The term fringe dwellers has been used in Australia to describe groups of

Aboriginal Australian Aboriginal Australians are the various indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, excluding the ethnically distinct people of the Torres Strait Islands. Humans first migrated to Australia 50,000 to 65,000 year ...

s who camp on the outskirts of

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

s and cities, from which they have become excluded, generally through law or land alienation as a result of

colonisation 475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence. Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...

. In

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

, South Australia, the term was applied particularly in the early days of settlement to those who camped in the

Adelaide park lands The Adelaide Park Lands comprise the figure-eight configuration of land, spanning both banks of the River Torrens between Hackney and Thebarton, which encloses and separates the City of Adelaide area (including both the Adelaide city centre and ...

around the

city centre A city centre, also known as an urban core, is the Commerce, commercial, Culture, cultural and often the historical, Politics, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely e ...

. Fringe dwellers are also referred to as "Long Grassers" in contemporary times, especially in Northern Australia where year-long warm weather conditions allow itinerant Aborigines to live indefinitely on the outskirts of towns without official places of residence. The term was used for the 1961 novel ''

The Fringe Dwellers ''The Fringe Dwellers'' is a 1986 film directed by Bruce Beresford, based on the 1961 novel '' The Fringe Dwellers'' by Western Australian author Nene Gare.Nene Gare, The Fringe Dwellers, Sun Books, Melbourne, 1966 (first published by Heinemann, ...

'' by

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

n author

Nene Gare Nene Gare (9 May 191929 May 1994) was an Australian writer and artist, best known as the author of the novel ''The Fringe Dwellers'' (1961), which was made into the 1986 Australian film of the same name directed by Bruce Beresford. Personal li ...

.Nene Gare, The Fringe Dwellers, Sun Books, Melbourne, 1966 (first published by Heinemann, London, 1961) That book was adapted as the 1986 Australian film ''

'', directed by

Bruce Beresford Bruce Beresford (; born 16 August 1940) is an Australian film director, opera director, screenwriter, and producer. He began his career during the Australian New Wave, and has made more than 30 feature films over a 50-year career, both locally ...

References

{{reflist Indigenous Australian culture Homelessness in Australia

See also

References