Japuja (home)

Japuja is a term commonly used in Tiwi language to describe the place where you are staying. While it is usually translated as `home’, it is actually distinct from the idea of Country which can be thought of as a Tiwi person’s home. For Tiwi people Country is a region of the islands that you inherit from your father’s family. These are regions all over remote Melville and Bathurst Islands so many people do not have the opportunity to live on their ‘home’ or Country. The term japuja would then explain the house you are living in that may or may not be on your family’s Country.