Australian Legendary Tales: folk-lore of the Noongahburrahs as told to the Piccaninnies (ePub)

K. Langloh Parker, born Katherine Langloh Parker in 1856, was an Australian writer best known for her collection of indigenous stories and folklore, notably within her celebrated work 'Australian Legendary Tales: folk-lore of the Noongahburrahs as told to the Piccaninnies' (1896). Residing near the Narran River in New South Wales, Parker developed a close association with the local Aboriginal people, which allowed her an extraordinary entry into their oral traditions. She meticulously recorded these tales with a profound respect and care for their cultural significance and authenticity. Her literary style was characterized by an ethnographic approach that sought to preserve the stories in their original form as much as possible, offering readers a genuine insight into Aboriginal mythology and cultural practices. Her work, while criticized at times for being compiled from a colonial perspective, remains a valuable compilation of Aboriginal folklore, and she is credited with being among the first to do so in a time when Indigenous Australian narratives were in danger of being lost. Parker's dedication to capturing and sharing Indigenous stories has earned her a respected place in Australian literature and the study of folklore. Her contribution to the preservation of Aboriginal tales has provided an essential resource for cultural historians and a wider audience interested in the rich oral traditions of Australia's First Peoples.