Tangkaira

Tangkaira, also known as Charlotte, was the wife of Ityamaiitpinna, called 'King Rodney' by the colonists. Ityamaiitpinna was a respected Kaurna Elder and one of three with whom the colonists regularly negotiated.

Tangkaira was a co-signatory (as Tanggaira) of a letter dated 15 May 1841 and addressed to Lieutenant Colonel Gawler, Governor of South Australia by a protector and missionaries. Co-authored and signed by nine Aboriginal schoolchildren, it is the earliest written example of Kaurna language, and an important resource which has helped with the revival of the language.

In 2003 Hurtle Square was renamed Hurtle Square/Tangkaira to honour this Kaurna woman. The square is also named after Sir James Hurtle Fisher (1785-1860) the first Resident Commissioner of South Australia, the first Mayor of Adelaide, and the first resident South Australian to be knighted.

Celebrating 125 years of women's suffrage in South Australia.

Image: S Burnett photographer