Town of Cambridge announces Lake Monger will adopt its traditional name, Galup

The Town of Cambridge Council this week endorsed the renaming of popular Perth walking spot Lake Monger Reserve to Galup, meaning ‘place of fire’.

The decision came to pass at the August 27 Ordinary Council Meeting, following unanimous acceptance of the administration’s recommendation to adopt the amended Galup (Lake Monger) Management Plan 2024-2034 and the Galup (Lake Monger) Masterplan 2024-2034.

The reserve will be referred to as Galup (Lake Monger) over a five-year transition period, before being officially updated to Galup in 2029.

“The community showed strong support for all proposed actions, including the name change. This marks a significant step in our reconciliation journey,” said Town of Cambridge Mayor, Gary Mack.

Mr Mack said consultation on the draft Management Plan and Masterplan, along with the potential name change was “thorough”, involving multiple stakeholders and 1,128 survey responses.

The reserve is a significant Aboriginal heritage site, and next steps require an application to Landgate to formally request the name change.

According to the Town of Cambridge release, the draft Plan and Masterplan were developed in consultation with Traditional Owners and registered Knowledge Holders, with anthropologist-facilitated meetings ensuring cultural and historical perspectives were included in the documents.

The reserve is recognised as a meeting place and campground for the Whadjuk Noongar people, and was the site of a massacre in 1830.

Community consultation was conducted from June 21-July 15 2024, during which time 1,128 survey responses on the issue were received.

And to all of this we say, great.

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