References are given in this Project to the impact of
European colonization on the culture and lifestyles of the Aboriginal peoples of
the Port Phillip region
An appreciation of these influences is considered
important in gaining an understanding of the reasons for the establishment of
the Aboriginal Protectorate in the Dandenong Police Paddocks Reserve
The area around Port Phillip and the Yarra valley, on which
the city of Melbourne now stands, was the home of the Kulin people, an alliance
of several language groups of Indigenous Australians, whose ancestors had lived
in the area for an estimated 31,000 to 40,000 years. At the time of European
settlement the population of indigenous inhabitants was estimated to be under
20,000, who were hunter-gatherers from three tribes: the Wurundjeri, Boonwurrung
and Wathaurong.
The area was an important meeting place for the clans of the
Kulin, as well as a vital source of food, water and a sheltered Bay Area for
clan meetings and annual events. The Kulin lived by fishing, hunting and
gathering, and made a good living from the rich food sources of Port Phillip and
the surrounding grasslands.
Many of the Aboriginal people who live in Melbourne today are
descended from aboriginal groups from other parts of Victoria and Australia.
However, there are still people who identify as Wurundjeri and Boonwurrung
descendants of the original people who occupied the area of Melbourne prior to
European settlement. While there are few overt signs of the Aboriginal past in
the Melbourne area, there are a wealth of sites of cultural and spiritual
significance
