Noongar History

OUR 60,000 YEAR HISTORY..

The village rests in country that was, for tens of  thousands of years, in the care of Pipelmen people of the Noongar nation. Nearby Noongar peoples, such as the Wardandi (to the North and West) also visited this country, following proper protocols that, today, are remembered through Welcomes to, and Acknowledgement of, Country.

Theirs was a strong, structured culture; they managed land, plants, animals, education and trade in ways that ensured they enjoyed excellent health and nutrition, and high levels of spiritual and social wellbeing. Their knowledge of and connection to every part of their Budjar (land, and all the life that grows from it) was thorough and profound. To find out more about the rich culture of the area we recommend you visit the ‘Kaatdijin Noongar (Noongar Knowledge)’ website. click here.

We acknowledge that, like all other Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups, Pibelmen people were dispossessed by the arrival of white people in the 1800s and through to the 1970s. This dispossession led to trauma and loss which has snowballed, for too many, into low wellbeing today.  But, in response, many strong Aboriginal people are leading the journey towards justice and recovery. We at Donnelly hope that we can play a small part in that by, at least, contributing to greater understanding about the rich culture and history of our place.

In 2012, Koodah Cornwall of the Noongar nation engaged our community in cultural activities and (with permission from the Manjimup Aboriginal Corporation) welcomed us to this country.

We encourage you to seek out Noongar knowledge. You’ll find some links to cultural guides here . (We are also partnering with cultural guides like Koomal Dreaming  and others to bring more cultural experiences to Donnelly.)