Campaign to protect Australia's well-known placenames from unnecessary changes

Kel Richards I 27 July 2024 I Sky News I 3 min read

Why the extremists' attempt to change Australian placenames has become 'a purely political action' - and makes no sense at all

This is an invitation for you to join a new (very informal) movement I have started called ‘Save Our Placenames’—or SOP for short (pronounced ‘soap’).

The aim is to defend our most familiar placenames from attempts to change them needlessly.

It has been prompted by the proposal to change the name of Cooks River in Sydney to Goolay’yari, and by the recent change of Fraser Island to K’Gari.

Unless we take a stand other, more important and more familiar placenames, will be changed.

There have already been attempts to change ‘Brisbane’ to ‘Meanjin.’

In fact, ‘Meanjin’ has reportedly appeared on some airport departure boards (causing considerable confustion).

Then there’s the claim that Melbourne’s ‘real’ name is Narrm.

I don’t know what name is proposed for Sydney—possibly Eora.

These (we are told) are the ‘original’ Indigenous names of these places.

Mind you, there were more than 200 Indigenous languages in Australia before 1788—and none of them were written languages; so we have to question how confident we can ever be about what those so-called ‘original’ placenames really were.

Without documentary evidence there can be no certainty about those pre-1788 names—despite what the activists claim.

We have, of course, changed names in in the past.

As long ago as 1788 Governor Arthur Phillip called the settlement at the head of the river ‘Rose Hill’ but then he changed it when he discovered the locals called it ‘Parramatta.’ (Not wanting to waste a good name, he used ‘Rose Hill’ for another suburb.)

And, of course, Ayers Rock now has the dual name of ?Uluru/Ayers Rock.

It’s because of this policy of dual naming that we still have Ayers Rock Airport and Ayers Rock Resort at Uluru.

But we must be cautious.

Here is my worry: changing too many names, especially of major, familiar places, would be a purely political action, not a sensible geographical placenames action.

It could look as though the more extreme activists would like to take every English language placename off the map of Australia (if they could get away with it).

There are good reasons not to do this.

Brian Kennedy, in his introduction to his definitive book?Australian Placenames?says "Australia has over four million placenames…" then he adds, "Nearly three-quarters of Australian placenames are of Aboriginal origin."

In other words, there are already nearly three million Indigenous placenames on the map of Australia—surely that’s enough?

These names are all over the place—from Gunnedah to Gundagai, from Kurri Kurri to Oodnadatta.

All of them are great names, and we are delighted they are there.

Our placenames already acknowledge the traditional Aboriginal names of almost three million places.

Any claim that Indigenous placenames are not properly acknowledged is clearly false.

Unless, of course, there are activists who (as I said) find any English language placename offensive.

To such people our SOP movement says: ‘Australia belongs to all Australians not just to some Australians.’

When I asked David Blair of the Australian National Placenames Survey about this notion that familiar placenames should be changed to Indigenous-derived names he said this ‘can never apply to places where people live or to any constructed feature.’

"However,"(he added) "what’s happening now is that (in non-official contexts) non-natural features (such as towns) are attracting well-meaning attempts to introduce Indigenous-derived words as alternative names.

Of course, to do so requires a shift of "feature": "It's one thing to dual-name a river or mountain where the Indigenous-based element was already a reference to that same feature. It's quite another to start importing such an Indigenous name for a feature that it could never have applied to."

David Blair went on to explain: "Before Batman, there was no Indigenous settlement where the city of Melbourne now is that the local Aboriginal people called Narm or Naam. Similarly with Brisbane or Sydney. And, come to think of it, Canberra—despite the National Gallery insisting on inviting us to visit Kamberri/Canberra."

On top of which, familiarity matters.

When major sites have well-established and familiar placenames they should be left alone.

The world knows Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney and much more.

It is unhelpful to change them.

So, will you support SOP?

If you want to tell me you are on-board, and you would like to Save Our Placenames, let me know.

Use the "contact" page at my website ozwords.com.au to let me know you are quietly cheering from the sidelines.

Author: Kel Richards

Kel Richards is a veteran Australian broadcaster and author whose distinguished media career includes hosting the ABC current affairs show AM and his own talkback commercial radio shows. He is also a frequent on-air contributor for Sky News Australia.