Aboriginal ceremony in the context of "Aboriginal Australian elder"

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⭐ Core Definition: Aboriginal ceremony

Australian Aboriginal culture includes a number of practices and ceremonies centred on a belief in the Dreamtime and other mythology. Reverence and respect for the land and oral traditions are emphasised. The words "law" and "lore", the latter relating to the customs and stories passed down through the generations, are commonly used interchangeably. Learned from childhood, lore dictates the rules on how to interact with the land, kinship and community.

Over 300 languages and other groupings have developed a wide range of individual cultures. Aboriginal art has existed for thousands of years and ranges from ancient rock art to modern watercolour landscapes. Traditional Aboriginal music developed a number of unique instruments, and contemporary Aboriginal music spans many genres. Aboriginal peoples did not develop a system of writing before colonisation, but there was a huge variety of languages, including sign languages.

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👉 Aboriginal ceremony in the context of Aboriginal Australian elder

Australian Aboriginal elders in the context of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture, is defined as "someone who has gained recognition as a custodian of knowledge and lore, and who has permission to disclose knowledge and beliefs". They may be male or female, and of any age, but must be trusted and respected by their community for their wisdom, cultural knowledge and community service. Elders provide support for their communities in the form of guidance, counselling and knowledge, which help tackle problems of health, education, unemployment and racism, particularly for younger people. They may be distinguished as one of two types: community elders and traditional elders. Elders play an important role in maintenance of culture, songs, oral histories, sacred stories, Aboriginal Australian languages, and dance, and are also educators who demonstrate leadership and skills in resolving conflicts. Elders also preside over ceremonies and other spiritual practices, and attend to the health and well-being of young people.

Elders are sometimes addressed by other Aboriginal people as Uncle or Aunty as a mark of respect. The honorific may be used by non-Aboriginal people, but generally only when permission is given to do so.

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Aboriginal ceremony in the context of Aboriginal art

Indigenous Australian art includes art made by Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders, including collaborations with others. It includes works in a wide range of media including painting on leaves, bark painting, wood carving, rock carving, watercolour painting, sculpting, ceremonial clothing and sandpainting. The traditional visual symbols vary widely among the differing peoples' traditions, despite the common mistaken perception that dot painting is representative of all Aboriginal art.

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Aboriginal ceremony in the context of Tjurunga

A tjurunga, also spelt churinga and tjuringa, is an object considered to be of religious significance by Central Australian Aboriginal people of the Arrernte (Aranda, Arunta) groups. The word derives from the Arrernte word Tywerenge which means sacred or precious. Tjurunga often had a wide and indeterminate native significance. They may be used variously in sacred ceremonies, as bullroarers, in sacred ground paintings, in ceremonial poles, in ceremonial headgear, in sacred chants and in sacred earth mounds.

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Aboriginal ceremony in the context of Bark painting

Bark painting is an Australian Aboriginal art form, involving painting on the interior of a strip of tree bark. While examples of painted bark shelters were found in the south-eastern states (then colonies) of Tasmania, Victoria, and New South Wales in the 19th century, as well as later on bark shelters in northern Australia, it is now typically only found as a continuing form of artistic expression in Arnhem Land and other regions in the Top End of Australia, including parts of the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

Bark paintings were traditionally produced (especially among the Yolngu peoples) for instructional and ceremonial purposes and were transient objects. Today, they are keenly sought after by collectors and public arts institutions.

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