Australian Aboriginal Concepts

Author: L. R. Hiatt
Binding: Paperback
Published: Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies, Canberra, 1978

Condition:
Book: Good
Jacket: No dust jacket
Pages: Tanning and foxing
Markings: No markings
Condition remarks: Condition as shown in image

Australian Aboriginal Concepts, edited by L.R. Hiatt and published by the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies in 1978, presents a landmark contribution to the genre of ethnographic theory and Indigenous philosophy. The volume assembles essays by leading anthropologists and linguistsincluding R.H. Bulmer, C.H. Berndt, and N.B. Tindalewho illustrate foundational Aboriginal frameworks such as kinship, totemism, taxonomy, and cosmology. It argues for the intellectual coherence and cultural specificity of Aboriginal knowledge systems, challenging Western assumptions about classification, color perception, and ecological relationships. Contributors detail linguistic, ceremonial, and mythological structures with scholarly precision, reinforcing the sophistication of Aboriginal epistemologies. The book remains essential for understanding the conceptual architecture underpinning traditional Aboriginal life and its relevance to contemporary cultural discourse.