Traditional Country

The traditional homelands of the Wik, Wik Way and Kugu people lie in and around the Aurukun Shire. The community is rich in traditional cultural practices. The predominant language is Wik Mungkan with remains of other dialects still spoken.

The  local residents are the creators of stunning arts and crafts now held in high esteem and displayed in prominent museums and galleries around the country and across the World.

Aurukun has a Rare Culture

The traditional homelands of the Wik, Wik Way and Kugu people lie in and around the Aurukun Shire. The community is rich in traditional cultural practices. The predominant language is Wik Mungkan with remains of other dialects still spoken. English is taught in the school.

Based on the 2006 Census, 93.7% of the population is Indigenous (3.5% of the Queensland population is Indigenous). Furthermore Aurukun is deeply linked to its traditional culture – 86.7% of the population speaks a traditional Indigenous language at home. This is rare in the Queensland Aboriginal population – only 5.3% of the total Queensland Indigenous population speaks a traditional Indigenous language at home. Traditional culture in the Aurukun community was not deliberately undermined (for example by prohibition of speaking of the native tongues) as it was in most other communities.

Occupation of traditional lands (the outstation movement) has been inhibited by the lack of wet season transport options and by lack of institutional support in recent years. Now, however, traditional owners are receiving strong support from their corporation Aak Puul Nganttam which is placing a strong emphasis on outstation development and sustainability.

 

The local residents are the creators of stunning arts and crafts now held in high esteem and displayed in prominent museums and galleries around the country and across the World.

Traditional house opening ceremonies take place in Aurukun regularly – they are moving events to witness. Aurukun is one of the very few remaining places where visitors can immerse themselves in the Aboriginal heritage and learn about the culture from the people, firsthand.

Creativity within Tradition

The house opening ceremonies of Aurukun are drawn from ancient tradition, from when people camped in the bush on their traditional lands in temporary shelters. Traditionally, access to the camp area in which someone had died could be “closed” for up to two years. Eventually a ceremony would be held near that place shortly before the wet season to send the deceased person’s spirit back to his or her traditional lands and to set the place right for people to live in again. The immediate family and the in-laws of the deceased would hunt and gather food for a large feast and groups from other clans would be invited to participate. Those who came, all well dressed and decorated, would demonstrate their condolences to the close family in moving expressions of grief.

People live in different circumstances today. The people have the benefit of permanent modern homes. However, with a high level of overcrowding in community housing, homes in which people die may now be closed for only three months – that is a family decision. Families still play the same role in arranging and catering for the ceremonies but store-bought food is provided. Songmen and traditional instruments support traditional dances but recorded music is also played. Songs and dances directly address the spirit of the deceased, assuring it of continuing remembrance. Many different groups dance, each group in a distinctive and colourful costume. The ceremonies serve to remind the people of their traditional culture and heritage.

Census Data

Source : quickstats.censusdata.abs.gov.au

People

Aurukun

%

Queensland

%

Australia

%

Aboriginal

1,162

97.3

122,896

78.9

495,757

90.4

Torres Strait Islander

8

0.7

20,094

12.9

31,407

5.7

Both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

24

2.0

12,834

8.2

21,206

3.9

Total

1,194

155,824

548,370

Male

590

49.5

76,744

49.3

270,331

49.3

Female

603

50.5

79,081

50.7

278,037

50.7

For the 2011 Census in Aurukun (Indigenous Locations), there were 1,194 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Of these, 590 (or 49.5%) were male and 603 (or 50.5%) were female.

Age

Aurukun

%

Queensland

%

Australia

%

0-4 years

123

10.3

20,384

13.1

67,415

12.3

5-14 years

255

21.4

38,085

24.4

129,670

23.6

15-24 years

220

18.4

29,609

19.0

105,652

19.3

25-54 years

490

41.1

53,777

34.5

192,627

35.1

55-64 years

53

4.4

8,641

5.5

32,232

5.9

65 years and over

52

4.4

5,331

3.4

20,772

3.8

Median age

25

20

21

In Aurukun (Indigenous Locations) the median age of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people was 25 years. Of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people 31.7% were children aged 0 to 14 years and 4.4% were people aged 65 years and over.

Registered marital status

Aurukun

%

Queensland

%

Australia

%

People aged 15 years and over
Married

49

6.0

20,924

21.5

85,741

24.4

Separated

4

0.5

3,939

4.0

14,925

4.2

Divorced

7

0.9

6,107

6.3

23,126

6.6

Widowed

31

3.8

2,990

3.1

12,142

3.5

Never married

722

88.8

63,395

65.1

215,347

61.3

In Aurukun (Indigenous Locations) 6.0% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were married and 1.1% were either divorced or separated.

Marital Status Charts

Median age by registered marital status

Aurukun

%

Queensland

%

Australia

%

People aged 15 years and over
Married

43

45

44

Separated

30

46

46

Divorced

39

51

51

Widowed

67

66

65

Never married

32

26

26

In Aurukun (Indigenous Locations) for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people the median age of married people was 43 years and the median age of people never married was 32 years.

Social marital status

Aurukun

%

Queensland

%

Australia

%

People aged 15 years and over
Registered marriage

47

5.9

18,335

21.4

71,575

23.3

De facto marriage

275

34.5

16,111

18.8

48,600

15.8

Not married

475

59.6

51,114

59.7

187,097

60.9

In Aurukun (Indigenous Locations) 5.9% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were in a registered marriage and 34.5% were in a de facto marriage.

Median age by social marital status

Aurukun

%

Queensland

%

Australia

%

People aged 15 years and over
Registered marriage

44

45

45

De facto marriage

39

33

34

Not married

30

28

28

In Aurukun (Indigenous Locations) for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people the median age in a registered marriage was 44 years and in a de facto marriage was 39 years.

Education

Aurukun

%

Queensland

%

Australia

%

Pre-school

40

12.0

2,960

4.9

13,977

6.2

Primary

185

55.4

24,202

39.9

81,554

36.4

Secondary

54

16.2

14,331

23.6

50,986

22.8

Technical or further education institution

0

0.0

2,746

4.5

13,211

5.9

University or tertiary institution

4

1.2

2,862

4.7

10,125

4.5

Other

7

2.1

997

1.6

3,662

1.6

Not stated

44

13.2

12,571

20.7

50,410

22.5

Total

334

60,669

223,925

Of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Aurukun (Indigenous Locations), 28.1% were attending an educational institution. Of these, 55.4% were attending a primary school, 16.2% were attending a secondary school and 1.5% were attending a tertiary or technical institution.

Education Charts
People — language diversity
demographics & education | language diversity | employment

Australian Indigenous Language, top responses

Aurukun

%

Queensland

%

Australia

%

Wik Mungkan

1,086

91.0

1,350

0.9

1,355

0.2

Cape York Peninsula Languages, nec

51

4.3

234

0.2

244

0.0

Yumplatok (Torres Strait Creole)

8

0.7

4,917

3.2

5,150

0.9

Wik Ngathan

3

0.3

4

0.0

4

0.0

Other Australian Indigenous Languages, nec

3

0.3

102

0.1

562

0.1

English only spoken at home

15

1.3

133,395

85.6

453,895

82.8

People — employment
demographics & education | language diversity | employment

Employment

Aurukun

%

Queensland

%

Australia

%

People who reported being in the labour force, aged 15 years and over
Worked full-time

102

45.7

26,187

49.1

86,714

48.7

Worked part-time

31

13.9

13,684

25.6

47,035

26.4

Away from work

26

11.7

3,885

7.3

13,959

7.8

Unemployed

64

28.7

9,603

18.0

30,462

17.1

Total in labour force

223

53,359

178,170

View the labour force fact sheet

There were 223 people who reported being in the labour force in the week before Census night in Aurukun (Indigenous Locations). Of these 45.7% were employed full time, 13.9% were employed part-time and 28.7% were unemployed.

Median age by employment status

Aurukun

%

Queensland

%

Australia

%

Labour force, people aged 15 years and over
Employed full-time

40

37

37

Employed part-time

38

33

34

The median age of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Aurukun (Indigenous Locations) who were employed full time was 40 years and those employed part time was 38 years.

 

Median weekly incomes

Aurukun

%

Queensland

%

Australia

%

People aged 15 years and over
Personal

249

384

362

Household

1,087

1,066

991