Dambeemangaddee Country
Dambeemangaddee Country stretches along the Kimberley coast from the Robinson River, north of Derby, all the way to the Prince Regent River area in the North Kimberley. It has been our home for many thousands of years.
Culture is everywhere
All of our country holds meaning. It is more than just a place with specific features, plants, fish, creeks and animals. It is a very special place, rich in cultural sites. We have sacred sites and stories everywhere. There are special places for ceremony, burial sites, middens, engravings, stone arrangements, sites where ochres and clays were collected, fish traps, law sites with restricted access, tools, story lines connecting clan estates, seasonal camping areas, tidal flows and trading routes.
Compared to most places in the world, our Country is very healthy and undisturbed. It is of great conservation significance, home to threatened and endemic species which are important to all Australians. These values are recognised nationally and internationally in many conventions.
Saltwater Country
We are Saltwater People. Saltwater is a
powerful living force. It is Woongudd. Our Sea
Country includes the presence of Woongudd such
as coral reefs, powerful whirlpools, rugged cliffs, sandy
beaches, and more than 700 islands.
Dambeemangaddee Country is home to powerful places
like Garaan-ngaddim (Horizontal Waterfalls) and
important reefs like Yowjab (Montgomery Reef). Huge
semi-diurnal tides range up to 11 metres. The currents,
which we call legs, move between narrow passages
and islands; they can create powerful tidal streams, and
dangerous whirlpools. This Country can be dangerous,
but our Old People used to travel on their rafts following
the legs of the tide from the mainland to islands and bays.
They travelled along the coast and among the islands
in double-log rafts called meeyalba by Woddordda
(also known as galam), and in dugout canoes called
baddawara
.
