As old as the hills

The Aboriginals of Australia are considered to have the oldest continuing culture on earth.

Australia's indigenous people are descendants of the first known inhabitants of the country and are believed to have arrived there over 40,000 years ago. Their fascinating cultural traditions have been passed down from generation to generation, survived colonisation, and continue to be practised today with a sometimes-modern slant. Establishments such as indigenous dance companies are now attracting global attention and admiration of this culture.

Before the British arrival, the mode of life for indigenous people differed greatly from region to region. Torres Strait Islanders were agriculturalists while the remainder were hunter-gatherers or fishermen. At the time of European contact in Australia, it is estimated that as many as a million people lived in Australia.

Following British colonisation in 1788, the indigenous population was reduced by an estimated 90 per cent. This was a direct result of the wave of Old World epidemic diseases, appropriation of land and direct violence towards indigenous people by the new settlers. By the 1870s the fertile areas of Australia had been taken away, leaving the indigenous communities land that was considered unsuitable for settlement.

As a result, indigenous people adapted to European culture. With the exception of a few clans in the remote interior, most communities gradually became dependent on the settler population for their livelihood. The population of indigenous people had declined to between 50,000 and 90,000 by the early 20th century. Together with the indigenous people from the Torres Strait Islands, they today comprise around 2.5 per cent of Australia's population.

Explaining origins

Despite their challenging history, the indigenous population have managed to preserve and pass down the rich and fascinating traditions of what is considered to be the oldest continuous culture on earth. Andrew Oldfield, Distribution Development Manager for Tourism Australia of the Gulf Region, says: "My opinion is that the traditional indigenous culture impresses most Australians because of its longevity. There is a strong dreamtime [the part of the culture that explains the origins of the land and its people] that exists today and it is filled with legends, art, dance and music that speak of the spirits that created the land. There is an identity that is absolutely attached to Australia."

There are many tribal divisions and language groups in indigenous Australia, meaning that a great variety of diversity exists within the individual cultural practices. However some similarities do exist. The basis of the culture is indigenous spirituality, which entails a close relationship between humans and the land. Belief has it that the ancestors rose from below the earth to form various parts of nature, including animal species, bodies of water and the sky. It is said that some of the ancestors metamorphosed into nature where they remain spirituality alive.

The 'Dreaming' means that humans are not separate from the environment, but indivisibly united with it. Unlike other religions, indigenous beliefs do not place the human species apart from or on a higher level than nature. Oldfield says: "The indigenous culture has a strong sense of the environment and ecology, and I think we can learn a lot about respect for the land from this." Australia has a long tradition of indigenous art that is thousands of years old. This art involves story telling, myths, rituals, sorcery and magic where the artists describe their dreams, stories of creation, their beliefs and their spirituality.

Painting

Therefore for the artist, the act of painting for example, is more important than the actual painting itself. Ground paintings and ground mosaics are just two of the forms that can be found, in addition to rock art. Tracey Vince, Managing Director at Collect Aboriginal Art in Darwin says: "The rock art throughout Kakadu National Park and Arnhem Land to the east of Kakadu contain the most important examples of ancient rock art in the world. Paintings on the walls of caves depict many different things — almost a graffiti of its time. Painting has always been an important part of the culture, moving from rock to bark to canvas and telling stories through stylised maps showing where to get water and historical dreaming stories of how the land was created."

Indigenous dancing is another strong cultural tradition that has been passed down and maintained throughout the years and the style varies throughout the hundreds of tribal groups. Dancing was done with set arm, body and foot movements with a lot of foot stamping. Serious ritual or sacred dancing was quite distinct from light-hearted camp dancing that men, women and children could share.

Karl Telfer, leader of Adelaide-based Paitya dance group, says: "Song and dance in tradition is sacred and relates to ceremonial rites born out of rhythms from the time of creation. Dance is an important part of ceremonial and community life which lends itself to the spiritual relationship we have with the natural environment."

The dances that have been passed down are just as important today as they were thousands of years ago. There are many indigenous dance groups in Australia that perform to keep culture alive and pass on stories to young people as well as to teach non-indigenous people about the diversity of indigenous Australia.

Touring the Gulf

Sydney-based Bangarra Dance Theatre was established over ten years ago and is one of Australia's most unique and innovative dance companies. The dances performed incorporate living traditions that date back 40,000 years, but also reflect the lives and attitudes of the indigenous people today. In 2001, the company performed a sixteen-city sell out tour of North America, which established Bangarra as a global dance phenomenon. They also hope to tour the Gulf States in the near future. Alan Wilcock, Marketing and Development Manager at Bangarra says: "Through the medium of dance, we are able to tell the stories of our ancestors. The movement and colour of dance enables us to tell these stories and allow theatre patrons to experience our culture."

These dances blend traditional aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander history and culture with international contemporary dance to create a truly Australian dance language. The company is currently performing a bill called True Stories. "It is made up of two very different dance pieces. One is called Emeret Lu [Very Old Things]. This piece tells traditional stories from the Torres Strait Islands during which the choreographer interprets her people's love of the land and sea. The dance was traditionally performed to celebrate the rain, wind, hunting, gathering and harvesting. Most importantly it celebrates the human spirit," says Wilcock.

For further information go to: Bangarra Dance Theatre: www.bangarra.com.au
Collect Aboriginal Art: www.collectaboriginalart.com.au