Larrakia are an indigenous Australian people in and around Darwin in the Northern Territory. The Larrakia, who often refer to themselves as 'Saltwater People,' had a vibrant traditional society based on a close relationship with the sea and trade with neighbouring groups such as the Tiwi, Wadjiginy and Djerimanga. These groups shared ceremonies and songlines, and intermarried.
The traditional land of the Larrakia, covered approximately 1,500 square miles (3,900 km2), and took in the present day capital of Darwin, as well as Southport, Bynoe Harbour and the Howard River. It extended from the Finniss River and Fog Bay in the northeast to the vicinity of Gunn Point, west of the Adam Bay mouth of the Adelaide River. Their hinterland extension ran down south to a depth of 46 miles to a point roughly 10 miles north of Rum Jungle. This last area formed a border, with an interdiction zone of about 8–10 miles deep
As early as October 1972 the Larrakia had begun to assert their rights to land, when a 1,000 Larrakia tried to present a 3-metre long document- arguing their land was taken by British settlers, leaving the Larrakia refugees in their own country- to Princess Margaret with their signatures, on the occasion of her visit to Darwin. After the passage of the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act in 1976, the Larrakia presented a formal land claim on 22 March 1979, the first move in what was subsequently described as 'the most complex and hard-fought land claim in the history of Aboriginal land rights.'
This Kenbi Land Claim pursued rights, as traditional owners, over the land, waters and islands encompassing the Cox Peninsula. The Northern Territory government fought it for some 21 years, at a cost of $20 million. In December 2000, Justice Gray's report rejected the claims of three of the claimant groups, finding only that six people belonging to the Tommy Lyons family fell within the statutory test of 'traditional Aboriginal owners'. He therefore recommended that approximately 600 km² be handed back to the Larrakia people. in a grant to an appropriate Aboriginal Land Trust, whose benefits would accrue to all 1,600 members of the Larrakia community.
A setback occurred in April 2006, when a Federal Court of Australia decision denied the Larrakia's native title claim on the basis of "failure to prove continuous connection with the Darwin area". In his reasoning Justice Mansfield argued that there had not been continuous observance of traditional customs and laws. Justice Mansfield's decision was later affirmed on appeal by the Full Federal Court.
In 2016, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull formally handed the land back to the Larrakia people
