A History of Groote Eylandt

Northern Territory, Australia

The Warnindilyakwa people were brought to Groote Eylandt on a series of song lines which created the land, rivers, animals and people and which named everything pertaining to the region. The language, “Anindilyakwa” is spoken by the 14 clan groups, which make up the two Moieties on Groote Eylandt.

The island also has a rich non-Indigenous history. The first non-traditional visitors were the Macassans who travelled to this region for hundreds of years in search of Trepang. The next recorded visitor was Dutchman William Van Coolstrurdt on the ship “The Arnhem” in 1623, followed by Abel Tasman in 1644 who actually named Groote Eylandt (meaning “great” or “large” Island). Matthew Flinders also visited on his circumnavigation of Australia in 1803.

The first major historical impact to the Warnindilyakwa people was the Missionaries from the Church Mission Society who established a mission on the Eylandt in 1921 after frequent visits dating back to 1916. Following this was the impact of WWII in the 1940s.

The GEMCO mine was established in the 1960s. While this employs many Indigenous people it only has a remaining life span of 17 years. To sustain the economic future for Groote Eylandters, the Traditional Owners, in conjunction with the Anindilyakwa Land Council and Groote Eylandt and Bickerton Island Enterprises (GEBIE), have ventured into tourism products and developed the Dugong Beach Resort and other cultural based operations.

On 6 June 2006 the Groote Eylandt archipelago was declared as an Indigenous Protected Area, in recognition of our beautiful lands.