Brataualung people facts for kids

The Brataualung are an Indigenous Australian people. They are one of the five main groups of people from Gippsland, in the state of Victoria, Australia. They are also part of a larger group known as the Kurnai.

Understanding the Brataualung Language

The Brataualung people spoke a language that is part of what is called Gunai. Experts like Robert M. W. Dixon classify this language as Muk-thang. Other groups, like the Braiakaulung and Tatungalung, spoke similar dialects. However, the language spoken by the Krauatungalung was quite different, making it hard for them to understand each other.

Their Traditional Lands

The Brataualung's traditional lands covered about 1,900 square miles (4,900 km²). This area stretched from Cape Liptrap and Tarwin Meadows in the west, all the way east to the coast near Merriman Creek. Northwards, their land reached inland to Mirboo. Important places like Port Albert and Wilsons Promontory were also part of their country.

How Brataualung Society Was Organized

The Brataualung people were divided into smaller groups, sometimes called hordes.

• The Yauung group lived around Warrigal Creek and the Tarra River.

The Impact of European Settlement

European contact with the Brataualung people might have started in the 1820s. This was when whaling camps were set up near Wilsons Promontory and Corner Inlet. However, the first regular meetings happened in 1841. This was when Europeans began settling inland on Brataualung land.

At first, relations seemed friendly. Brataualung people sometimes worked for settlers, trading their labor for food and goods. But in July 1843, things changed. Some Europeans, possibly people who had escaped from Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania), caused trouble near Port Albert and harmed some Brataualung men. In response, the Brataualung acted against a local settler.

A harsh response followed. Local settlers gathered and attacked, causing many Brataualung people to lose their lives. This sad event ended the peaceful relations that had existed.

Losing their traditional lands, which provided their food, and getting sick from new diseases brought by settlers, caused many Brataualung people to die. By 1848, it was estimated that only about 50 Brataualung people remained. They camped on settler stations along Merrimans Creek, Coady Vale, Erin Vale, and Port Albert. To survive, they took on jobs like stripping bark from trees and harvesting potatoes on the land now occupied by settlers.

When the Victorian gold rush began in 1851-1852, many European workers left to find gold. This meant that settlers needed help with their farms. They offered jobs to the Brataualung people as stockmen, reapers, and sheep herders. The Brataualung people showed great skill in these tasks. They also formed connections with Braiakaulung men who had also adapted to the changes on their lands. Together, they adopted some European ways of life, including playing cards.

Other Names for the Brataualung

The Brataualung people were known by several other names, including:

• Bradowooloong
• Brataua
• Brataualung, Bratanolung
• Nulit
• Tarrawarrachal
• Tarrawarracka

Some Brataualung Words

Here are a few words from the Brataualung language:

• lewin/paiara (meaning: tribal messenger).