The Hunting Boomerang
Most people today know the boomerang only as a light weight flying stick of Australian origin that returns safely to its thrower, and which has no utility for hunting whatsoever. Historically, however, returning boomerangs were a very limited variation on a hefty and deadly straight flying weapon found not just throughout Australia but on at least 5 continents around the world. Large, straight flying "hunting boomerangs" were used historically to deliver bone shattering blows and hunt game at ranges out to at least 80 meters, 87 yards and even well beyond this.
The varieties of this weapon are numerous globally. They originate from no single culture but are shared by all as a common earth skill of our ancestors, appearing even as inspiration for characters in ancient alphabets. Many regional designs are unsurpassed in both practicality and beauty, and yet modern researchers still struggle to decode the physics that make them defy gravity in flight.
In Australia, hunting boomerangs were developed to their highest refinement anywhere. With hundreds of aboriginal dialects used, they called their variety of long range hovering missiles by numerous names. including kylie, aly iripakerte, alye, karli, barikan, mangaburunya, eraka, gaigai, gurrubadu, ilye, kwangenry, kali, kayle, kurrpartu, rilewe, ulperrenye, waridlia, wirlki, belo, irigili, kaile, kaili, munartajartu, pirrkala, wallanu, warlanu, warraka, and many more.…
“Boomerang” was the first popular term adopted from the Aboriginals by the colonists for these weapons and it remains so today. It was originally popularized by Captain Phillip King (around the year 1825). It seems, historically, however, that the most popular Aboriginal term used across large areas of the continent was “Kylie” (and variants).
Some returning boomerangs were actually used for hunting as well, but not in the way that the straight flying boomerangs were. Hunters found that returning boomerangs could be used as decoys to imitate birds of prey and thus keep game birds grounded, where they could more easily be hunted by other means.
Throwsticks
Modern Hunting Boomerangs
Unlike all other projectile hunting tools and hand thrown objects, a properly made hunting boomerang actually flies on a straight and level flight path directly towards its target at ranges out to 100 meters and even much more. A returning boomerang can be purchased just about anywhere if you want to play catch without a partner, but a truly well made hunting stick is a rare weapon fit for a true survivalist. If this is the legendary hunting tool you have been looking for, then you've come to the right place! Throwsticks.com is the first and only web based business in the world exclusively dedicated to manufacturing and selling quality hunting boomerangs. Made from tough modern materials, our throwsticks achieve the extreme straight/level flight ranges of their ancient predecessors. For more in depth information on the topic of the etymology of the word "boomerang," please see our Q&A Page History Section.
