Transcending War: Reflections on Australian Aboriginal Culture

1987 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
David H. Turner
Keyword(s):  
Australian Aboriginal ◽  
Aboriginal Culture

The lens of firstness: Shamanic/Aboriginal culture as cosmos-sign

Semiotica ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 (221) ◽  
pp. 143-173
Author(s):  
Steven Bonta
Keyword(s):  
Social Organization ◽  
New World ◽  
Indian Subcontinent ◽  
Australian Aboriginal ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Aboriginal Culture

AbstractHaving identified previously (Bonta 2015) the Peircean Category Firstness as the semiotic basis (or cultural Prime Symbol) for Australian Aboriginal culture, this paper examines the “lens” of Firstness as it is manifest in a variety of aboriginal (or “Shamanic”) cultures worldwide. By studying the semiotic contours of religion, language, social organization, and art, we find systemic prioritization of Firstness in its various manifestations, across a wide range of aboriginal cultures from Australia to the Indian Subcontinent to aboriginal Siberia and the New World. Shamanic culture, despite its ethnic and geographic variety, may therefore be represented as a semiotic type – and, in addition, one that, in its pristine form, is nearly extinct.

Aboriginal Biocultural Knowledge in South-eastern Australia

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fred Cahir ◽  
Ian Clark ◽  
Philip Clarke
Keyword(s):  
Resource Management ◽  
Indigenous Studies ◽  
Indigenous Australians ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Australian Aboriginal ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Aboriginal Culture ◽  
Biodiversity Resource ◽  
South Eastern Australia

Indigenous Australians have long understood sustainable hunting and harvesting, seasonal changes in flora and fauna, predator–prey relationships and imbalances, and seasonal fire management. Yet the extent of their knowledge and expertise has been largely unknown and underappreciated by non-Aboriginal colonists, especially in the south-east of Australia where Aboriginal culture was severely fractured. Aboriginal Biocultural Knowledge in South-eastern Australia is the first book to examine historical records from early colonists who interacted with south-eastern Australian Aboriginal communities and documented their understanding of the environment, natural resources such as water and plant and animal foods, medicine and other aspects of their material world. This book provides a compelling case for the importance of understanding Indigenous knowledge, to inform discussions around climate change, biodiversity, resource management, health and education. It will be a valuable reference for natural resource management agencies, academics in Indigenous studies and anyone interested in Aboriginal culture and knowledge.

scholarly journals Autonomous Aboriginal communities in Australia : besieged by scandal and corruption, how can they move forward?

2009 ◽  
Vol 42 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 111-122
Author(s):  
Adi Wimmer
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
Aboriginal Communities ◽  
Australian Aboriginal ◽  
Aboriginal Culture ◽  
Noble Savage ◽  
The Creation ◽  
Northern Territories

Discourses of Australian Aboriginal culture have all too often relied on the "noble savage" trope, in Australia as in Europe. There were practical outcomesof such views, most notably the creation of over a hundred self-governed indigenous communities in the 1980s, most of them in the Northern territories. The architect of the plan was Nuggett Coombs, a top Canberra administrator and advisor to Whitlam and Hawke. His idea was to allow Aborigines a "pre-contact" lifestyle and to shield them from all evil "white" influences. Neither worked. On the contrary, it has now emerged that the leftist, liberal consensus on how to "empower" Aboriginal culture has resulted in the exact opposite, in degradation, alcoholism, and sexual violence. This is not only due to passivity in indigenous communities but also to a decade-long denial of their dysfunctionality by the white courts, academics, and lawmakers.

scholarly journals SOME IMPACTS OF THE AUSTRALIAN MULTICULTURAL POLICY ON THE CURRENT PRESERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE AUSTRALIAN ABORIGINAL CULTURE

2010 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 56-72
Author(s):  
Ngoc Cao Boi Tran
Keyword(s):  
Western Culture ◽  
Major Influence ◽  
Modern Trend ◽  
Australian Aborigines ◽  
Australian Aboriginal ◽  
The People ◽  
Multicultural Policy ◽  
Aboriginal Culture ◽  
Assimilation Policy ◽  
Diverse Cultures

Different from their ancestors, most of the Australian Aborigines currently live outside their native land but in a multicultural society under the major influence of Western culture. The assimilation policy, the White Australian policy etc. partly deprived Australian aborigines of their traditional culture. The young generations tend to adopt the western style of living, leaving behind their ancestors’ culture without any heir! However, they now are aware of this loss, and in spite of the modern trend of western culture, they are striving for their traditional preservation. In “Multicultural Australia: United in Diversity” announced on 13 May 2003, Australian government stated guidelines for the 2003-2006 development strategies. The goals are to build a successful Australia of diverse cultures, ready to be tolerant to other cultures; to build a united Australia with a shared future of devoted citizens complying with the law. As for Aboriginal culture, the multicultural policy is a recognition of values and significance of the most original features of the country’s earliest culture. It also shows the government’s great concern for the people, especially for the aborigines. All this displays numerous advantages for the preservation of Australian aboriginal culture.

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