Guwaabal Wayaama-dhi (Stories of our Elders) is a project created by the Winanga-Li Aboriginal Child and Family Centre to support the new Aboriginal Languages Curriculum, which includes engagement with local Elders. This program focuses on key language linked to topics such as traditional stories, significant sites, place names, and knowledge about plants and animals. The project is based in Gunnedah and is attended by 12 local Aboriginal women Elders.
This project is helping to address the intergenerational trauma caused by the loss of traditional language, which forms a central part of the cultural heritage of Gamilaraay women.
Aboriginal women Elders (Wayamaa) have considerable cultural knowledge and stories (Guwaabal) about their Country (land, animals, plants), and reclaiming the language which is integral to that knowledge is supporting them in their traditional role of transmitting that knowledge to future generations.
Guwaabal Wayamaa-dhi demonstrates the ability for Aboriginal people to move into the twenty-first century using a language developed over thousands of years as a fundamental way of communicating culture; merging the traditional with the contemporary while remaining respectful to the old ways.
Taking this knowledge into formal school settings strengthens the ability of Aboriginal girls to understand who they are and where they belong, gaining confidence through traditional knowledge and its twenty-first century applications.
ACFC 1 Jackie Tara Tanya My great grandmother could speak the language fluently, but she wasn’t allowed to speak it to us and we grew up without knowing it. Without the language I feel disconnected from my background, even though I grew up strong in culture and my mother had a lot of knowledge and traditional stories. It makes me proud to learn the language now and greet people in Gamilaraay when they come to our work. The children really enjoy learning our language and speaking it with me.
Aunty Fiona, program participant
It also allows Aboriginal girls and women to retain or regain the respect of men and boys through these understandings.
Aboriginal Elders and children demonstrate the power of self-determination as they come together to transfer knowledge and strengthen cultural identity.
This project also integrates the matriarchs of Wayamaa into the education system, involving them in the learning journeys of their grandchildren and other children in the community. By doing so, it demonstrates to the children the shared commitment and interest we all have in their educational growth.