Hermannsburg, Northern Territory

This article is about the Australian community. For the German mission, see Hermannsburger Mission.

Hermannsburg Ntaria Northern Territory
Hermannsburg Lutheran church
Hermannsburg Ntaria
Coordinates	23°56′35″S 132°46′40″E / 23.94306°S 132.77778°E / -23.94306; 132.77778Coordinates: 23°56′35″S 132°46′40″E / 23.94306°S 132.77778°E / -23.94306; 132.77778
Population	625 (2011 census)^[1]
Postcode(s)	0872
Location	131 km (81 mi) from Alice Springs
Territory electorate(s)	Namatjira
Federal Division(s)	Lingiari

Hermannsburg is an Aboriginal community in Ljirapinta Ward of the MacDonnell Shire in the Northern Territory of Australia, 131 km southwest of Alice Springs. It is known in the local Western Arrernte language as Ntaria.

Geography

Hermannsburg lies on the Finke River within the rolling hills of the MacDonnell Ranges in the southern Central Australia region of the Northern Territory.

At the 2011 census, Hermannsburg had a population of 625, of whom 537 (86 per cent) identified as Aboriginal.^[1]

History

Aboriginal dwellings, 1923

It was established as an Aboriginal mission in 1877 by two Lutheran missionaries of the Hermannsburg Mission from Germany, who had travelled overland from Bethany in the Barossa Valley in South Australia. They named their new mission among the Aranda people after Hermannsburg in Germany where they had trained.

In 1891, the missionaries left, but the settlement was continued by lay workers until, in 1894, Pastor Carl Strehlow arrived. Pastor Strehlow learnt the local Western Arrernte language and is credited with translating the Bible into the language. As Strehlow was of German descent, the Western Arrernte written form followed his German pronunciation.

The mission land was handed over to traditional ownership in 1982. The Hermannsburg Historic Precinct was included on the Australian National Heritage List in April 2006.^[2] Much of the historic township is now protected by the National Trust.

Notable people

Albert Namatjira (1902–1959) was born at Hermannsburg. He developed the ability to use his acute observation of the land to paint Western-style watercolours. Painting in this style came to be known as the Hermannsburg School of painting.
Carl Strehlow's son Ted Strehlow (1908–1978) became a noted anthropologist and was initiated into Arrernte customs.
Warren H Williams (1963–present) is a traditional owner of Ntaria and is now a prominent Australian country singer.
Shane Nicholson visited Hermannsburg with long-time friend Warren H Williams, and the town was inspiration for his 2015 album Hell Breaks Loose which features a track called 'Hermannsburg'.

References

1 2 Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Hermannsburg (SSC) (State Suburb)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 2012-08-28.
↑ "Australian National Heritage listing for the Hermannsburg Historic Precinct". Environment.gov.au. Retrieved 2012-12-25.

External links

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