churinga

American  

[choo-ring-guh] / tʃʊˈrɪŋ gə /

noun

plural

churinga, churingas

1. an object carved from wood or stone by Aboriginal tribes in central Australia and held by them to be sacred.

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churinga British  

/ tʃəˈrɪŋɡə /

noun

1. a sacred amulet of the native Australians

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Etymology

Origin of churinga

First recorded in 1895–1900, churinga is from the Aranda word jwerreŋe

Example Sentences

The churinga nanja of its primal ancestor is sought for at the place of the child’s conception, and is put into the sacred repository of such objects.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 2 "Fairbanks, Erastus" to "Fens" by Various

At daylight the man stands up alone and swings the churinga, causing it first to strike the ground as he whirls it round and round and makes it hum.

From Primitive Love and Love-Stories by Finck, Henry Theophilus

I wrote to the Glasgow Herald, adducing the Australian churinga nanja as parallel to Mr. Donnelly’s inscribed stones, and thus my share in the controversy began. 

From The Clyde Mystery a Study in Forgeries and Folklore by Lang, Andrew

It must be kept in mind that churinga, “witch stones,” “charm stones,” or whatever the smaller stones may be styled, are not necessarily marked with any pattern. 

From The Clyde Mystery a Study in Forgeries and Folklore by Lang, Andrew

The local example is found close to Alice Springs, where there are deposited a large number of churinga carried by the witchetty grub men and women.

From Folklore as an Historical Science by Gomme, George Laurence