The image above is of Dight's Falls. The Falls is man-made structure made in 1840 by the Dight brothers to supply water for their mill.  The site is the confluence  (two waterways coming together) of the Merri Creek and the Yarra River and was a rich hunting and fishing ground for the Wurundjeri people. Click on the image to the right to watch a video about why this place is so important. 

The Wurundjeri People

The discovery of gold at Warrandyte in 1851 meant even more challenges for the Wurundjeri tribe. The Indigenous way of life means that different places are visited and different types of foods are eaten depending on the seasons. All across the Yarra Valley and further out towards Port Phillip Bay, settlers had arrived to build towns, establish farms and mine for gold. Travel across to new hunting grounds was more and more dangerous. 

The tribal leaders began asking the Government for lands so they could live safely as early as the 1840s.  In 1863, after many months of walking across the land looking for place where they could settle in peace, the Wurundjeri people came to  Coranderrk (Badger) Creek. The Coranderrk Mission in Healesville was established. Simon Wonga and William Barak had convinced the Government to allow them to "make a place for themselves in the new colonial order by living sedentary lifestyles and farming the land" as Wonga's father had asked for years before (Nanni & James, 2013, p. 6).
​




​Coranderrk means Christmas Bush. Click on the image on the left to read more about the Wurundjeri culture. ​

The Wurundjeri seven seasons

Europeans have four seasons, Summer, Autumn, Winter and Spring which are based on the British seasons. The Kulin people observe seven seasons. You can find out more about the seasons by clicking the image below. 
Zoos Victoria has lots of interesting information from stories of the dreaming to the seasons, called Dreaming the Indigenous Way. You can read about these by clicking here.
​
​Did you know that the Noongar People in Bunbury, WA have six seasons? Click on the image to go to the Bunbury site with Neville Jetta to find out more.

How the river changed its name
The Yarra River got its name from  surveyor John Wedge, who was with John Batman on the original 1835 exploration. Wedge asked local Indigenous people the name of the river close to the city where it flowed over rocks and falls. They replied 'Yarro Yarro', meaning 'it flows'. Can you see how the name came to be? 

Today,  we recognise the original name for river with the parklands of  Birrarung Marr. This is because Birrarung means 'place of mists and shadows' and Marr means 'on the edge of'. 

Watch the video to take a trip along the river from Warburton to Melbourne and see how it changes on its way to Port Phillip Bay.

How places around the Yarra Valley are named

Some modern suburbs around the Yarra Valley and it tributaries have names that reflect their Indigenous connections. Here are a few, but there are others. 
  • Warrandyte is thought to be a combination of the Wurundjeri words 'warran' (to throw) and 'dyte' (the object aimed at).
  • Wonga Park was a grazing property named after Simon Wonga, leader of the Wurundjeri people.
  • Bulleen is taken from the Wurundjeri name for a billabong in the area called 'Bolin Bolin'. 
  • Darebin Creek is named for the swallow, a common bird in the area. 

The City of Casey includes the traditional lands of the Wurundjeri and Boon Wurrong people. It also has suburbs with Indigenous names.
  • Carrum is from the Boon Wurrong word 'Karrum' and means a boomerang.
  • Dandenong is from the Wurundjeri word 'Tanjenong', which was the local name for the creek that ran out of the ranges towards the Yarra.
  • Narre Warren is a name that refers to the hilly countryside.