Indigenous Australian food groups

Indigenous Australian peoples traditionally classified food sources in a methodical way. Below are a few examples.

Central Australia

In Central Australia, people used innovative means to obtain a balanced diet.

The food categories, and their Arrernte names are [Turner, Margaret-Mary, "Arrernte Foods, Foods from Central Australia", IAD Press, Alice Springs, 1994, ISBN 0-949659-76-2 pviii] :

:

Some other category words from Arrernte that are used in relation to food include:

*"Thipe " fleshy flying creatures; birds (not emus), bats
*"Kwatye" water in any form, sources of water; water, rain, clouds
*"Arne " trees, shrubs, bushes, woody plants, some grasses
*"Ure " fire, things to do with fire.

Top End

In the Top End, seafood plays an important part in the diet. The food groups and their Yolngu names are:

:

The old people would talk about the need to eat from both "murŋyan"' and "gonyil" food groups and the need to supplement their diet with "gapu" (fresh water). While this balance was maintained, the people knew they were eating correctly. [ Richard Trudgen, below]

When the men would come back from the magpie goose hunt, they would be craving "murnyaŋ" foods after having eaten so much meat and eggs. While the women, children and old people back in the camps would be looking forward to "gonyil", Magpie goose meat and eggs, after eating so much "murnyaŋ"'. [Thomson, Donald and Peterson, Nicolas, "Donald Thomson in Arnhem Land", Miegunyah Press, 2003, ISBN 0-522-85063-4, p 158.]

ee also

References

*Trudgen, Richard, "Why Warriors Lie Down and Die", ARDS, Darwin, 1996, ISBN 0-646-39587-4, p 140