Traditional Australian Aborigines believed that each member of their social groups occupied precisely the same territory that had been created by (and had been occupied by) their ancestors - as a result of particular Dreamtime events. As a hunter-gatherer society their land was an economic resource. But their Dreamtime stories or myths (myths in the sense of being narrative material that led to belief), taught the people that they had a personal relationship with their land and all it contained. We will expand on these points later. However, the Aboriginal understanding of 'my land, my country' was formally recognized by the Australian legal system, in 1992, by the High Court of Australia in the Mabo decision. The Court established that before colonization, the continent of Australia was owned by Aboriginal and Torres Strait

The existence of land ownership laws raises the question: How did Aboriginal people learn about these laws?.

A vitally important aspect of Native Title, was the belief that a particular area of land had been created in the Dreamtime. This involved a relationship between each generation and the creators. The territory of any tribe may have (and usually did) extend over thousands of square kilometers. Various parts were occupied by clans, bands or sub-tribes. Each owned the particular area they occupied. In other words the area that had been created for a tribe was comprised of a number of smaller areas and anything between 20 and 50 Headmen were custodians of these areas.

The affinity of attachment to a particular area of land by the Aborigines was based on their Dreamtime beliefs that the land had been created for them by ancestral heroes and heroines.

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Another way of describing creation stories is to say, the land itself spoke to the people. It explained how it came into existence, identified those who were responsible for creating it and identified those who were responsible for its continued existence - an identifiable group of Native Title owners. What the land said (or is saying) can only be understood by the people who know its language.

The Reverend W. Yate was a witness at the Select Committee of the House of Commons that held an inquiry into Australian Aborigines and issued reports in 1837-1847. Reynolds reported the following questions and answers between Yates and the Chairperson T.F. Buxton:

Native Title was also held by a single headman or Elder as the custodian (or steward) of the land. As such he was in charge of the land and determined matters about it. For example when increase ceremonies would be performed.

Joseph Orton (Methodist missionary) believed that colonization "should be conducted with sacred reference to all rights to the original occupants of the soil. This great principle of British jurisprudence the rights of man has, with regard to the Aborigines of this country has been overlooked and grossly violated by the intruders utterly regardless of any rights of property in the lands of their nativity on which and by which they have been supported since time immemorial. An important truth which has been designedly (sic) or ignorantly overlooked but which demands consideration is that the Aborigines of this country though an erratic race of savages they have decidedly a property in the land of their birth which right is recognized and held sacred by themselves in respective relations of tribes, families and individuals." (ibid)

Land was spiritual, but also an economic resource as it provided the people with food, sources of wood, fiber and glue for making spears, utensils and other implements. However the people respected these aspects of their land and were environmentalists in the sense of 'taking care' of the land through their practices of performing increase ceremonies, singing 'Songlines' and relationships with flora and fauna through a system of totemic relationships. (see increase ceremonies, Songlines and totems for further details)

Some common words found in the essay are:
WEH Stanner, Native Title, Dunmore Lang, Prior Mabo, Knowledge Laws, Orton Methodist, Australian Aborigines, Yate Yes, , Buxton Buxton, native title, land ownership, land created, idea property, aboriginal people, aboriginal land ownership, aboriginal land, traditional aboriginal, increase ceremonies, property soil, economic resource, land economic resource, traditional aboriginal people, aboriginal torres strait, torres strait islander,
Approximate Word count = 2269
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)