How Aboriginal Stories of Fire may have Shaped contemporary Burning Practices

Tidemann, Sonia (2009) How Aboriginal Stories of Fire may have Shaped contemporary Burning Practices. The International Journal of the Humanities, 6 (11). pp. 6-20. ISSN 1447-9508

[img] PDF
H08_6489_HowAboriginalStoriesofFireMayHaveShapedContemporaryBurningPracticesinAustralia_final.pdf
Restricted to Repository staff only

Download (708kB)

Abstract

Aboriginal stories depict fire in a variety of ways - for warmth, cooking and for wreaking vengeance. Across the different language groups, that once existed in Australia, fire is also created in numerous ways and appears to be highly valued. Some stories describe burning of the landscape, for example, Willy Wagtail who wanted Owl’s fire, stole it and set fire to Owl’s hunting grounds because Owl wouldn’t share his fire. The geographic locations of Aboriginal burning of the
landscape, through their stories, are used to examine contemporary burning practices in the same regions to consider how Aboriginal practices may have informed contemporary ones.

Item Type: Article
Field of Research (2008): 16 Studies in Human Society > 1601 Anthropology > 160104 Social and Cultural Anthropology
20 Language, Communication and Culture > 2002 Cultural Studies > 200201 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultural Studies
05 Environmental Sciences > 0501 Ecological Applications > 050104 Landscape Ecology
Subjects: G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GR Folklore
G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GF Human ecology. Anthropogeography
G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GN Anthropology
Date Deposited: 04 May 2010 01:45
Last Modified: 05 Jan 2012 02:31
URI: https://eprints.batchelor.edu.au/id/eprint/189

Actions (login required)

View Item
View Item