Some boomerangs were not thrown at all, but were used in hand to hand combat by Indigenous Australians. There is evidence of the use of non-returning boomerangs by the Native Americans of California and Arizona, and inhabitants of South India for killing birds and rabbits. The oldest surviving Australian Aboriginal boomerangs come from a cache found in a peat bog in the Wyrie Swamp of South Australia and date to 10,000 BC.Īlthough traditionally thought of as Australian, boomerangs have been found also in ancient Europe, Egypt, and North America. Stencils and paintings of boomerangs also appear in the rock art of West Papua, including on Bird's Head Peninsula and Kaimana, likely dating to the Last Glacial Maximum, when lower sea levels led to cultural continuity between Papua and Arnhem Land in Northern Australia. Most boomerangs seen today are of the tourist or competition sort, and are almost invariably of the returning type.ĭepictions of boomerangs being thrown at animals, such as kangaroos, appear in some of the oldest rock art in the world, the Indigenous Australian rock art of the Kimberly region, which is potentially up to 50,000 years old. Tribal boomerangs may be inscribed or painted with designs meaningful to their makers. The smallest boomerang may be less than 10 centimetres (4 in) from tip to tip, and the largest over 180 cm (6 ft) in length. The weapon, thrown at 20 or 30 yards distance, twirled round in the air with astonishing velocity, and alighting on the right arm of one of his opponents, actually rebounded to a distance not less than 70 or 80 yards, leaving a horrible contusion behind, and exciting universal admiration.īoomerangs were, historically, used as hunting weapons, percussive musical instruments, battle clubs, fire-starters, decoys for hunting waterfowl, and as recreational play toys. the white spectators were justly astonished at the dexterity and incredible force with which a bent, edged waddy resembling slightly a Turkish scimytar, was thrown by Bungary, a native distinguished by his remarkable courtesy. The first recorded encounter with a boomerang by Europeans was at Farm Cove ( Port Jackson), in December 1804, when a weapon was witnessed during a tribal skirmish: One source asserts that the term entered the language in 1827, adapted from an extinct Aboriginal language of New South Wales, Australia, but mentions a variant, wo-mur-rang, which it dates to 1798. However, some may have wooden limbs tipped with iron or with lethally sharpened edges or with special double-edged and razor-sharp daggers known as kattari. Although valaris come in many shapes and sizes they are usually made of cast iron cast from moulds. The usual form of the Valari is two limbs set at an angle one thin and tapering, the other rounded as a handle. The Tamil valari variant, of ancient origin and mentioned in the Tamil Sangam literature "Purananuru", was one of these. They lack the aerofoil sections, are generally heavier and designed to travel as straight and forcefully as possible to the target to bring down game. Non-returning boomerangs, throwing sticks, valari, or kylies, are primarily used as weapons.Non-traditional, modern, competition boomerangs come in many shapes, sizes and materials. Although used primarily for leisure or recreation, returning boomerangs are also used to decoy birds of prey, thrown above the long grass to frighten game birds into flight and into waiting nets. Their typical L-shape makes them the most recognisable form of boomerang. A returning boomerang has two or more aerofoil section wings arranged so that when spinning they create unbalanced aerodynamic forces that curve its path into an ellipse, returning to its point of origin when thrown correctly. Returning boomerangs fly, and are examples of the earliest heavier-than-air human-made flight.Many people think only of the traditional Australian type, although today there are many types of more easily usable boomerangs, such as the cross-stick, the pinwheel, the tumble-stick, the Boomabird, and many other less common types.Īn important distinction should be made between returning boomerangs and non-returning boomerangs: Modern boomerangs used for sport may be made from plywood or plastics such as ABS, polypropylene, phenolic paper, or carbon fibre-reinforced plastics.īoomerangs come in many shapes and sizes depending on their geographic or tribal origins and intended function. Distribution of types of boomerangs in Australia prior to European contact, with modern state borders addedĪ boomerang is a throwing stick with aerodynamic properties, traditionally made of wood, but also of bone, horn, tusks and even iron.
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