Description

Maningrida is a major Aboriginal town in Arnhem Land. It is one of the largest remote towns in the Northern Territory, and is located approximately 500km east of Darwin in Arnhem Land at the mouth of the Liverpool River. A permanent settlement was established in the late 1940s, originally as a trading post with Aboriginals in the area. It was converted into a mission during the 1950s. According to the Northern Territory Place Names Committee, the name Maningrida is an Anglicised version of the Kunibídji name Manayingkarírra, from the phrase Mane djang karirra, meaning the place where the Dreaming changed shape. These days, the town is the major service centre for the population of 2,300 as well as more than 30 outstations or homelands, with a school, health clinic, multiple food outlets, two supermarkets, service station, arts centre, créche and a tarmac airport with daily commercial flights to Darwin. Small-scale tourism ventures, including cultural tours and fishing expeditions, also operate out of Maningrida. Dry season (Apr-Nov): Road access. Wet season (Dec-Mar): The river crossing at Cahills Crossing, East Alligator River, is usually impassable. Commonwealth and Northern Territory law says that entry to Aboriginal land requires a written permit. The Northern Land Council is responsible for administering the permit system for traditional owners in the Top End.