Djanga
Encyclopedia
Djanga supposedly meaning "white spirits", was the initial name given to Europeans (now more commonly called wetjala), by indigenous Noongar
Australian Aboriginal people of the south west corner of Western Australia
.
Traditional people, relating to the human and natural world through complex systems of kin groups, sought to find a way to incorporate Europeans into their cultural understandings. They had observed that European ships came from the west, from the direction of the setting sun, the location, they believed of Kuranup, the land of the departed spirits of the dead. The fact that Europeans seemed ignorant of Aboriginal language and culture confirmed for the Noongar that these people had somehow forgotten who they were and where they really came from, typical of the spirit of a dead person.
The fact that Europeans were returned spirits of the dead, was reported in the case of George Grey
, who was recognised by one Aboriginal woman as the spirit of her dead son. Despite offers from fellow Europeans to drive the woman and her family away, Grey accepted the association, allowing a kenning (or corroboree
) to be performed by the family in his honour.
The association of Europeans with the spirits of the dead was confirmed by many other characteristics of the first settlement. Europeans odours were found offensive to Aboriginal people, as clothes were frequently not washed for long periods, and bathing of the British settlers was not frequent. The odours were considered similar to the odours that accompanied corpses. Similarly, as indigenous Aboriginal people did not have resistance to many diseases that accompanied the Europeans (measles
epidemic
s swept through the state repeatedly in the early 1930s killing many Aboriginal people, and Aboriginal people were not included in smallpox
vaccination
programs made available to white settlers.
These findings may account in part for the attempts of Aboriginal people, after an initial period of welcome and trade, to withdraw from further contact for a while. (Other reasons include the expropriation of Aboriginal lands and territories, the indiscriminate killing of kangaroo and other Australian wildlife by Europeans, and the violent punishment meted out to Aboriginal people for spearing European livestock or for digging traditional bush tucker from European claimed land).
Djanga has not been used for Europeans much since the 1940s. The term used by Noongar and other Western Australian Aboriginal Groups for European settlers now is "Wetjala", derived from the English term "white fella".
Noongar
The Noongar are an indigenous Australian people who live in the south-west corner of Western Australia from Geraldton on the west coast to Esperance on the south coast...
Australian Aboriginal people of the south west corner of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
.
Traditional people, relating to the human and natural world through complex systems of kin groups, sought to find a way to incorporate Europeans into their cultural understandings. They had observed that European ships came from the west, from the direction of the setting sun, the location, they believed of Kuranup, the land of the departed spirits of the dead. The fact that Europeans seemed ignorant of Aboriginal language and culture confirmed for the Noongar that these people had somehow forgotten who they were and where they really came from, typical of the spirit of a dead person.
The fact that Europeans were returned spirits of the dead, was reported in the case of George Grey
George Grey
George Grey may refer to:*Sir George Grey, 2nd Baronet , British politician*George Grey, 2nd Earl of Kent *Sir George Grey , Governor of Cape Colony, South Australia and New Zealand...
, who was recognised by one Aboriginal woman as the spirit of her dead son. Despite offers from fellow Europeans to drive the woman and her family away, Grey accepted the association, allowing a kenning (or corroboree
Corroboree
A corroboree is a ceremonial meeting of Australian Aborigines. The word was coined by the European settlers of Australia in imitation of the Aboriginal word caribberie. At a corroboree Aborigines interact with the Dreamtime through dance, music and costume. Many ceremonies act out events from the...
) to be performed by the family in his honour.
The association of Europeans with the spirits of the dead was confirmed by many other characteristics of the first settlement. Europeans odours were found offensive to Aboriginal people, as clothes were frequently not washed for long periods, and bathing of the British settlers was not frequent. The odours were considered similar to the odours that accompanied corpses. Similarly, as indigenous Aboriginal people did not have resistance to many diseases that accompanied the Europeans (measles
Measles
Measles, also known as rubeola or morbilli, is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses...
epidemic
Epidemic
In epidemiology, an epidemic , occurs when new cases of a certain disease, in a given human population, and during a given period, substantially exceed what is expected based on recent experience...
s swept through the state repeatedly in the early 1930s killing many Aboriginal people, and Aboriginal people were not included in smallpox
Smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
vaccination
Vaccination
Vaccination is the administration of antigenic material to stimulate the immune system of an individual to develop adaptive immunity to a disease. Vaccines can prevent or ameliorate the effects of infection by many pathogens...
programs made available to white settlers.
These findings may account in part for the attempts of Aboriginal people, after an initial period of welcome and trade, to withdraw from further contact for a while. (Other reasons include the expropriation of Aboriginal lands and territories, the indiscriminate killing of kangaroo and other Australian wildlife by Europeans, and the violent punishment meted out to Aboriginal people for spearing European livestock or for digging traditional bush tucker from European claimed land).
Djanga has not been used for Europeans much since the 1940s. The term used by Noongar and other Western Australian Aboriginal Groups for European settlers now is "Wetjala", derived from the English term "white fella".