Who are the natives: their origin, beliefs and language

Australia has a rich indigenous history spanning tens of thousands of years and developed over hundreds of generations. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities are deeply connected to their cultures, languages ​​and traditional lands and view the world through a unique spiritual lens. People with different cultures and beliefs are known as the first inhabitants of Australia. For you, we have collected answers to such questions as who are the aborigines, where are the aborigines from, what do the aborigines believe in and what language do the aborigines speak? If you are ready, let’s start by answering the question, who are the natives.

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Who are the natives?

The word “aboriginal” can often be heard in films, TV series or news. Thus, people wonder who the natives are and where they came from. We answered questions about who the natives are and where they come from.

The Australian Aboriginal people are one of the oldest continuous civilizations in the world, dating back over 50,000 years. They were among the first to migrate from Africa, crossing the coasts of India and Asia until they reached the coast of Australia. Today there are 250 different language groups in Australia. Australian Aborigines are divided into two groups: Aborigines who are related to those already living in Australia when Britain began colonizing the island in 1788, and Torres Strait Islanders who are descendants of the Torres Strait Islanders. . All Aboriginal Australians are associated with Aboriginal groups in Australia. Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders are not a homogeneous group. They are a diverse group of hundreds of cultural groups and clans within these nations.

The Torres Strait Islanders are the first Australian nations, originating from the Torres Strait Islanders between Cape York and Papua New Guinea in Queensland. They are of Melanesian origin and have a different identity, origin and cultural background than the Australian Aborigines. The Torres Strait Islands are a group of approximately 274 small islands scattered over an area of ​​48,000 square kilometers.

Now that we know who the natives are, let’s look at their origins, beliefs, cultural structures and languages…

Origin and history of the Aboriginal people

A genetic study of the genomes of 111 Aboriginal Australians in 2017 found that all of today’s Aboriginal Australians share a common ancestor, a member of a different population that originated on the mainland about 50,000 years ago. It is believed that people migrated from Asia to northern Australia in primitive boats. Another theory claims that these first migrants emerged from Africa around 70,000 years ago, making the Australian Aborigines the oldest population living outside of Africa.

When British settlers began to colonize Australia in 1788, it is estimated that between 750,000 and 1.25 million Australian Aborigines lived there. Soon epidemics devastated the indigenous population of the island, and British settlers seized the lands of the aborigines. Although some Australian Aborigines resisted, up to 20,000 natives died in conflict with British settlers. When British settlers took over their lands, many of them were massacred and their communities impoverished.

Between 1910 and 1970, the government’s policy of assimilation resulted in the forced removal of 10 to 33% of Aboriginal children from their homes. These children were adopted or placed in special institutions and were forbidden to speak their native language. In addition, their names often changed.

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Aboriginal faith and culture

Australian Aboriginal people have spiritual virtues and oral traditions based on faith while sleeping. Bedtime is a general term used to describe the complex web of Aboriginal spiritual beliefs, their creation and existence on earth. This world view spans the past, present, and future and details how the earth and people were created by the spirits who created the rivers, puddles, hills, rocks, plants, and animals. This knowledge is passed down from generation to generation through various stories, songs, dances and ceremonies. It is part of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and is very important to family relationships.

In the 1996 census, 72% of Aboriginal people were non-Christian and 16% were non-Christian. The 2001 census found that 0.03% of Aboriginal people practiced Aboriginal religious practices.

Aboriginal language

The Australian Aborigines spoke a language called Antakar or Andagarinha. In 1981, the number of speakers of this language was 50 people. In 2006, only 6 people spoke this language. In other words, the native language of the natives is on the verge of extinction. Today, the Aboriginal people speak English, the official language of Australia.

Aboriginal family relationships

Aboriginal Australians often have a complex system of family ties, roles and responsibilities that form the basis of their culture. These systems define a place in society and unite people. He also teaches children and their families how each family member should support others in the kinship system by giving them certain responsibilities. Elders bridge the past and present by passing on their understanding, skills, knowledge and stories to the next generation.

This means that the care of children is the responsibility of all relatives, not just the biological parents of the child. In the recent past in Australia, families and communities were separated from each other due to the effects of colonization and the imposition of European social, political, economic and cultural structures. This situation has led to long painful problems with the transmission of cultural knowledge from generation to generation and the maintenance of social and cultural ties.

Aboriginal art and music

Aboriginal art consists of painting the bark and walls of caves, singing songs and poems, thus depicting religious beliefs. Today, some Aboriginal people make a living selling their work made with charcoal and ocher paint. Aboriginal music is played with two sticks and a didgeridoo (a type of long wooden flute).

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