Thursday, February 13, 2025

A Brief History of Cooktown in North Queensland, Australia

Cooktown, in far north Queensland, provides visitors with a rich Aboriginal and European history alongside the pleasures of a tropical Australian getaway. Cooktown has a...

John McDouall Stuart’s Exploration into the Heart of Australia

Australia's inland exploration really began in 1813 when three pioneers, Blaxland, Lawson and Wentworth, managed to find a path through the Blue Mountains west...

The Ghan, the Adelaide to Darwin Railway: One of the World’s Great Train Journeys...

During the 19th century, the vast interior of Australia was slowly but steadily being opened up. Much of it desert, there also existed places...

The Moriori People of Rekohu: First Settlers of New Zealand’s Eastern Outpost

The Moriori were the indigenous people of the Chatham Islands, which they called Rekohu. The last full-blooded Moriori died in 1933. Dating the earliest human...

Giles and Gibson Attempt to Cross Australia’s Red Centre

Little is known about the man for whom Australia’s Gibson Desert is named. Alfred Gibson was a member of the second Giles expedition seeking...

The Discovery and First Settlement of Aotearoa New Zealand

The islands of New Zealand were the last lands colonised by humans. The Polynesian voyagers are now believed to have arrived barely seven centuries...

The Taniwha: Monster of Maori Myth and Legend

The rich culture of the Maori people is resplendent with stories of supernatural beings. The taniwha is a recurring subject of many myths and...

The Ancient Polynesian Voyages: The Last Great Migrations to Distant Lands

The islands of the Pacific Ocean were settled by people travelling great distances in flimsy craft, using only nature's signs for navigation. One of the...

Te Reo: Use and Relevance of the Maori Language

The Waitangi Tribunal fears for the future of te reo, the Maori language that has its roots in Bronze Age Asia. According to historical linguists,...

Tasmania’s Indigenous People and the Impact of Colonisation

Suggestions of genocide put the colonisation of Australia in a harsh light. The issue arises most frequently in reference to the natives of Tasmania. When...