Essendon's First Peoples
The area around Essendon was originally home to the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung people of the East Kulin Nation who have had a deep connection with the area, in particular the Maribyrnong River valley, for more than 40,000 years.
Wurundjeri
A drawing by surveyor, architect and artist Robert Russell from 1840 illustrates how the Melbourne settlement swiftly displaced Aboriginal people.(State Library of Victoria: Robert Russell)
Maribyrnong River
The Maribyrnong River (named Saltwater River by the European settlers) was of particular importance to the Wurundjeri people because they relied on the river for:
- drinking water
- food (fish and eels were fished from the river, and kangaroos, emus, echidnas, possums, lizards and water birds lived on the plains)
- medicine (edible plants growing on the river flats)
- building materials
- transport
The river was renamed the Maribyrnong River in 1913, and this originates from the Aboriginal term ‘Mirring-gnay-bir-nong’, which translates as ‘I can hear a ringtail possum’.
The area was a significant meeting place for the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and the Bunurong peoples and other clans of the Kulin Nation.
European settlement from the late 1830s had a huge impact on the Aboriginal people – decimating communities, displacing families and disrupting lives.
Moonee Valley
The clan that lived in the Moonee Valley area were known as the Wurundjeri-willam meaning ‘white gum tree dwellers’. There were three subgroups of the Wurundjeri-willam clan, each known by the name of the head of the clan: Bebejan’s mob, Billibellary’s mob and Jack Jacky’s mob. Billibellary’s mob. These clans would move from place to place depending on the season, the availability of food, or the need to visit ceremonial sites. Their basic dwellings were made from available materials from the land, and they did not accumulate unnecessary possessions.
The Wurundjeri people had an innate connection with the land and lived very spiritual lives. They hunted animals for food and clothing and only hunted what they needed to eat. The skins were used to make clothing and wrap babies. The plant life was plentiful, and the land managed well by seasonal burning off to generate new growth.
Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung peoples
The Wurundjeri People take their name from the Woiwurrung language word ‘wurun’ meaning the Manna Gum which is common along ‘Birrarung’ (Yarra River), and ‘djeri‘, the grub which is found in or near the tree. Wurundjeri are the ‘Witchetty Grub People’ and their Ancestors relationship with the land extends back tens of thousands of years to when their creator spirit ‘Bunjil’ formed their people, the land and all living things.
The Wurundjeri’s connection to land is underpinned by cultural and spiritual values vastly different to those of the Europeans. The Wurundjeri did not ‘own’ the land in the European sense of the word, but belonged to, or were ‘owned by’ the land. They did not live in permanent settlements but, rather, camped for periods within defined clan boundaries where food was plentiful, and moved on when the land needed to rejuvenate.
The land provided all the Wurundjeri needed – food, water, medicine, shelter – and they treated it with the respect due to such a provider.
Moonee Valley
A drawing by surveyor, architect and artist Robert Russell from 1840 illustrates how the Melbourne settlement swiftly displaced Aboriginal people.(State Library of Victoria: Robert Russell)
The clan that lived in the Moonee Valley area were known as the Wurundjeri-willam meaning ‘white gum tree dwellers’. There were three subgroups of the Wurundjeri-willam clan, each known by the name of the head of the clan: Bebejan’s mob, Billibellary’s mob and Jack Jacky’s mob. Billibellary’s mob. These clans would move from place to place depending on the season, the availability of food, or the need to visit ceremonial sites. Their basic dwellings were made from available materials from the land, and they did not accumulate unnecessary possessions.
The Wurundjeri people had an innate connection with the land and lived very spiritual lives. They hunted animals for food and clothing and only hunted what they needed to eat. The skins were used to make clothing and wrap babies. The plant life was plentiful, and the land managed well by seasonal burning off to generate new growth.
Maribyrnong River
The Maribyrnong River (named Saltwater River by the European settlers) was of particular importance to the Wurundjeri people because they relied on the river for:
- drinking water
- food (fish and eels were fished from the river, and kangaroos, emus, echidnas, possums, lizards and water birds lived on the plains)
- medicine (edible plants growing on the river flats)
- building materials
- transport
The river was renamed the Maribyrnong River in 1913, and this originates from the Aboriginal term ‘Mirring-gnay-bir-nong’, which translates as ‘I can hear a ringtail possum’.
The area was a significant meeting place for the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and the Bunurong peoples and other clans of the Kulin Nation.
European settlement from the late 1830s had a huge impact on the Aboriginal people – decimating communities, displacing families and disrupting lives.
Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung peoples
The Wurundjeri People take their name from the Woiwurrung language word ‘wurun’ meaning the Manna Gum which is common along ‘Birrarung’ (Yarra River), and ‘djeri‘, the grub which is found in or near the tree. Wurundjeri are the ‘Witchetty Grub People’ and their Ancestors relationship with the land extends back tens of thousands of years to when their creator spirit ‘Bunjil’ formed their people, the land and all living things.
The Wurundjeri’s connection to land is underpinned by cultural and spiritual values vastly different to those of the Europeans. The Wurundjeri did not ‘own’ the land in the European sense of the word, but belonged to, or were ‘owned by’ the land. They did not live in permanent settlements but, rather, camped for periods within defined clan boundaries where food was plentiful, and moved on when the land needed to rejuvenate.
The land provided all the Wurundjeri needed – food, water, medicine, shelter – and they treated it with the respect due to such a provider.
