Blak History Month: Groote Eylandt: Resistance, Connection and Deep Cultural Strength.

Anindilyakwa: Ayangkidarrba meaning “island” is the largest island in the Gulf of Carpentaria and the fourth largest island in Australia. It was named by the explorer Abel Tasman in 1644 and is Dutch for “Large Island”.

Before it was mapped by outsiders, Groote Eylandt was — and still is — home to the Anindilyakwa people, who’ve lived on this sacred island for tens of thousands of years. For many generations, their deep connection to the land, sea, and sky has been maintained through songlines, language, kinship, and ceremony.

This place is steeped in ancient law and sacred meaning. Every rock formation, waterhole, and stretch of coastline tells a story of creation — not as myth, but as lived spiritual geography, guiding life and culture through time.

From at least the 1700s, Groote Eylandt became part of a vast trading network with Macassan seafarers from what is now Indonesia. These visitors came for trepang (sea cucumber), and their presence brought steel tools, tamarind trees, cloth, and language exchanges. Far from a one-sided relationship, the Anindilyakwa people negotiated this contact on their terms, incorporating Macassan influences into culture without losing sovereignty or identity.

In the early 20th century, the winds of change arrived not by sail, but by mission boat. In 1921, the Anglican Church Missionary Society established a mission at Emerald River. While often remembered for health care and education, the mission also brought deep disruption: cultural suppression, imposed religion, and the breaking of traditional family structures. Despite this, the Anindilyakwa people showed immense resilience — maintaining language, law, and identity through the hardest of times.

Today, Groote Eylandt remains a place of profound cultural strength. The Anindilyakwa people continue to walk in two worlds — protecting their land and legacy, while navigating modern challenges with pride, knowledge, and dignity.