Tainmuntilla

Mistletoe Park / Tainmuntilla (Park 11)

A tribe of natives on the bank of the River Torrens, Alexander Schramm, 1850

This Park is known as Tainmuntilla in the Kaurna language, the original language of the Adelaide Plains, now being reclaimed by the Kaurna people. Tainmuntilla means 'mistletoe place'. Mistletoe is a parasitical plant spread from tree to tree by the mistletoe bird, a small bird with red breast, black wings and white underbelly.

The Kaurna people are the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the Adelaide Plains. The Kaurna language was last spoken on a daily basis in the 1860s and has been revived in recent times based on dictionaries prepared by German missionaries around the time of settlement.

Tainmuntilla or mistletoe is an important part of the environment supporting a range of creatures and is necessary for a healthy stand of redgum trees. The Torrens River is known as Karrawirra Pari or "Redgum Forest River' in the Kaurna language because of the many redgum trees. The River was an important part of the Kaurna a life, and the site of camping, celebrations and burials.

In 1856, human remains were found by children on the south bank of the river. The remains were about 3 feet below the surface when the river bank was eroded.

Tainmuntilla was also the name of a Kaurna child who attended the Aboriginal school in Pirltawardli (Park 1) and signed the Kaurna letter to Governor Gawler in 1841.

City of Adelaide acknowledges the traditional Country of the Kaurna people of the Adelaide Plains and pays respect to Elders past and present. We recognise and respect their cultural heritage, beliefs and relationship with the land. We acknowledge that they are of continuing importance to the Kaurna people living today. We also extend that respect to other Aboriginal Language Groups and other First Nations.

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