The Two Rainbow Serpents travelling: Mura track narratives from the 'Corner Country'

• Main Author: Beckett, Jeremy (auth)
• Other Authors: Hercus, Luise (auth)
• Format: Electronic Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Canberra ANU Press 2009
• Subjects: Religion & beliefs; aboriginal australians; rainbow serpents; religion; Diyari language; Flinders Ranges; George Dutton; Malyangapa; Paakantyi; Paakantyi (Darling language); Snake; Wilson River language; Yancannia Station
• Online Access: DOAB: download the publication; DOAB: description of the publication

The 'Corner Country', where Queensland, South Australia and New South Wales now converge, was in Aboriginal tradition crisscrossed by the tracks of the mura, ancestral beings, who named the country as they travelled, linking place to language. Reproduced here is the story of the two Ngatyi, Rainbow Serpents, who travelled from the Paroo to the Flinders Ranges and back as far as Yancannia Creek, where their deep underground channels linked them back to the Paroo. Jeremy Beckett recorded these stories from George Dutton and Alf Barlow in 1957. Luise Hercus, who has worked on the languages in the area for many years, has collaborated with Jeremy Beckett to analyse the names and identify the places.