Wangkatjungka is a considerable Aboriginal community situated within the Shire of Derby-West Kimberley, located 130 km southeast of Fitzroy Crossing in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.
Wangkatjungka is a language group that belongs to the desert region. The area is characterised by vast salt lakes and steep red sand dunes. As people started leaving the desert, the Wangkatjungka community undertook a long trek to Bulliluna Station, then to Christmas Creek Station, and eventually to the emerging town of Fitzroy Crossing.
Today, the Wangkatjungka language is spoken in several places in the Fitzroy Valley, including the town of Fitzroy Crossing, Kapartiya, Kurungal, and Ngumparn on Christmas Creek Station. Speakers can also be found in other communities such as Wirrumanu, Malarn, and Yakanarra.
As a result of the speakers' relocation, the language has had to adapt to its new surroundings. This includes incorporating words from the river and other desert languages. Despite these changes, Wangkatjungka remains a language that reflects the speakers' attachment to their desert homeland.
The language is known as Ngaapa Wangka Wangkajunga and is part of the Kimberley Language Resource Centre 2001.
Wangkatjungka is a significant community located 100 km southeast of Fitzroy Crossing. One of the key elders responsible for establishing the Wangkatjungka Community was Jimmy Bieundurry. The community is situated on an excision of Christmas Creek Station and is predominantly inhabited by Wangkatjungka-speaking people.
With approximately 180 permanent residents, the community comprises Wangkatjungka, Walmajarri, and Gooniyandi people who have strong links to their desert culture.
The community offers various amenities such as a store, Centrelink agent, health clinic, Home and Community Care, playgroup, school, administration office, community hall and kitchen, football ground, and basketball court.
The area is hot and dry during the summers; however, there are gorges, waterholes, and caves nearby.
The people of the community engage in cultural activities, such as hunting, gathering bush products, hosting visitors from other communities, travelling in the culture and lore business, and participating in ceremonies that hold significant importance to them.
Distance from Perth: 2,480.7 km
Population: 231
Postcode: 6728