There were dramatic changes in Indigenous lifestyle because of European settlement. Before 1788, there were over 700 spoken languages in Australia but because of the fall in the population which meant that today only 2% make up the Australian population. The removal of Aborigines from traditional affected not only the population but also the culture.
Aboriginals did not mark the land like Europeans did. Instead of using fences and barriers they used geographic boundaries like rivers and mountains to mark their boundaries. When Europeans settled in Australia buildings, fences, farms were created taking up traditional land that belonged to Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders and created unwanted boundaries for them, blocking paths and locations or creating obstacles. When the First Fleet arrived, introduced species arrived with it. These introduced species became pests, predators and competition for native species in Australia. As well as endangering these species in which Aboriginals have been surviving off, they caused disturbance and annoyance for the tribes. Europeans would try to ‘civilise’ Aboriginals by dressing them in clothes or making them attend church and after becoming ‘civilised’ they would return back to their community, but they had their own way of learning and living in society and so this was unsuccessful. After the 1930s, they stopped attempting to do this and instead was taking Aboriginals specifically children and forcing them to live the same way as the White Australians and hold the same beliefs. Children were taken away from their parents and placed into foster care or group homes. They refer to this generation of children as the Stolen Generation. |