Buka, or Boka, is the name for the cloak traditionally worn by Noongar people, the Indigenous people of south-western Australia. The Noongar (alternate spellings: Nyungar/Nyoongar/Nyoongah),[1] are an indigenous Australian people who live in the southwest corner of Western Australia from Geraldton on the west coast to Esperance on the south coast. ... Indigenous Australians are descendants of the first human inhabitants of the Australian continent and its nearby islands. ...

Unlike in the south-east, where people such as Yorta Yorta wore possum-skin cloaks, the Noongars made use of the pelt of the kangaroo. Yorta Yorta may refer to: The Yorta Yorta language The Yorta Yorta people, Indigenous Australians from the junction of the Goulburn and Murray Rivers in North East Victoria. ... Sewn and incised possum-skin cloak of Wurundjeri origin (Melbourne Museum) Possum-skin cloaks were a form of clothing worn by Australian Aborigines in the south-east of the continent – present-day Victoria and southern New South Wales. ... Species Macropus rufus Macropus giganteus Macropus fuliginosus Macropus antilopinus A kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae. ...

While in the south east, there was a lot of sewing involved, there was less involved in the south-west. It normall consisted of the whole skin of two kangaroos sewn together, with the tail hanging at the bottom of the cloak.

The cloak was worn over one shoulder and under the other. It was fastened at the neck using a small piece of bone or wood. By wearing the cloak this way it allowed for movement of both arms without any restrictions and allowed for daily activities to be carried out with ease.

Cloaks were reversible. They were worn the fur on the inside when particularly cold and could be turned the other way when it was raining. The cloaks were also used as rugs to sleep on at night.

Today many Aboriginal people have new cloaks and rugs made from kangaroo skins. They are used in performances or often as they were traditionally as a nice warm rug or cloak.

See also

• Noongar
• Possum-skin cloak

The Noongar (alternate spellings: Nyungar/Nyoongar/Nyoongah),[1] are an indigenous Australian people who live in the southwest corner of Western Australia from Geraldton on the west coast to Esperance on the south coast. ... Sewn and incised possum-skin cloak of Wurundjeri origin (Melbourne Museum) Possum-skin cloaks were a form of clothing worn by Australian Aborigines in the south-east of the continent – present-day Victoria and southern New South Wales. ...

References

• http://www.collectionsaustralia.net/nqr/fabri.php