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Listed under:  Society  >  Culture  >  Recreation  >  Games
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Yulunga: mer kai

This is a version of a game from the Torres Strait Islands, using the thick, oval, deep-red fruit of the kai tree, which is quite light when dry. This is a hand-hitting (volley) game where players attempt to keep the ball in the air for as long as they can. The Yulunga: Traditional Indigenous Games resource was developed ...

Online

Yulunga: Garumba

Teams from far and wide gathered at a ‘place of wrestling’ (at Dingulami) in Kabi Kabi territory in south Queensland each year at the time when the bunya nuts were ready. Tingalpa near Brisbane was also a wrestling place. Only one team represented each group attending. Two players came from each totem of a group. Each pair ...

Online

Yulunga: meetcha kambong

A wrestling game of the Noongar people of the southwest of Western Australia was called meetcha kambong (‘nut game’) or boojur kombang (‘ground game’). In the Swan district it was called boojoor-eleeja. A team beaten at this game might resume the contest in a month or so. A ‘wrestling’ game where attacking players attempt ...

Online

Yulunga: wittchim

In Victoria, a corroboree game was played by different groups. Depending on the area it was played in it was called tarratt or wittchim. The game consists of stalking a feather, in imitation of hunting an emu. It is recognised that individuals will hunt in different ways. The Yulunga: Traditional Indigenous Games resource ...

Online

Yulunga: jinnee ngaman billee billee dabbulgar

The stunt activity of jinnee ngaman billee billee dabbulgar was observed among the Capel district people of southwest Australia. It was usually only after much practice that this trick was able to be performed. This is a stunt of jumping over a line on the ground. It is suitable as a warm-up or ‘challenge’ activity. The ...

Online

Yulunga: weet weet

The throwing of the play-stick, commonly called the weet weet (‘wit-wit’) was a popular activity among Aboriginal people in some parts of Australia, and various contests were held. The weet weet was often referred to as the ‘kangaroo rat’, because when thrown correctly its flight resembled the leaping action of this small ...

Online

Yulunga: battendi

A spear game was played by Aboriginal people in the Lake Murray, Lake Alexandrina and Lake Albert areas of southern Australia. A prize such as a newly made shield was offered to the winner. The contest was in two parts: distance throwing and target throwing. This is a distance-and-accuracy throwing contest using a woomera ...

Online

Yulunga: kabi kabi buroinjin

This was a traditional game of some Aboriginal groups such as the Kabi Kabi in south Queensland. The game was played with a ball made of kangaroo skin, which was called a buroinjin. The ball, which was smaller than a football, was sewn with tendons and stuffed with grass. The game was often played until sunset. Spectators ...

Online

Yulunga: kai

In this game from the Torres Strait Islands, a number of players stood in a circle and sang the kai wed (ball song) as they hit a ball up in the air with the palms of their hands. The game was played using the thick, oval, deep-red fruit of the kai tree, which is quite light when dry. This is a hand-hitting (volley) game ...

Online

Yulunga: tingalpa

Teams from far and wide gathered at a ‘place of wrestling’ (at Dingulami) in Kabi Kabi territory in south Queensland each year at the time when the bunya nuts were ready. Tingalpa near Brisbane was also a wrestling place. Only one team represented each group attending. Two players came from each part (totem) of a group. ...

Online

Yulunga: boogalah

This was a ball game played by both genders of the Juwalarai people in New South Wales. A ball (boogalah) was made of sewn-up kangaroo skin. In playing the game all of one Dhé, or totem, were team-mates. This is a team throwing and catching game. The Yulunga: Traditional Indigenous Games resource was developed to provide ...

Online

Yulunga: Munhanganing

The game of Munhanganing was played by children of the Arnhem Land area in northern Australia. Children played this, and other running games, in the flickering lights from firebrands of the grownups, sitting about a camp site. A running-and-chasing team game in which players attempt to touch players on the opposing team. ...

Online

Yulunga: bunbuja

Spin-tops were made from the gourds of the Benincasa vacua, in an area of north Queensland. The people in the Cape Grafton area called them bunbuja. A spin-top was made by passing a stick through the gourd and then fixing the stick into position with twine and beeswax. Spin-tops were used only by the men, and spun by twirling ...

Online

Yulunga: gunane

Skipping with a vine was an amusement for the Jagara (or Jagera) people in the Brisbane area. Some of the people were excellent skippers. A popular place to skip was on the hard sand near the water at the beach. The kind of vine used was the one that was handiest at the time — either those of the scrub or a creeper that ...

Online

Yulunga: pukamitjal

A popular ball game of keep-away was played by adults in camps on Mornington Island in northern Australia. Grass and/or leaves were rolled into a ball and bound with hair-string or a piece of fishing net. The adults formed two teams and energetically threw the ball to each other until they tired. This is a keep-away throwing ...

Online

Yulunga: apwerte

Accounts from various parts of Australia outline bowling-type games using rounded stones. A game of rolling stones was played near Warrina in central Australia. Another rolling game was observed being played on a river flat at Goondiwindi in Queensland. Men used to roll the stones as far as they could to show their strength, ...

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Yulunga: kami kami

Turlurlu is the name of a traditional ball-rolling and hitting game observed being played by boys in the Great Sandy Desert of central Australia. A rough ball called a kamikami was cut from the thick root of the ngulyungu tree. Each player held a mukurru, or fighting stick, as a bat. The boys formed teams and each side ...

Online

Yulunga: Gapala

Playing in small dug-out canoes, bark boats or rafts was (and still is) a popular water activity. A favourite game of the Tiwi children of Bathurst Island (northern Australia) in the wet season was pushing a tin, box or other flat-bottomed object along the water. Children’s rafts were observed in parts of Northern Australia ...

Online

Yulunga: boojur kombang

A wrestling game of the Noongar people of the south-west of Western Australia was called meetcha kambong (‘nut game’) or boojur kombang (‘ground game’). In the Swan district it was called boojoor-eleeja. A team beaten at this game might resume the contest in a month or so. A ‘wrestling’ game where attaching players attempt ...

Online

Yulunga: bowitgee

The young men from parts of the Gulf of Carpentaria in the Northern Territory had a ball game they called bowitgee (‘going about’). The ball was made of paper bark tied firmly with string and about the size of a tennis ball. A good-natured yell of derision greeted the unlucky player who dropped the ball. This is a running-and-passing ...