The Wadjiginy, also referred to historically as the Wogait,[1] are an indigenous Australian people of the Northern Territory, specifically from just north of modern-day Darwin. The Wadjiginy are a saltwater people who describe themselves as wagatj 'beach-dwellers' from the Batjamalh word wagatj 'beach'.
The standard early ethnographic literature referred to the Wadjiginy with numerous variations of the word Wogait,[1][2] a term taken to mean 'sea folk' by early investigators[3] but which actually covers several tribes such as the Emmiyangal which later research has shown to be imprecise. Their ethnonym is derived from wagatj, a Batajamalh term for 'beach'. The modern descriptor used among the tribe is Wadyiginy.
The Wadjiginy territory was around Anson Bay, from the debouchment of the Daly River northwards as far as Point Blaze, and was estimated by Norman Tindale to range over roughly 200 square miles (520 km2).[3] Their inland extension is estimated at 20 miles from the coast.[3]
