Wadawurrung Place Names
You Yangs — Wurdi Youang: The Big Hill and the Circle of Stars
Region and Language Group
The You Yangs, known in Wadawurrung language as Wurdi Youang, rise from the volcanic plains north-west of Geelong, between the Barwon River (Parwan) and Little River (Durd Durd Wurrung) (Clark 1990). The name Wurdi Youang translates to “big hill/large mountain” (Clark & Heydon 2002), describing the most prominent granite peaks in the region.
The range lies within Wadawurrung Country, part of the Kulin Confederacy, whose lands stretch from the Bellarine Peninsula and Surf Coast north to Ballarat and west toward Beaufort. For the Wadawurrung people, the You Yangs are not just a landmark — they are a law place, navigation beacon, and site of creation stories and ceremony (Broome 2005; Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
The You Yangs and Wurdi Youang
The You Yangs dominate the flat horizon of Victoria’s western volcanic plains — ancient granite tors rising from grasslands shaped by fire, water, and wind (VandenBerg 1999). To early European settlers they appeared as “mountains in a sea of plain,” but to the Wadawurrung they were living ancestors, repositories of law and time (Broome 2005; Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
The peaks of Wurdi Youang guided travellers for tens of thousands of years — a point of orientation, gathering, and sacred reflection (Broome 2005). Nearby lies one of the most extraordinary cultural sites in south-eastern Australia: the Wurdi Youang stone arrangement, an ancient astronomical and ceremonial structure that encodes the movements of the sun and stars (Norris, Hamacher & Abrahams 2013).
Together, the mountain and the stone circle tell the story of Wadawurrung science and spirituality intertwined — Country watching the cosmos (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Meaning and Significance of “Wurdi Youang”
The name Wurdi Youang combines wurdi (big) and youang (hill/mountain/mound) (Blake 1991; Clark & Heydon 2002). In its full sense, the term evokes “the great rising place of the earth” — a description of both geological form and spiritual essence (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
For the Wadawurrung, the range represents:
Bunjil’s mountain, where the wedge-tailed eagle and creator being rests (Broome 2005; Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
A beacon of direction on journeys between Djilang (Geelong), Balla Arat (Ballarat), and Narrm (Melbourne) (Clark 1990).
A ceremonial horizon, where sunrise and sunset connect the human and sky worlds (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
In oral traditions, Wurdi Youang is part of the Bunjil Creation story: Bunjil shaped the lands, waters, and stars before ascending to the sky to watch over his people — his spirit tied to these peaks as a reminder of law, kinship, and balance (Broome 2005; Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Country and Geology: Granite Among Volcanoes
Unlike the basalt plains that surround it, the You Yangs are formed from granite, not volcanic lava flows (VandenBerg 1999). Geologists date their formation to >360 million years ago, when Devonian magma cooled beneath the crust; erosion later exposed the granite core, producing tors such as Flinders Peak and Big Rock (VandenBerg 1999).
These outcrops served as:
Lookouts for observing animal movement and weather (Broome 2005).
Sheltered campsites with fresh water held in rock holes and crevices (Clark 1990).
Quarry sites where fine-grained stone was worked into tools (Clark 1990).
The You Yangs thus embody both deep time and living culture — a place where geological creation and human story intersect (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
The Wurdi Youang Stone Arrangement
Near the base of the range lies the Wurdi Youang stone arrangement, a semi-oval ring of ~100 basalt stones up to 1.5 m high, estimated to be at least 1,000 years old, possibly older (Norris, Hamacher & Abrahams 2013).
Astronomical Alignment and Knowledge
Research shows the arrangement aligns precisely with the setting sun at the solstices and equinoxes (Norris, Hamacher & Abrahams 2013). This indicates Wadawurrung astronomers used the site to:
Track seasonal changes and solar movements (Norris, Hamacher & Abrahams 2013).
Regulate ceremonial calendars and hunting periods (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Observe the paths of Bunjil and Waa associated with the stars (Broome 2005; Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
In this way, Wurdi Youang is both a ceremonial site and a celestial observatory — part of the oldest continuing star-knowledge system on Earth (Norris, Hamacher & Abrahams 2013).
Cultural Meaning
Elders describe Wurdi Youang as a place of balance and renewal, where sky and land speak together (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023). The circle’s form reflects cyclical time; standing within the stones, one faces both mountains and horizon — a visual teaching of earthly and cosmic law (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Ceremony, Travel, and Story
For millennia, Wurdi Youang was a meeting ground for Wadawurrung and neighbouring Kulin clans. The nearby Moorabool and Barwon rivers provided abundant food and eel runs that supported large seasonal gatherings (Clark 1990; Broome 2005). Ceremonies likely included initiations, fire and dance at solstices, and exchange of ochre, tools, and possum-skin cloaks (Broome 2005; Clark 1990).
Pathways radiated from the You Yangs to the Bellarine wetlands, Ballarat highlands, and Werribee/Maribyrnong valleys — a network of movement mirroring the star paths above (Clark 1990; Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Colonial Contact and Transformation
With British settlement in the 1830s, Wurdi Youang was anglicised to the You Yangs; surrounding lands were taken up as pastoral runs, restricting Wadawurrung access to sacred sites (Clark 1990). Explorers Matthew Flinders (1802) and Charles Grimes (1803) recorded the peaks as navigation marks, and later colonists used them for surveying and signalling — converting a spiritual beacon into a tool of occupation (Cannon 1991; Clark 1990).
Despite this, Wurdi Youang remained in memory and story, and from the 1970s onward, collaboration between Wadawurrung Elders and researchers brought renewed recognition and protection (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Modern Restoration and Cultural Renewal
Today, You Yangs Regional Park management works with the Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation (WTOAC) to ensure cultural and spiritual values are respected (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023). Current initiatives include:
Protection and monitoring of the stone arrangement as a registered cultural heritage site (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Interpretive signage on Wadawurrung astronomy and creation stories (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Guided cultural tours sharing the Bunjil story and language of place (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Collaborations with Parks Victoria and astronomers to preserve the site’s integrity (Norris, Hamacher & Abrahams 2013; Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Through these efforts, Wurdi Youang has re-emerged as a teaching place — where observation, spirituality, and science meet (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Symbolism of Land and Sky: Bunjil’s Law
In Wadawurrung cosmology, Bunjil the wedge-tailed eagle represents law, creation, and vision (Broome 2005). From his resting place among the peaks, Bunjil watches the plains — a reminder that life exists in balance (Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
The stone circle mirrors this philosophy:
The oval reflects the horizon’s curve and the sun’s path.
Central stones signify Bunjil’s heart, the still point of order.
Solstice alignments embody renewal and respect for time (Norris, Hamacher & Abrahams 2013; Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
To stand on this Country at sunset, when light meets stone, is to experience the continuity of thousands of years of observation and story (Broome 2005).
Conclusion
The You Yangs — Wurdi Youang — are more than hills. They are a living monument to creation, astronomy, and law. Their stones hold geological deep time and human continuity; their peaks hold the stories of Bunjil, balance, and belonging (VandenBerg 1999; Broome 2005; Wadawurrung Traditional Owners 2023).
Through cultural renewal, language revival, and scientific recognition, the meaning of Wurdi Youang is understood anew — the big hill that watches the stars, where the land itself speaks of time, truth, and law (Norris, Hamacher & Abrahams 2013; Clark & Heydon 2002).
References
Blake, B. (1991) Wathawurrung and the Colac Language of Southern Victoria. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics.
Broome, R. (2005) Aboriginal Victorians: A History Since 1800. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.
Cannon, M. (1991) Old Melbourne Town: Before the Gold Rush. Main Ridge: Loch Haven Books.
Clark, I. D. (1990) Aboriginal Languages and Clans: An Historical Atlas of Western and Central Victoria, 1800–1900. Melbourne: Monash Publications in Geography.
Clark, I. D. & Heydon, T. (2002) Dictionary of Aboriginal Placenames of Victoria. Melbourne: Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages.
Norris, R., Hamacher, D. & Abrahams, R. (2013) ‘Wurdi Youang: An Australian Aboriginal Stone Arrangement with Possible Solar Indications’, Rock Art Research, 30(1), 55–65.
VandenBerg, A. H. M. (1999) Geology of Victoria. Geological Society of Australia Special Publication 10.
Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation (2023) Wurdi Youang: Law of the Land and Sky. Geelong: WTOAC.
Written, Researched and Directed by James Vegter (22 September 2025)
MLA
Sharing the truth of Indigenous and colonial history through film, education, land, and community.
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Magic Lands Alliance acknowledges the Traditional Owners, Custodians, and First Nations communities across Australia and internationally. We honour their enduring connection to the sky, land, waters, language, and culture. We pay respect to Elders past, present, and emerging, and to all First Peoples’ communities and language groups. This article draws only on publicly available information; many cultural practices remain the intellectual property of their respective communities.