Nganmarriyanga, formerly known as Palumpa, is an Aboriginal community in the Daly River region of the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

, Australia.

History

Nganmarriyanga is an Aboriginal community that was originally established as Palumpa, the name of an adjoining

cattle station In Australia and New Zealand, a cattle station is a large farm ( station is equivalent to the American ranch), the main activity of which is the rearing of cattle. The owner of a cattle station is called a '' grazier''. The largest cattle stati ...

. This station was established after the Second World War to provide supplies to nearby communities, including

Wadeye Wadeye ( ) is a town in Australia's Northern Territory (NT). It was formerly known (and is still often referred to) as Port Keats, a name originating from Port Keats Mission, which operated from 1935 (originally at a different location, known as ...

. Its name was changed from Palumpa at the request of the Community Council. It was founded by the Wodidj family, which left the area after a period of initial contact with white Australian settlers before World War II. They left the area, with the men seeking work on cattle stations in northern

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 ...

, returning to the nearby Port Keats Mission (now

) after the war. They then moved to the present location and started building the community. They cut timber, built fences, dug trenches to pipe water from the creeks, and ran cattle which were sold to people at nearby communities. During the 1980s the population of Palumpa grew, and in 1985 Palumpa Community Inc. was formed as a local governing body, and raised funds for building infrastructure.

Governance

Nganmarriyanga was in the

Victoria Daly Shire The Victoria Daly Regional Council is a local government area in the Northern Territory of Australia. The shire covers an area of and had a population of 3,138 in June 2018. History In October 2006 the Northern Territory Government announced ...

when it was established, but was moved into the new

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...

West Daly Region The West Daly Regional Council is a Local Government Areas of the Northern Territory, local government area of the Northern Territory, Australia. The shire covers an area of and had a population of 3,649 in June 2018, with over 90% identifying ...

when it was established in 2014 The community falls under the auspices of the

Northern Land Council The Northern Land Council (NLC) is a land council representing the Aboriginal peoples of the Top End of the Northern Territory of Australia, with its head office in Darwin. While the NLC was established in 1974, its origins began in the strug ...

Location and access

Nganmarriyanga lies west of the Daly River crossing along the Port Keats Road. There is road access around eight months of the year, usually from May until December. During the

wet season The wet season (sometimes called the rainy season or monsoon season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. Generally, the season lasts at least one month. The term ''green season'' is also sometimes used a ...

, the area is only accessible via plane because the roads are impassable due to regular flooding. In late February to early March 2023, heavy rains fell over the area. The upper Victoria River exceeded major flood levels, and evacuations were ordered for residents of Daguragu,

Kalkarindji Kalkarindji (formerly Wave Hill Welfare Settlement, also spelt Kalkaringi) is a town and locality in the Northern Territory of Australia, located on the Buntine Highway about south of the territory capital of Darwin and located about south o ...

, Pigeon Hole, and Palumpa.

Demographics

Nganmarriyanga's population was recorded as 427 in the

2021 Australian census The 2021 Australian census, simply called the 2021 Census, was the eighteenth national Census of Population and Housing in Australia. The 2021 Census took place on 10 August 2021, and was conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). ...

. The main language spoken in Nganmarriyanga is Murrinh-patha.

Activities and facilities

Palumpa Station continues as a

proprietary limited company A proprietary company, the characteristic of which is abbreviated as "Pty", is a form of privately held company in Australia, Namibia and South Africa that is either limited or unlimited. However, unlike a public company there are, depending ...

run by the

traditional owners Native title is the set of rights, recognised by Australian law, held by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups or individuals to land that derive from their maintenance of their traditional laws and customs. These Aboriginal title rig ...

, with a new

abattoir In livestock agriculture and the meat industry, a slaughterhouse, also called an abattoir (), is a facility where livestock animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a meat ...

built in the 2020s, and is a major employer of local Aboriginal men. People at Palumpa like to hunt

bullock Bullock may refer to: Animals * Bullock (in British English), a castrated male cattle, bovine animal of any age * Bullock (in American English), a young bull (an uncastrated male bovine animal) * Bullock (in Australia, India and New Zealand), an o ...

turtle Turtles are reptiles of the order (biology), order Testudines, characterized by a special turtle shell, shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Crypt ...

goose A goose (: geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera '' Anser'' (grey geese and white geese) and '' Branta'' (black geese). Some members of the Tadorninae subfamily (e.g., Egy ...

goanna A goanna is any one of several species of lizard of the genus ''Monitor lizard, Varanus'' found in Australia and Southeast Asia. Around 70 species of ''Varanus'' are known, 25 of which are found in Australia. This varied group of carnivorous r ...

, cat-fish,

kangaroo Kangaroos are marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use, the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern gre ...

and

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

. Nganmarriyanga Primary School has an enrolment of 130 students from preschool to Year 10. There is a community health clinic, built in 1998 and operated by Territory Health Services.

References

{{authority control Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory