The Tiwi people are one of the many Aboriginal groups of Australia. Nearly 2,000 Tiwi people live on Bathurst and Melville Islands, which make up the Tiwi Islands, lying about 48 kilometres (30 mi) from Darwin. The Tiwi language is a language isolate, with no apparent link to the languages of Arnhem Land on the Australian mainland. Their society is based on matrilineal descent, and marriage plays a very important part in many aspects of their lives. Art and music form an intrinsic part of their societal and spiritual rituals as the Tiwi people tend to follow a certain form of indigenous Animist belief system. The Stolen Generations saw many Indigenous people brought to the Tiwi Islands who were not of direct Tiwi descent.
The Tiwi Bombers, a local football team from the Tiwi Islands
Ceiling of a Tiwi Island art gallery and studio, 2011.
Tiwi Islands Football League Grand Final 05/06 at Stanley Tipiloura Oval, Wurrumiyanga. Mulluwurri vs Pumurali
Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, excluding the ethnically distinct people of the Torres Strait Islands.
An Eastern Arrernte man of the Arltunga district, Northern Territory, in 1923. His hut is decked with porcupine grass.
Dwellings accommodating Aboriginal families at Hermannsburg Mission, Northern Territory, 1923
Arnhem Land Aboriginal dancers in 1981
Arnhem Land artist Glen Namundja painting at Injalak Arts
