that is now almost extinct. However,
4128-605: The Year, Song of the Year, Film clip of the Year and Best New Talent/Emerging Talent, as well as an inductee into the Hall of Fame. Radio station Triple j runs the Unearthed National Indigenous Music Awards Competition to select an emerging Indigenous artist to play at the Awards. Winners have included Dallas Woods , Thelma Plum , Baker Boy , Alice Skye , Kuren , and Tilly Tjala Thomas . To see
4214-512: The absence of the original deposit that once lay above the burial, a minimum age for the burial has not been established, only a possible maximum. In 2003, Professor Bowler led a project bringing together a multi-disciplinary team of Australian expert groups (comprising four Australian universities, the NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service and the CSIRO , as well as including descendants of
4300-438: The area that they were harvesting from was already cleared of other plants, making it easier to harvest Murnong (also known as yam daisy) exclusively. Along the northern coast of Australia, parsnip yams were harvested by leaving the bottom part of the yam still stuck in the ground so that it would grow again in the same spot. Similar to many other farmers in the world, Aboriginal peoples used slash and burn techniques to enrich
4386-653: The basal form K2* (K-M526) of the extremely ancient Haplogroup K2 – whose subclades Haplogroup R , haplogroup Q , haplogroup M and haplogroup S can be found in the majority of Europeans, Northern South Asians, Native Americans and the Indigenous peoples of Oceania – has only been found in living humans today amongst Aboriginal Australians. 27% of them may carry K2* and approximately 29% of Aboriginal Australian males belong to subclades of K2b1 , a.k.a. M and S . Aboriginal Australians possess deep rooted clades of both mtDNA Haplogroup M and Haplogroup N . Although it
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#17328528510304472-592: The conclusion that Mungo Man fell outside the range of genetic variation seen in Australian Aboriginal people, and was used to support the multiregional origin of modern humans hypothesis. These results proved politically controversial, and several scientific concerns were raised over the validity of the results and analysis. With the consent of the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area Aboriginal Elders Committee,
4558-669: The continent would have required deliberate organised sea travel, involving hundreds of people". Aboriginal people seem to have lived a long time in the same environment as the now extinct Australian megafauna . Some evidence from the analysis of charcoal and artefacts revealing human use suggests a date as early as 65,000 BP. Luminescence dating has suggested habitation in Arnhem Land as far back as 60,000 years BP. Evidence of fires in South-West Victoria suggest "human presence in Australia 120,000 years ago", although more research
4644-521: The continent, and transportation included canoes . Shelters varied regionally, and included wiltjas in the Atherton Tablelands , paperbark and stringybark sheets and raised platforms in Arnhem Land , whalebone huts in what is now South Australia, stone shelters in what is now western Victoria, and a multi-room pole and bark structure found in Corranderrk . A bark tent or lean-to is known as
4730-436: The discovery of LM3, further archeological finds at Lake Mungo suggest that human occupation of the area dates as far back as 46,000–50,000 years ago. The skeleton had belonged to an individual who, based on evidence of osteoarthritis in the lumbar vertebrae , eburnation , and severe wear on the teeth with pulp exposure, was about 50 years old when he died. The bone structure had a gracile character, which contrasts with
4816-620: The distinctiveness and importance of Torres Strait Islanders in Australia's Indigenous population. Eddie Mabo was from "Mer" or Murray Island in the Torres Strait. He was a party in the Mabo decision of 1992. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people also sometimes refer to themselves by descriptions that relate to their ecological environment, such as saltwater people for coast-dwellers (including Torres Strait Islander people ), freshwater people , rainforest people , desert people , or spinifex people , (the latter referring to
4902-407: The full article for a particular year, please click on the year link. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, and/or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of present day Australia prior to British colonisation . They consist of two distinct groups, which include many ethnic groups:
4988-504: The generations after colonisation. The word "community" is often used to describe groups identifying by kinship , language , or belonging to a particular place or "country". A community may draw on separate cultural values and individuals can conceivably belong to a number of communities within Australia; identification within them may be adopted or rejected. An individual community may identify itself by many names, each of which can have alternative English spellings. The naming of peoples
5074-425: The indigenous peoples. Living Black is an Australian TV news and current affairs program covering "issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians". It is presented and produced by Karla Grant , an Arrernte woman. A significant number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people use the term " Blackfella " and its associated forms to refer to Aboriginal Australians. The term blak
5160-508: The intent to assimilate them to what had become the majority white culture. Such policy was judged " genocidal " in the Bringing Them Home report (1997) published by the government in the late 20th century, as it reviewed human rights abuses during colonisation. There are a number of contemporary appropriate terms to use when referring to Indigenous peoples of Australia. In contrast to when settlers referred to them by various terms, in
5246-610: The last 500 years. The population was split into 250 individual nations, many of which were in alliance with one another, and within each nation there existed separate, often related clans , from as few as 5 or 6 to as many as 30 or 40. Each nation had its own language, and a few had several. Lake Mungo remains The Lake Mungo remains are three prominent sets of human remains that are possibly Aboriginal Australian : Lake Mungo 1 (also called Mungo Woman , LM1 , and ANU-618), Lake Mungo 3 (also called Mungo Man , Lake Mungo III, and LM3 ), and Lake Mungo 2 ( LM2 ). Lake Mungo
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#17328528510305332-449: The last Ice Age, Australian Aboriginal peoples developed a variety of regional cultures and languages, invented distinct artistic and religious traditions, and affected the environment of the continent in a number of ways through hunting, fire-stick farming , and possibly the introduction of the dog . Technologies for warfare and hunting like the boomerang and spear were constructed of natural materials, as were musical instruments like
5418-451: The more inclusive term "Indigenous Australians". Six percent of Indigenous Australians identify fully as Torres Strait Islanders. A further 4% of Indigenous Australians identify as having both Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal heritage. The Torres Strait Islands comprise over 100 islands, which were annexed by Queensland in 1879. Many Indigenous organisations incorporate the phrase "Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander" to highlight
5504-441: The morphology of modern Indigenous Australians. Parts of the skeleton had deteriorated in situ: substantial portions of the skull were missing and most of the bones in the limbs have suffered surface damage. Determination of LM3's sex was initially difficult, due to the deterioration of the skull and pelvis bones, which normally carry many features used for this purpose. Nevertheless, studies of other features suggest strongly that
5590-438: The nutrients of their soil. However, sheep and cattle later brought over by Europeans would ruin this soil by trampling on it. To add on the complexity of Aboriginal farming techniques, farmers deliberately exchanged seeds to begin growing plants where they did not naturally occur. In fact there were so many examples of Aboriginal Australians managing farm land in a complex manner that Australian Anthropologist, Dr. Norman Tindale
5676-404: The oldest sets of anatomically modern human remains found in Australia. It represents one of the world's oldest known cremations. The finding implies that complicated burial rituals existed in early human societies. The bones of LM1 are thought to imply that after she died, the corpse was burned, then smashed, then burned a second time before being liberally covered with ochre , sourced from
5762-852: The person's specific cultural group, is often preferred, though the terms First Nations of Australia, First Peoples of Australia and First Australians are also increasingly common. Since 1995, the Australian Aboriginal flag and the Torres Strait Islander flag have been official flags of Australia . The time of arrival of the first human beings in Australia is a matter of debate and ongoing investigation. The earliest conclusively human remains found in Australia are those of Mungo Man LM3 and Mungo Lady , which have been dated to around 40,000 years ago, although Indigenous Australians have most likely been living in Australia for upwards of 65,000 years. Isolated for millennia by rising sea water after
5848-441: The pre-1788 population was 314,000, while recent archaeological finds suggest that a population of 500,000 to 750,000 could have been sustained, with some ecologists estimating that a population of up to a million or even two million people was possible. More recent work suggests that Aboriginal populations exceeded 1.2 million 500 years ago, but may have fallen somewhat with the introduction of disease pathogens from Eurasia in
5934-595: The remains and the immediately surrounding soil. However, this estimate was very controversial. The lowest level of the LM3 which are as old as 43,000 years demonstrated that LM3 should not be older than the lowest layer. However, the ANU team had dated the stratum itself to be between 59,000 and 63,000 years old. The problems with using uranium-thorium dating on tooth enamel were criticised. The results from 25 additional OSL tests suggest that LM3 can not be older than 50,000 years BP. According to anthropologist Peter Brown , with
6020-460: The remains were those of an adult male. Subsequent studies using the length of limb bones to estimate LM3's height, suggest a height of 196 centimetres (77 inches or 6 ft 5 in), a height that is unusually tall for modern Aboriginal males. The first estimate of LM3's age was made in 1976 when the team of paleoanthropologists from the Australian National University (ANU) who excavated LM3 published their findings. They estimated that LM3
6106-450: The remains. LM3 was found near Lake Mungo, one of several dry lakes in the southeast part of the continent and 500m east of the LM1 site. The body had been laid out in great ceremony on its back, with knees bent and hands positioned at the groin with the fingers interlocked. Next to the body were the remains of fire. The body had been sprinkled with red ochre , in the earliest known example of such
6192-493: The results may be due to posthumous modification and thermal degradation of the DNA. Although the contested results seem to indicate that Mungo Man may have been an extinct subspecies that diverged before the most recent common ancestor of contemporary humans, the administrative body for the Mungo National Park believes that present-day local Aboriginal peoples are descended from the Lake Mungo remains. Independent DNA testing
6278-492: The skeleton was placed for safekeeping at the National Museum of Australia 's human remains storage facility. Proposals had been ongoing for a facility to be built at Lake Mungo as a "keeping-place" that would allow the ancient remains to be returned to the earth while still allowing access for bona fide research. In November 2017 the remains were returned to Lake Mungo. There had been no agreement or funding by government for
6364-411: The state of Tasmania. The Torres Strait Islander people possess a heritage and cultural history distinct from Aboriginal traditions. The eastern Torres Strait Islanders in particular are related to the Papuan peoples of New Guinea , and speak a Papuan language . Accordingly, they are not generally included under the designation "Aboriginal Australians". This has been another factor in the promotion of
6450-498: The term "Indigenous Australians" has grown in popularity since the 1980s, many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples dislike it. They feel that it is too generic and removes their distinct clan and people identity. However, many people think that the term is useful and convenient, and can be used where appropriate. In recent years, terms such as "First Nations", "First Peoples" and "First Australians" have become more common. Being as specific as possible, for example naming
6536-488: The various peoples indigenous to mainland Australia and associated islands, excluding the Torres Strait Islands. The broad term Aboriginal Australians includes many regional groups that may be identified under names based on local language, locality, or what they are called by neighbouring groups. Some communities, cultures or groups may be inclusive of others and alter or overlap; significant changes have occurred in
6622-470: Was a similar age to LM3, and not 30,000 years old, as previously thought. The LM1 remains are generally held to be the earliest evidence of human cremation yet discovered. The current mainstream thinking, the recent African origin of modern humans model, suggests that all humans outside of Africa alive today descended from a small group which left Africa at a specific time, currently generally estimated at about 60,000 years ago. This estimate of 60,000 years
6708-605: Was able to draw an Aboriginal grain belt, detailing the specific areas where crops were once produced. In terms of aquaculture, explorer Thomas Mitchell noted large stone fish traps on the Darling River at Brewarrina. Each trap covers a pool, herding fish through a small entrance that would later be shut. Traps were created at different heights to accommodate different water levels during floods and droughts. Technology used by Indigenous Australian societies before European contact included weapons, tools, shelters, watercraft, and
6794-442: Was between 28,000 and 32,000 years old. They did not test LM3's remains directly, but rather established an estimate by stratigraphic comparison with LM1, an earlier set of partially cremated remains also found at Lake Mungo. In 1987, an electron spin resonance test conducted on bone fragments from LM3's skeleton established an estimate of his age at 31,000 years, plus or minus 7,000 years. In 1999 Thermoluminescence dating work
6880-451: Was carried out on quartz from unburnt sediment associated with the LM3 burial site with the selective bleach results indicating a burial older than 24,600 ± 2,400 and younger than 43,300 ± 3,800 years ago. Later Thorne et al. (1999), arrived at a new estimate of 62,000 ± 6,000 years. This estimate was determined by combining data from uranium-thorium dating , electron spin resonance dating and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of
6966-525: Was discovered on July 15 1968, at the Willandra Lakes Region by Jim Bowler with the University of Melbourne . LM1 has been 14C dated at 24,700 to 19,030 years ago. A date of 26,250 ±1120 BP was achieved with charcoal from a hearth 15 cm above the burial. Preservation of the remains is poor. Very limited detailed information was published before the bones were unconditionally repatriated to
7052-400: Was exposed by erosion in 2005 but by late 2006 had been completely destroyed by wind and rain. This loss resulted in the Indigenous custodians' receiving a government grant of $ 735,000 to survey and improve the conservation of skeletons, hearths and middens that were eroding from the dunes. Conservation is in-situ and no research is permitted. Mungo National Park can be visited by tourists and
7138-452: Was further reduced to around 300 between 1803 and 1833 due to disease, warfare, and other actions of British settlers. Despite more than 170 years of debate over who or what was responsible for this near-extinction, no consensus exists on its origins, process, or whether or not it was genocide. However, according to Benjamin Madley, using the "UN definition, sufficient evidence exists to designate
7224-527: Was generally mobile, or semi-nomadic , moving according to the changing food availability found across different areas as seasons changed, the mode of life and material cultures varied greatly from region to region, and there were permanent settlements and agriculture in some areas. The greatest population density was to be found in the southern and eastern regions of the continent, the River Murray valley in particular. Canoes were made out of bark for use on
7310-575: Was removed from the site by archaeologists to the Australian National University in Canberra for safe-keeping and research. In 2014, leading up to the 40th anniversary of the discovery of LM3, the traditional owners of the Willandra Lakes, formally requested return and repatriation of the remains. In 2015 ANU handed the remains over to Aboriginal elders at a formal ceremony and expressed "sincere regret" for their removal, recognising this had caused "ongoing grief" to Aboriginal communities. As an interim step,
7396-458: Was small, with estimates ranging widely from 318,000 to more than 3,000,000 in total. Given geographic and habitat conditions, they were distributed in a pattern similar to that of the current Australian population. The majority were living in the south-east, centred along the Murray River . The First Fleet of British settlers arrived with instructions to "live in amity and kindness" with
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