Aboriginal Affairs Minister Ben Wyatt last night launched the Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili (Our Country on Paper) display, an interactive map of Noongar place names to be showcased at the Museum of Perth.
Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili, is the first map of its kind in Australia to comprehensively document the Aboriginal place names of a capital city's central business district.
Researchers within the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries (DLGSC) Aboriginal History WA unit have worked for several years to identify and record more than thirty significant Noongar cultural sites and place names throughout the Perth Central Business District.
The map is part of a series of exhibition panels featuring records from the State Records Office, photos from the State Library of Western Australia and artwork from the City of Perth.
The panels will be on display at the Museum of Perth until early 2021 and will also go on tour, sharing this important history with wider audiences throughout metropolitan Perth in local libraries, schools, and public places.
The Museum of Perth partnered with DLGSC to deliver the exhibition.
The Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili map panels can be hired from the Museum of Perth by local governments, schools, and community groups to display them for events or special occasions.
The map is available to access online at https://www.dlgsc.wa.gov.au/aboriginal-history
As stated by Aboriginal Affairs Minister Ben Wyatt:
"All Western Australians share a special relationship to the land, with Aboriginal people sharing a spiritual connection to country that goes back tens of thousands of years.
"Gnarla Boodja Mili Mili brings to life the traditional names of inner-city Perth.
"I encourage all local governments and the broader community to embrace Aboriginal traditional names in regions throughout Western Australia."
