Arabanoo
Arabanoo (* 1759 ; † 18 May (?) 1789 in Sydney , Australia ), initially called Manly and written Arooboonoo , Arooboonen or Harrabanu , was the first Aborigine to be captured by the British colonists and used for their purposes. Bennelong and Colebee later suffered the same fate .
The first governor of the British colony of New South Wales , Arthur Phillip , ordered two Aborigines to be captured because he wanted to learn more about the language and lifestyle of the indigenous people. On December 31, 1788, Lieutenant Henry Lidgbird Ball of HMS Supply and Navy Lieutenant George Johnston trapped two Aborigines on the north coast of Port Jackson on North Head . In the course of this dispute they were pelted by the Aborigines with spears, projectiles of all kinds and burning pieces of wood, whereby an Aborigine was able to flee. The captured Arabanoo was brought to the European settlement. Phillip had him guarded for his protection and first handcuffed him. Arabanoo, initially named Manly for the location of his capture , initially assumed this was an ornament, and when he learned the real purpose, he got angry. In the British settlement he was brought to the governor's house, his hair and beard trimmed, put in a bath and then dressed in European clothes. He initially attempted to escape from a ship that failed because his British clothing prevented him from diving.
His name was later discovered, and although he was captured in the Cameragal Aboriginal territory , his clan membership is unknown.
It is reported that he was not tall, but strong; he was a kind and calm personality. He was popular with the settlers of the British colony, and Phillip said he had given him a lot of information about the language and habits of the Aborigines. Phillip's intention to enable settlers and Aborigines to live together by means of the Arabanoo language skills was not very successful.
When a smallpox epidemic broke out among the Aborigines in April 1789 , which, according to Bennelong reports, decimated the Aboriginal population around Sydney by half, some of them came to the European settlement sick. Arabanoo cared for two children with smallpox, Nanbarry and Boorong, and he became infected. The children survived, he died of the consequences and was buried in the governor's garden, located in what is now Sydney 's Circular Quay district .
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c adb.edu.au : Eleanor Dark: Arabanoo (1759–1789) , in English, accessed on October 12, 2011. (One contemporary report states that Arabanoo was 24 and another 30)
- ↑ a b c dictionaryofsydney.org : Keith Vincent Smith: Arabanoo , 2010, in English, accessed October 12, 2011
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Arabanoo |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Manly; Arooboonoo; Arooboons; Harrabanu |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | first aboriginal to be captured by the British |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1759 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Australia |
| DATE OF DEATH | May 18, 1789 |
| Place of death | Sydney , Australia |