Abstract
The aim of this thesis to examine (1) the acculturation process of the Yamatji, a tribe of Aboriginal people living in Mid-Western Australia, and (2) the impact of the Native Administration ACT 1905-1936 on their way of life. The main source of information was a Yamatji lady who was raised on the Mingenew Native Reserve, where the Aborigines were relocated by the Government from 1938 to 1963. Her history details how reserve life detached the Yamatji from their traditional law, culture and kin-relations, and how the Act successfully isolated them from White society. Interestingly, the Reserve days are remembered as being very comfortable-it was a familiar and constant social milieu, and there was no drinking problem. They were comfortable for the Whites too, who were not disturbed by the Aborigines. Superficially comfortable inter-cultural relations aside, the discrimination essentially blocked the autonomous life of Aborigines and crushed their traditonal culture. The Act forced the Yamatji to live by the rules of a White culture, but it restrict or denied their access to White education, work opportunities and living standards. This contradiction is one of the main causes of the current inter-cultural tensions in this region.
