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Acknowledging Yugambeh Country
For schools, councils, businesses and event organisers: whose Country you are on, how to acknowledge it, and how to ask for a Welcome.
Whose Country is this?
Yugambeh Country runs from the ranges to the sea, in an area now commonly known as south-east Queensland and the Northern Rivers of New South Wales.
It takes in the valleys of five rivers:
- DugulumbaLogan
- BilinoobaAlbert
- GumeraCoomera
- NyirangNerang
- GugaiTweed
Towns shown on our map of Country include Beaudesert, Boonah, Jimboomba, Coomera, Southport, Nerang, Tweed Heads and Murwillumbah. Across the Nation, each clan holds a piece of country that is theirs to care for; our clans page shows whose country is whose, and Place names gives the Yugambeh names for places you may know.
An Acknowledgement of Country
An Acknowledgement of Country is a recognition of unceded sovereignty, an act of respect and reconciliation, and a reminder that more needs to be done.
Anyone can give an Acknowledgement of Country. At an event, it is preferably given by the first or second speaker.
It is not necessary for every speaker to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians when they get up. A few Elders have expressed that this lessens the gravity of the Welcome.
Other times the Nation would like an Acknowledgement given (assemblies, meetings, email signatures, websites).
We prefer that you find the clan whose Country you are on, and acknowledge that clan by name.
Not sure which clan? Our clans page shows whose country is whose, and Place names can help you find your area.
Our Acknowledgement
I’d like to acknowledge the [clan] clan of the Yugambeh Nation as the Traditional Custodians of the Lands and Waters on which I [meet]. I pay respect to their Elders past and present.See this clan on the map
Longer version, for speaking
Jingeri, I’d like to acknowledge the [clan] clan of the Yugambeh Nation as the Traditional Custodians of these Lands and Waters. I pay respect to their Elders past and present, acknowledging the deep connection and wisdom they hold in this space. Important to me is the Indigenous [knowledge of, or connection to, your activity or place], which is still [how it is still here].
The spoken version uses the clan and speaker chosen above. Jingeri and Minyahgu both mean hello; pick one.
Finish with a learning for the audience: the Indigenous knowledge of, or connection to, the main activity or the place where your event is held, and how it is still here today. For example:
- “Important to us is the Indigenous knowledge of birthing practices, which is still informing modern medicine to this day.”
- “Important to us is the Indigenous connection to the land this stadium is built on, which is still here.”
A Welcome to Country
A Welcome to Country is only given by a Traditional Custodian of the Yugambeh Nation.
How much notice the Nation needs, and what to include in a request (date, place, audience, any fee or honorarium).
Getting it right
“We are Yugambeh, not just ‘Aboriginal’ - This is our country.”
From Homogenisation of First Nations is DiscriminationAboriginal Australians are not a homogenous group, there are hundreds of Traditional Nations, clans, and family groups, as well as a myriad of complexity around Historical Communities and Stolen Generations. There is no single ‘Aboriginal’ group.
The Nation’s dos and don’ts: how to name the Nation, who to consult on Yugambeh Country, and anything organisations commonly get wrong.