A Note on Terminology
We refer to the traditional owners of the land in the Swan District region as Noongar. Please note, there is a variety of ways to spell Noongar, other spellings include: Nyoongar, Noongah, and Nyungar. As the Department of Education and Training (DET) has chosen 'Noongar' to use in all its documents, that is the spelling used on this website.
Noongar was for thousands of years a spoken language. There was no formal written Noongar language, although patterns and designs carried meaning. In the early days of European contact, Noongar words were written for the first time. Because of varying levels of literacy and understanding, and a difficulty in accommodating the English alphabet to the different sounds of Noongar speech, there were many interpretations of spelling.
The broader term 'Aboriginal' refers to the traditional owners and first inhabitants of Australia. Some of the other language groups are: Wangkatha people from the Goldfields, Yamatji people from the Geraldton region, Arrente people from Central Australia, Koori people from New South Wales and Victoria, Murri people from Queensland and Nunga people from South Australia.
Originally there were over three hundred recognized language groups throughout Australia and many groups are represented in our schools. Teachers need to be aware of this diversity. The term 'Indigenous' on our website refers to the original inhabitants of Australia and the Torres Strait Islands and it is important to distinguish between these two groups in your schools.