David Unaipon facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
David Ngunaitponi
David Unaipon (Anglicisation) |
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Unaipon in the late 1920s
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| Born |
David Ngunaitponi
28 September 1872 |
| Died | 7 February 1967 (aged 94) Tailem Bend, South Australia, Australia
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| Nationality | Aboriginal Australian (Portaulun) |
| Education | Raukkan mission school |
| Spouse(s) | Katherine Carter (née Sumner) |
| Parent(s) |
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David Ngunaitponi (born 28 September 1872 – died 7 February 1967), also known as David Unaipon, was an amazing Aboriginal Australian man. He was a preacher, an inventor, and an author. David Unaipon was a member of the Ngarrindjeri people.
His work helped to change many old ideas about Aboriginal Australians. He is honored on the Australian $50 note because of his important contributions. David Unaipon was the son of another respected preacher and writer, James Unaipon.
Contents
Biography
David Unaipon was born at the Point McLeay Mission. This mission was located near Lake Alexandrina in the Coorong area of South Australia. He was the fourth of nine children born to James and Nymbulda Ngunaitponi. His family belonged to the Portaulun branch of the Ngarrindjeri people.
Unaipon started school at the Point McLeay Mission School when he was seven. He quickly showed how smart he was. In 1887, a leader from the Aborigines' Friends' Association said that David was as "bright, intelligent, well-instructed and well-mannered" as any white boy.
When he was 13, Unaipon left school to work as a servant for C.B. Young in Adelaide. Mr. Young encouraged David's love for books, ideas, science, and music. In 1890, David returned to Point McLeay. He trained to be a bootmaker and also became the mission's organ player. Later, he tried to find work in Adelaide, but his race made it hard. He worked as a storeman before returning to Point McLeay to work as a book-keeper.
On 4 January 1902, David Unaipon married Katherine Carter. She was a Tangane woman. He later worked for the Aborigines' Friends' Association. In this role, he traveled widely to preach and gather support for the Point McLeay Mission. Unaipon stopped preaching in 1959. However, he kept working on his inventions even into the 1960s.
Inventor
David Unaipon was very interested in creating new things. He spent five years trying to build a perpetual motion machine. This is a machine that would run forever without needing more energy. Even when he was 79 years old, he was still trying to design such a device.
Unaipon applied for temporary patents for 19 different inventions. However, he often couldn't afford to get them fully patented. Between 1910 and 1944, he made ten applications. These included ideas for an anti-gravity device, a special wheel, and a sheep-shearing tool.
One of his most important inventions was for an "Improved mechanical motion device" in 1910. This device helped change spinning motion into a back-and-forth movement. He suggested it could be used for sheep shears. This invention became the basis for modern mechanical sheep shears. Sadly, Unaipon did not receive any money or much credit for this invention at the time.
He also had ideas for a special motor and a mechanical way to move things. Some people called him the Australian Leonardo da Vinci. This was because of his many mechanical ideas. Before World War I, he drew designs for a helicopter. His design was based on the way a boomerang flies. He also studied how light behaves.
Writer and Lecturer
David Unaipon loved proper English. He spoke and wrote in a very formal style. He was the first Aboriginal author to have his work published. In the early 1920s, the University of Adelaide asked him to put together a book of Aboriginal legends.
From 1924 onwards, he wrote many articles for the Sydney Daily Telegraph newspaper. He published three small books of Aboriginal stories in 1927, 1928, and 1929. During this time, he wrote about many topics. These included his inventions, Aboriginal legends, and fighting for Aboriginal rights.
Unaipon was also very religious. He believed that traditional Aboriginal beliefs and Christian spirituality were similar. His job with the Aborigines' Friends' Association allowed him to travel a lot. This travel helped him meet many smart people who supported Aboriginal rights. It also gave him chances to give talks about Aboriginal culture and rights. He was a very popular public speaker.
Sometimes, he was refused a place to stay because of his race. He said that believing "in Christ Jesus colour and racial distinctions disappear" helped him through these tough times.
Unaipon was the first Aboriginal writer to publish in English. He wrote many articles in newspapers and magazines. He shared traditional stories and argued for the rights of Aboriginal people. Five of his traditional stories were published in 1929 as Native Legends. His name and picture were on the cover.
Some of Unaipon's traditional Aboriginal stories were also published in a 1930 book. It was called Myths and Legends of the Australian Aboriginals. However, it was published under the name of an anthropologist, William Ramsay Smith. Later, these stories were republished correctly under Unaipon's name. The book was called Legendary Tales of the Australian Aborigines.
Further Work
David Unaipon was also an expert on ballistics, which is the study of how things fly, like bullets.
He was involved in political issues concerning Aboriginal people. He strongly supported Aboriginal self-determination. This means Aboriginal people having control over their own lives and communities. He worked as a researcher and witness for the Bleakley Enquiry, which looked into Aboriginal Welfare. He also asked the Australian Government to take over responsibility for Aboriginal people from the different states.
In 1936, he was the first Aboriginal person to attend a special formal event called a levée. This happened in Adelaide and was even reported in international news.
Awards and Tributes
Unaipon received a Coronation medal in 1953. This was to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. He was 81 years old at the time. After his death, he received the FAW Patricia Weickhardt Award for Aboriginal writers in 1985.
Many things have been named or created to honor David Unaipon:
- An interpretive dance about his life, called Unaipon, was performed by the Bangarra Dance Theatre.
- The David Unaipon Literary Award was started in 1988. It is an annual award for the best writing by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander authors who have not been published before.
- The David Unaipon College of Indigenous Education And Research at the University of South Australia is named after him.
- Unaipon Avenue in the Canberra suburb of Ngunnawal is named after him.
- The annual Unaipon lecture in Adelaide was started in 1988.
- Also in 1988, the national David Unaipon Award for Aboriginal Writers was established.
Fifty-dollar Note
David Unaipon's image is featured on the Australian $50 note. This is a great way to remember his important work and contributions to Australia. The background of the note shows the Raukkan mission and his invention, the mechanical sheep shearer.
Later Life and Death
In his old age, Unaipon returned to where he was born. He continued to work on his inventions and tried to understand the secret of perpetual motion.
David Unaipon died in the Tailem Bend Hospital on 7 February 1967. He was buried in the Raukkan (formerly Point McLeay) Mission Cemetery. He was survived by one son.
Works
- Unaipon, David. Legendary Tales of the Australian Aborigines. Melbourne University Press. ISBN 0-522-84905-9.
- Unaipon, David (2 August 1924). "ABORIGINALS: Their Traditions and Customs - Where Did They Come From?". The Daily Telegraph (New South Wales, Australia: National Library of Australia) (13,932): p. 13. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article245215955.
See also
