Isolation, Insularity and Change in Island Populations - an Interdisciplinary Study of Aboriginal Cultural Patterns in the Gulf of Carpentaria (2006–2010)
- Abstract:
- Our interdisciplinary study tests pivotal hypotheses concerning insularity, isolation and cultural change in Aboriginal Australia. It examines two now-divergent island populations residing in similar physical environments and with shared ancestral language and a common mainland source group. The project examines how these groups contended with cultural change over a 10,000-year time scale, sometimes acculturating exogenous traits whilst at others exploiting insularity and isolation to promote distinctiveness through local invention in such a way that two different cultures emerged. The findings will contribute to international debates on island colonisation and how cultural reproduction continues in the face of globalising influences.
- Grant type:
- ARC Discovery Projects
- Researchers:
-
-
Professor in Architecture
School of Architecture, Design and PlanningFaculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology -
Emeritus Professor
School of Social ScienceFaculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences -
Emeritus Professor
School of Social ScienceFaculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
-
- Funded by:
- Australian Research Council
