Community consultation opens 9am Monday 18 July 2022
Community consultation opens 9am Monday 18 July 2022
Community consultation closes 5pm Monday 8 August 2022
Review feedback
Report preferred names to Council for endorsement and submission to Geographical Names Board for gazettal.
Many of us think of fish, rivers, huts, ochre, ceremonial dances and storytelling when we learn about the First Nations culture of Australia. The Dharug people were also astronomers as well as good hunters and warriors. They were connected to the skies and the lands.
First Nations people used their knowledge of the night sky to forecast the weather, and to determine seasonal changes to resources. Torres Strait Islanders use the scintillation of stars (twinkling) to determine when the northwest monsoon is arriving, and Aboriginal people used the ice rings around the moon to forecast when wet weather was arriving.
The arrival of the Seven Sisters in the evening sky brought the return of warm weather and resources, while their setting in the evening sky brought the winter.
It also appears that Aboriginal people built solar observatories, so that they could mark the time of the year by the solstices. The list of sky related names, Birrung, Duba, Mula Mula and Warrawal, are intended to strike up conversation of the meanings and to ignite curiosity into this less travelled road of research into the local First Nations community …. “Dharug astronomy".
Contributed by Aunty Denise Newham
The NSW Geographical Names Board encourages place names that reflect the heritage, cultures and identity of a site which makes the place distinctive and memorable for residents and the wider community. As per the NSW Geographical Names Board process, research has been undertaken by Council's heritage team to identify significant stories and histories of the area.
Birrung Lane
meaning stars
Duba Lane
meaning earth, clay, ground
Mulu Mulu Lane
meaning falling stars in a cluster
Warrawal Lane
meaning Milky Way or Pleiades
Butchers Lane
referencing the occupation of land grant holders William Ashby and Richard Harper
Cunneen Lane
acknowledging the Cunneen family who lived on Gladstone Street
Fleshewer Lane
Old English trade name for butcher
Carnifex Lane
Old English trade name for butcher
Stamp Lane
in reference to the handmade bricks that were produced in Parramatta by John Clews
Pound Lane
in reference to the Parramatta Pound which was located off Pennant Hills Road