Global Glossary

" There is no equivalent to the Cartesian notion of 'I think therefore I am' but, if there were, it would be - I am located therefore I am. " (Mary Graham).

Aboriginal should always be spell with a capital A, many Aboriginal people prefer to be known as First Nations People, or Aboriginal people, not Indigenous people.

Aboriginal people have made the English Language into an Aboriginal language in the added Aboriginal meaning they have given to the English word, e.g. "land " for Aboriginal people has great spiritual significance and is not seen as a piece of ' real estate ' ; " family " does not just refer to immediate family or blood relatives.

An introduced Government(s) Policy, with the stated intention that Aboriginal people, should take on the same values, and the same life style as white Australians.

Aunt is the more formal address, and Aunty the more familiar. Female Elders in the Community are usually addressed as Aunt/Aunty, if people are unsure of how to address Elders or older people, than it is best to ask.

A number of clans are part of the major language groups, each with their own lands and responsibilities.

For Aboriginal people " colonialism " is not part of the past, but is still part of the present, and is a continuing process.

Are older male or female Aboriginal people who are recognised as " Elders ", by their Community, as knowledgeable people who hold a deal of respect.

Most people understand, that Aboriginal people belong to an extended family (blood relatives), but this has to be extended again to include non-blood relatives as well, and again this needs to be extended to include the whole Aboriginal Community.