Australia is a continent with a rich history and incredible diversity. It has been home to one of the most ancient populations of people, rather appropriately known as the Aborigines, or “first ones.” These people lived in harmony with the land, resourcefully adapting to and drawing sustenance from the arid landscape. The isolated nature of the continent allowed the Aborigines to thrive, undisturbed, for tens of thousands of years, but the limited contact with outsiders left them unprepared for the arrival of European settlers that first appeared in the 19th century. Unfortunately, the Aboriginal culture and nomadic lifestyle was thoroughly misunderstood by the Europeans. The ensuing European colonization had a profoundly negative effect on the Aboriginal population of Australia, nearly destroying their culture and almost eradicating the entire native population.
It is believed that during the last ice age, some 50,000-60,000 years ago, the sea level was much lower with a large portion of the Earth’s water tied up in glacial ice. A land bridge existed between Australia, New Guinea and the continent of Asia that provided a means of ground transportation for ancient travelers. This land bridge was subsequently submerged when the climate warmed, isolating Australia’s inhabitants. This is the one of the leading theories for the means by which Aborigines came to the oceanic continent (Grabowski 27). The Aborigines were a hunter-gatherer population that learned to live in harmony with the land. Because of the arid conditions experienced by most of the continent, they spent most of their time gathering or searching for food. They were well adapted to the harsh environment and cared little for material possessions that would only serve to hinder their nomadic lifestyles (Grabowski 25). The Aborigines are thought of as one people, but they actually were divided