Areyonga, Northern Territory

Areyonga (Pitjantjatjara: Utju) is a small town in the Northern Territory of Australia, located about 220 km (140 mi) west of Alice Springs. As of 2016 it had a population of about 195, most of whom are Aboriginal people of the Pitjantjatjara language group.

Areyonga
Northern Territory
Areyonga settlement in the Northern Territory of Australia (circa 1958)
Areyonga is located in Northern Territory
Areyonga
Areyonga
Coordinates24°05′14″S 132°16′19″E[1]
Population195 (2016 census)[2]
Established1920s
Postcode(s)0872[3]
Time zoneACST (UTC+9:30)
Location
LGA(s)MacDonnell Region[1]
Territory electorate(s)Stuart[4]
Federal division(s)Lingiari[5]
Suburbs around Areyonga:
Mereenie Mereenie Namatjira
Mereenie Areyonga Namatjira
Mereenie Mereenie Namatjira
FootnotesAdjoining localities[6][7]

History

Areyonga was founded during the 1920s. A long drought forced Pitjantatjara families to leave Kaḻṯukatjara and other places in the Petermann Ranges. They originally moved to Hermannsburg and then set up a new community at Areyonga. A Lutheran mission was established in the settlement in the 1940s. In the 1970s, many people from the mission moved back to the community at Kaḻṯukatjara. The Lutheran mission at Areyonga was closed in 1990, and the land was given back to the native people as part of the Haasts Bluff Aboriginal Land Trust.[8] The term "Finke River Mission" was initially an alternative name for the mission at Hermannsburg, but this name was later often used to include the settlements at Haasts Bluff, Areyonga and, later, Papunya. It now refers to all Lutheran missionary activity in Central Australia since the first mission was established at Hermannsburg in 1877.[9][10][11]

Geography and location

Areyonga is in the valley of a deep and spectacular gorge. It has abundant flora and fauna along its creek bed and waterholes, including a large feral donkey population. It is a 20 km (12 mi) detour from the Mereenie Loop for visitors coming through from Kings Canyon, and no permit is required to visit.

Governance

The town is governed by Areyonga Aboriginal Community.

Areyonga is located within the federal division of Lingiari, the territory electoral division of Stuart and the local government area of the MacDonnell Region.[5][4][6]

Demographics

The 2016 Australian census which was conducted in August 2016 reports that Areyonga had 195 people living within its boundaries of which 176 (89.8%) identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people. The people are mostly Pitjantjatjara, with some Arrernte and Walpiri families.[2]

Art

It has a thriving Community Arts Centre with sought-after artists.

Pitjantjatjara artist, Bill Whiskey Tjapaltjarri worked at Areyonga.[12]

References
  1. "Place Names Register Extract for Areyonga (locality)". NT Place Names Register. Northern Territory Government. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  2. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Areyonga (State Suburb)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  3. "Areyonga Postcode". postcode-finders.com.au. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  4. "Division of Namatjira". Northern Territory Electoral Commission. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  5. "Federal electoral division of Lingiari". Australian Electoral Commission. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  6. "Localities within McDonnell Shire (sic) (map)" (PDF). Northern Territory Government. 2 April 2007. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  7. "Community of Areyonga (CP 5110)". NT Place Names Register. Northern Territory Government. 5 April 2007. Archived from the original on 4 March 2017. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  8. Trengove, Anna (7 November 2011). "Areyonga (1920s – )". Find & Connect. Australian Government, Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
  9. George, Karen; George, Gary (17 March 2017). "Finke River Mission – Glossary Term – Northern Territory". Find & Connect. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  10. "About". Finke River Mission. 29 October 2018. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  11. "Finke River Mission 135th Anniversary". Lutheran Church of Australia. Archived from the original on 24 June 2015.
  12. "Profile". cooeeart.com.au. Cooee Art. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
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