Regionalism in the recent rock art of western Arnhem Land, Northern Territory

Abstract

Abstract For at least a thousand years various areas within western Arnhem Land have been associated with a relative abundance of freshwater food resources. Aboriginal groups were thus able to subsist within the confines of territories that are much smaller than in many other parts of the Australian continent. As a consequence, the first Europeans to visit the area observed numerous regional language boundaries, many of which were associated with particular bands, clans and/or families. My recent research has found a strong correlation between forms and sub‐styles of recent rock paintings, linguistics and mythology associated with Ancestral Beings, the landscape and events of the past. This relationship adds a new dimension to interpreting the prehistory of the region. I outline many of the most significant trends in the rock art body and then rock paintings and myths are examined to throw light on major events of the prehistoric record that are further removed in time. I conclude that there are implications for other areas of Australia.

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