Guringay facts for kids

Gringai (also known as Guringay) is the name for a group of Aboriginal people from eastern New South Wales. They lived north of Sydney in the Hunter Valley area. The Gringai shared a language and strong family connections. They were skilled at hunting, fishing, and gathering food. They lived in family groups as a clan of the Worimi people.

Where the Gringai Lived

The Gringai people lived around the Williams River, Barrington Tops, Dungog, Barrington, and Gloucester areas. They traded with Aboriginal groups from the Paterson River. The town of Dungog is located in what was once the center of their lands. The name "Dungog" might mean "clear hills" in the Gringai language.

Gringai History and Challenges

We know about some Gringai people from records of their interactions with European settlers in the 1830s.

One Gringai man, named Wong-ko-bi-kan (also known as Jackey), was involved in an incident in 1834. He was defending his community's camp near the Williams River. This happened when a group of settlers, who were armed, approached the camp early in the morning. They wanted to arrest some Aboriginal people for taking sheep from their land. Wong-ko-bi-kan speared one of the settlers, John Flynn, who later died. The judge and others felt some sympathy for Wong-ko-bi-kan because of how the settlers had approached the camp. Sadly, Wong-ko-bi-kan died in prison in Tasmania later that year.

Another Gringai man, known as Charley, was involved in an event in 1835. He was believed to be responsible for the deaths of five convict shepherds. These shepherds worked for Robert Mackenzie, who later became a leader in Queensland. A trial interpreter, Lancelot Threlkeld, explained that Charley had acted because an Englishman had taken a special tribal item called a muramai. The Gringai elders had decided that tribal law needed to be followed. Charley was later brought back to Dungog. A local historian, Michael Williams, noted that Charley was following his own people's laws but faced the laws of the settlers.

Sadly, new diseases brought by Europeans also affected the Gringai. For example, in 1847, 30 Gringai children died from measles.

Important Ceremonies

The Gringai and related groups had important ceremonies. Some of these, like the keeparra, were described by Walter John Enright and R.H. Mathews in the late 1800s. They were allowed to watch and record these ceremonies from the last members of the tribe.

One of the Gringai Bora rings, used for initiation ceremonies, was located at Gresford. A karabari ceremony was also performed when a comet appeared in the sky around 1845 or 1846. This shows their connection to the stars and sky.

Some Gringai Words

Here are a few words from the Gringai language:

• wilhurgulla (place of little sticks)
• erringi (black duck)
• monduk (fertility)

Other Names for Gringai

• Goreenggai

Notable People

• Arabanoo