What are Aboriginal skin names?
Skin names are part of Aboriginal kinship systems in many parts of Australia. Everyone is born into a skin group, which shapes their relationships, responsibilities and whom they may marry.
In many Central Australian groups, there are eight skin names for men and eight for women, such as Tjapaltjarri and Napaltjarri among Western Desert peoples. A person's skin name is determined by their parents' skin names, following set rules.
Skin names tell people how they are related to everyone else, even strangers from other communities. This allows people to know how to behave toward others, including who to avoid, who to joke with and who to care for.
Kinship and moieties
Many Aboriginal societies also divide people into two halves, called moieties, such as Dhuwa and Yirritja among the Yolngu. These connect people to land, ceremonies, plants and animals.
Some systems include avoidance relationships, where people must not speak directly to certain relatives, such as a mother-in-law, and special respectful forms of language may be used instead.
Visitors who work or live in communities, such as teachers and nurses, are sometimes given a skin name so that people know how to relate to them. Kinship systems are complex, and children learn them from an early age through family life, stories and ceremonies. They remain a strong part of daily life in many remote communities.
Did You Know?
Many Aboriginal artists include their skin name in their full name, such as Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri.