Australia has officially renamed Unesco-protected Fraser Island to the Aboriginal ‘K'gari’. In Aboriginal belief, K'gari was a white spirit sent by gods to form the land and seas.
Originally named after James Fraser, whose ship was wrecked in the area in 1836, the island receives more than half a million tourists each year. Its large population of dingoes, native wild dogs, rainforests, freshwater lakes, and complex dune systems is prized by scientists.
"I'm proud today we can officially welcome K'gari home, and reinstate the name used by traditional owners for all these years," says Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk. She described the move as a step towards reconciliation and away from Australia's troubled colonial past. "While steps like this can't change the wrongs of the past, it goes a long way to building a future where all Queenslanders value, trust and respect each other," she says.
It has become increasingly common for Australians to refer to places by Aboriginal names. The famed Ayers Rock formation in central Australia is now better known as Uluru, while Melbourne is increasingly referred to by the name Naarm.
