Yamatji

Yamatji is the name of an important Aboriginal people of the Murchison, Gascoyne and Pilbara regions of the North West of Western Australia, and comes from the word "friend" in the local languages of the area. Before contact it is questionable about the degree of self-identification of these people as Yamatji, as there were significant cultural differences between coastal dwelling groups, who generally did not practice male initiation circumcision, and the larger groups of the interior like the Walpuri of the bend in the Lyons River, who did.

The area covered by the Yamatji include the following Biogeographic Regions:
* Carnarvon
* Pilbara
* Gascoyne
* north west Murchison
* Yilgarn
* northern Geraldton Sandplain

There are about 130 Aboriginal Heritage sites registered with the Department of Indigenous Affairs associated with the area, which include open shell middens along the shoreline, quarries, rock shelters, artefact shelters, burials and stone arrangements.

Archaeology

Archaeological research has been conducted at several sites across the Shark Bay Yamatji area and collections have been made from several sites including Useless Loop, Monkey Mia and Eagle Bluff [Bowdler, S. (1989) "An archaeological survey of Aboriginal sites in the area of Useless Loop, Shark Bay".] [Bowdler, S. (1990a) "Before Dirk Hartog: Prehistoric archaeological research in Shark Bay, Western Australia", (Australian Archaeology, v 30, pp 46-57)] [Bowdler, S. (1990b) "The Silver Dollar site, Shark Bay: an interim report", (Australian Aboriginal Studies, no. 2, pp. 60-63)] [Bowdler, S. (1995) "The excavation of two small rockshelters at Monkey Mia, Shark Bay, Western Australia", (Australian Archaeology, no. 40, pp. 1-13.)] . K. Morse has also excavated at the Zuytdorp Cliffs near the Zuytdorp shipwreck [Morse, K. (1988) "An archaeological survey of midden sites near the Zuytdorp wreck, Western Australia", (Bulletin of the Australian Institute for Maritime Archaeology v. 12, pp. 37-40)] . The Silver Dollar site near Eagle Bluff provides the oldest and most detailed evidence of Yamatji occupation of the region and was occupied for two periods, firstly between 30,000 and 18,000 years and secondly between 7000 and 6000 years. Rockshelter sites at Eagle Bluff and Zuytdorp are dated at 4000 to 4600 years before present. A third occupation period from 1000 years ago is documented.

History

The Yamatji people were instrumental in assisting early settlers in the area identify permanent water sources, and worked in the pearling, pastoral and fishing industries. Especially in the early period their suffering as a result of the contact with the settler community was illustrated in 1885 by the Rev J. Gribble, who when arriving at Carnarvon found 36 men chained by the neck to a tree. His subsequent publication "Dark Deeds in a Sunny Land" [Grible J. B. (1907) "Dark Deeds in a Sunny Land" (Intl Specialized Book Service)] portrayed the suffering of the Yamatji.

From 1908 to 1918, Dore and Bernier Islands, off the coast of Carnarvon, operated as Lock Hospitals for the isolation of Aboriginal men and women supposedly suffering from venereal diseases. Often not knowing the reason for their removal, they were kept on the isoland until they either died or recovered.

Native Title Claims

At the moment the Native Title interests of the Yamatji people are undertaken by the Yamatji Marlpa Barna Baba Maaja Aboriginal Corporation (YMBBMAC). [cite web | url = http://www.yamatji.org.au/ | title = About: Yamatji Marlpa Barna Baba Maaja Aboriginal Corporation (YMBBMAC) | accessdate = 2007-06-14 | author = | authorlink = | date =2007-01-30 | format = | work = | publisher = Home page | pages = | language = | quote = ... is the native title representative body (NTRB) for native title claims in the resource-rich Pilbara, Murchison and Gascoyne areas of Western Australia.]

The Yamatji land claims include the following various groups

* Pandawn Descendants (WC96/83);
* Badimia People (WC96/98);
* Widi Mob (WC97/72);
* Mullewa Wadjari Community (WC96/93);
* Naaguja Peoples (WC97/73);
* Arnold Franks (WC98/57);
* Widi Mara (WC96/67);
* Widi Marra (WC96/86);
* Kevin Taylor (WC01/04);
* Hutt River (WC00/01);
* Nanda People (WC00/13); and
* The Wajarri Elders (WC01/03) [http://www.nntt.gov.au/bibliography/files/BibliographyBooklet%20Southern%20Yamatji.pdf] .

The Yamatji Marlpa Barna Baba Maaja Aboriginal Corporation is a native title representative body recognised pursuant to the (Commonwealth) Native Title Act 1993. There have been four Executive Directors of the YMBBMAC: Wayne Warner (1996-1998); former AFL footballer Clinton Wolf (1998-2001); Roger Cook (2001-2003) and ex-local council clerk Simon Hawkins (2003-current). The YMBBMAC has had a fluctuating history of periods of stability and effectiveness, followed by sudden downturns.

References