The Gayiri, people, also spelt or known as Kairi, Kararya, Kari, Khararya and Kaira, Bimurraburra, Gahrarja, Gara Gara, Ara Ara, and Kara Kara, are an

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 ...

people of the state of

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

Country

According to an estimation made by

Norman Tindale Norman Barnett Tindale AO (12 October 1900 – 19 November 1993) was an Australian anthropologist, archaeologist, entomologist and ethnologist. He is best remembered for his work mapping the various tribal groupings of Aboriginal Australians ...

, the Kairi held sway over some of territory, from the

Great Dividing Range The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills. It runs roughl ...

south of

Springsure Springsure is a rural town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Central Highlands Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Springsure had a population of 950 people. Geography Springsure is situated by road ...

north to

Capella Capella is the brightest star in the northern constellation of Auriga. It has the Bayer designation α Aurigae, which is Latinisation of names, Latinised to Alpha Aurigae and abbreviated Alpha Aur or α Aur. Capella is the lis ...

. The Drummond Range formed their western frontier, while their eastern boundaries were drawn by the

Comet A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that warms and begins to release gases when passing close to the Sun, a process called outgassing. This produces an extended, gravitationally unbound atmosphere or Coma (cometary), coma surrounding ...

and upper Mackenzie (Nogoa) rivers.

Social organisation

The Kairi were divided into hordes, the name of at least one of which is known. * ''Bimurraburra'' (a clan in the environs of

Emerald Emerald is a gemstone and a variety of the mineral beryl (Be3Al2(SiO3)6) colored green by trace amounts of chromium or sometimes vanadium.Hurlbut, Cornelius S. Jr., and Kammerling, Robert C. (1991). ''Gemology'', John Wiley & Sons, New York ...

)

Alternative names

* ''Khararya'' (''kara'' is their word for "no".) * ''Bimurraburra''

Cullin-la-ringo massacre

Gayiri men were involved in the

Cullin-la-ringo massacre The Cullin-la-ringo massacre, also known as the Wills tragedy, was a massacre of white colonists by Indigenous Australians that occurred on 17 October 1861, north of modern-day Springsure, Queensland, Springsure in Central Queensland, Austra ...

, in which 19 settlers were killed as retribution after Gayiri men had been murdered after being falsely accused of stealing cattle. Settlers and

native police Australian native police were specialised mounted military units consisting of detachments of Aboriginal Australians, Aboriginal troopers under the command of European officers appointed by British colonial governments. The units existed in va ...

Country

Social organisation

Alternative names

Cullin-la-ringo massacre

Notes

Citations

Sources