Wiilman facts for kids
The Wiilman are an Indigenous group from Western Australia. They are part of the larger Noongar people. Their traditional lands are in the Wheatbelt, Great Southern, and South West areas of Western Australia. You might also see their name spelled as Wilman, Wilmen, or Wheelman. The name Wiilman is what they call themselves.
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The Wiilman Language
The Wiilman people had their own language, also called Wiilman. Sadly, this language is no longer spoken today. Not much was written down about it. However, experts believe it was part of the Nyungar language family.
Wiilman Traditional Lands
The Wiilman people originally lived on a large area of land. This area was about 17,350 square kilometers (6,700 square miles). It included places where towns like Collie, Boddington, Pingelly, Wickepin, Narrogin, Williams, Lake Grace, Wagin, and Katanning are now located.
Boundaries of Wiilman Country
The northern edge of Wiilman country was around Wuraming. It stretched through Gnowing, which is north of Wandering, and then to Dattening and Pingelly.
To the east, their land included Wickepin, Dudinin, and Lake Grace. The southern boundary of Wiilman country included Nyabing (which was once called Nampup), Katanning, Woodanilling, and Duranillin.
Wiilman Stories and Culture
Ethel Hassell wrote a lot about the "Wheelman tribe," which was her name for the Wiilman people. Her writings were not well known for a long time. Then, in 1930, an American expert named Daniel Sutherland Davidson found her work. He was looking through old records in Australia.
Davidson helped get Hassell's work published. It appeared in parts in a journal called Folklore between 1934 and 1935.
According to another expert, Norman Tindale, some of the stories and information thought to be from the Wiilman actually came from their neighbors to the south, the Koreng people. This means some of the recorded culture might also show Koreng traditions.
Other Names for the Wiilman
The Koreng people, who lived next to the Wiilman, called them Jaburu. This name means "northerners" or "north-westerners." It was a name used by others, not by the Wiilman themselves.
Some early European settlers called them "the Williams tribe." This was because of their location near the town of Williams.
Sometimes, shorter versions of the name Wiilman were used, like Weal or Weel.
