The Ngameni are an
indigenous Australian
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples o ...
people of
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
who once spoke the
Ngameni language
Ngamini is an extinct Australian Aboriginal language of the Pama–Nyungan family once spoken by the Ngamini
The Ngameni are an indigenous Australian people of South Australia who once spoke the Ngameni language.
Country
According to Norman ...
.
Country
According to
Norman Tindale
Norman Barnett Tindale AO (12 October 1900 – 19 November 1993) was an Australian anthropologist, archaeologist, entomologist and ethnologist.
Life
Tindale was born in Perth, Western Australia in 1900. His family moved to Tokyo and lived ...
's estimation, the Ngameni held of tribal territory, along the southern edge of
Goyder Lagoon
__NOTOC__
The Goyder Lagoon is a large ephemeral swamp in the Australian state of South Australia in the state's Far North region. The lake is part of the Diamantina River floodplain, lying beside the Birdsville Track close to the state bo ...
, and on the
Warburton River
The Warburton River (or Warburton Creek) is a freshwater stream in the far north of South Australia that flows in a south westerly direction and discharges into the eastern side of Lake Eyre. It is one of the state's largest rivers, and is par ...
, and Lakes Howitt and Berlino. The northern reach extended to
Pandipandi and, over the border into what is now southwest Queensland, the area south of
Birdsville
Birdsville is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Diamantina, Queensland, Australia. In the the locality of Birdsville had a population of 110 people. It is a popular tourist destination with many people using it as a starting point a ...
and Miranda.
Social organization and customs
Both circumcision and
subincision
Penile subincision is a form of genital modification or mutilation consisting of a urethrotomy, in which the underside of the penis is incised and the urethra slit open lengthwise, from the urethral opening ( meatus) toward the base. The slit ca ...
were integral parts of Ngameni rites of
initiation.
Alternative names
* ''Ngamini, Ngaminni, Gnameni, Ngnaminni''
* ''A:mini, Aumini, Auminie, Aumine, Amini''
* ''Ominee''
* ''Ahminie, Ahminnie''
* ''Uminnie''
* ''Agaminni''
* ''Awmani''
Some words
* ''chookeroo''. (kangaroo)
* ''kinthalla'' (tame/wild dog)
* ''appurree'' (father)
* ''andree''. (mother)
Notes
Citations
Sources
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{{authority control
Aboriginal peoples of South Australia