Yugambeh Museum
| Languages | |
|---|---|
| Yugambeh Language |
The Yugambeh people are a tribe of Australian Aboriginal people who inhabit an area in south-east Queensland and north-east New South Wales, now within the Logan City, Gold Coast, Scenic Rim, and Tweed City regions.
Along with other peoples of the Yugambeh-Bandjalang language chain to the south, the Yugambeh people subscribe to an origin story known as "The Three Brothers", which is based on the arrival to this part of the eastern Australian coastline by 3 men/mythical culture heroes and their wives and children in a canoe:
Berang-ngehn gurilahbu, ngering Mumuhm, Yabirahyn or Berrungen korillåbo, ngerring Mommóm, Yaburóng Berrung came long long ago, with Mommóm (and) Yaburóng.
Long ago, Berrung together with Mommóm (and) Yabúrong came to this land. They came with their wives and children in a great canoe, from an island across the sea. As they came near the shore, a woman on the land made a song that raised a storm which broke the canoe in pieces, but all the occupants, after battling with the waves, managed to swim ashore. This is how ‘the men,’ the paigål (baygal) black race, came to this land. The pieces of the canoe are to be seen to this day. If any one will throw a stone and strike a piece of the canoe, a storm will arise, and the voices of Berrúng and his boys will be heard calling to one another, amidst the roaring elements. The pieces of the canoe are certain rocks in the sea. At Ballina, Berrúng looked around and said, nyung? (nyang)and all the paigål about there say nyung to the present day. On the Tweed he said, ngando? (ngahndu)and the Tweed paigål say ngando to the present day. This is how the blacks came to have different dialects. Berrúng and his brothers came back to the Brunswick River, where he made a fire, and showed the paigål how to make fire. He taught them their laws about the kippåra, and about marriage and food. After a time, a quarrel arose, and the brothers fought and separated, Mommóm going south, Yaburóng west, and Berrúng keeping along the coast. This is how the paigål were separated into tribes.
The Yugambeh clans are descendants of the family of the brother who went north, the Githabul from the brother who went west and the Bandjalang from the brother who went south.
Archaeological evidence suggests that Aboriginal people have inhabited the Gold Coast region for about 23,000 years before European settlement and the present. By the early 18th century there were several distinct clan estate groups (previously referred to as tribes) living between the Tweed and Logan Rivers; they are believed to be: the Gugingin, Bullongin, Kombumerri, Tul-gi-gin, Moorang-Mooburra, Cudgenburra, Birinburra, Wangerriburra, Mununjali and Migunberri
...
Wikipedia