From Presland, Gary 1994, Aboriginal
Melbourne, Penguin, Victoria, 38-39.
At the time of European invasion, a large part of central southern
Victoria was owned by a loose confederation of five language groups
who identified themselves as the 'Kulin' nation.
In traditional Koorie society the most common day-to-day group was
the foraging band, composed generally of one or two families, plus
visitors. The most important social group, however, was the clan.
The clan was the land-owning unit in traditional society and was also
the group with which an individual Koorie would firstly identify herself
or himself. All members of a clan spoke the same language and identified
with a particular area of land, or estate, which they regarded as
their own. In traditional Koorie society a number of clans who spoke
the same language and had adjacent estates made up a larger group
usually referred to as a tribe. The tribal territory was the total
area of the clans estates.
