Australian Legendary Tales

“Australian Aboriginal myths and legends stretch back to the most ancient of times and resonate wit a kind of magical quality only to be found in the Aboriginal imagination. These stories also reflect the unique topography of the Australian outback and the Aboriginals’ intimate and ritualistic relationship with the land. Wanderers by nature, the Aborigine built no temples or altars. Instead, they imbued the stark but sublime landscape with a mythic potency that has no equal in the mythologies of any other native culture.

K. Langloh Parker compiled the stories in Australian Legendary Tales in 1895, at a time when she was witnessing what she considered to be the dying out of the Aboriginal race. In particular, the author wrote down the stories of the Narran, or Noongahburrah, tribe over many storytelling sessions, taking special care to set down faithfully not only the narrative of the legends but also the unique Aboriginal names.”