Epigraph: Welcome to Country
Beereewagal, naa niya. [People who come from afar, I see all of you. Aboriginal people camped here, at this place, long ago.]
Ngoon dyalgala niya, ngoon bamaraabanga ni. [We embrace all of you; we open the door to all of you.]
Ngoon - mari ngurang - niya mudang yura ngurra. [We lend this place to all of you to live while we sleep.]
Dyi nga ni nura. [Here I see my country.]
'The Dharawal Country is bounded by the south of Botany Bay, the Georges River, Appin, Goulburn and the coastal lands down to Wreck Bay near Nowra. The publication of this book is an important community milestone. Les Bursill and Mary Jacobs, in collaboration with artist Deborah Lennis, and with the community representation of Merv Ryan and the recently deceased and muchrespected elder Beryl Timbery-Beller, have provided a valuable summary of local Dharawal culture, kinship and totemic relationships, women’s business, men’s business, body decoration, habitats, music, dance, oral tradition and art styles. There is also a section on Dharawal charcoal drawings of extinct thylacines in southern Sydney.' (Introduction)
'The Dharawal Country is bounded by the south of Botany Bay, the Georges River, Appin, Goulburn and the coastal lands down to Wreck Bay near Nowra. The publication of this book is an important community milestone. Les Bursill and Mary Jacobs, in collaboration with artist Deborah Lennis, and with the community representation of Merv Ryan and the recently deceased and muchrespected elder Beryl Timbery-Beller, have provided a valuable summary of local Dharawal culture, kinship and totemic relationships, women’s business, men’s business, body decoration, habitats, music, dance, oral tradition and art styles. There is also a section on Dharawal charcoal drawings of extinct thylacines in southern Sydney.' (Introduction)
