Noosa, Queensland

Encyclopedia : N : NO : NOO : Noosa, Queensland

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Noosa is located on the Sunshine Coast in South East Queensland, Australia. It is bounded by Maroochy Shire in the south, and Cooloola Shire in the North. The name Noosa is commonly used to describe a cluster of suburbs none of which are actually called Noosa. The main suburbs that could be considered to be within the Noosa town are:

Noosa Heads
Noosaville
Sunshine Beach
Sunrise Beach
Tewantin

The main surrounding towns that are within the Noosa Shire (local government boundary) are:

The current population of the Noosa Shire is approximately 50,000 permanent residents, although tourism based seasional fluctuations can boost that number by perhaps 20,000+ visitors. As such the Noosa economy is primarily driven by tourism.

Ancient History

The Noosa area was originally home to numerous Aboriginal tribes. These primarily include the Undumbi tribe to the south, the Dulingbara to the north, and the Gabbi Gabbi to the west.

Although much of the culture and presence of the traditional owners of the Noosa district has been lost during the short period of white settlement, there still exists many subtle reminders. These include:

bora rings, used during rituals.
canoe trees, marks on trees where bark was removed for canoes.
border/navigation trees, marks on trees used to mark paths and/or tribal borders.
stone carvings
burial trees
middens, shell mound created by thousands of years of discarded shells.
stone axes
spoken legends, many local legends which were traditionally passed through the generations survive today.
place names, many local names are versions of the original aboriginal names. 'Noosa' is said to be a western interpretation of the aboriginal name for the area 'Noothera', meaning a place of shade.

White Settlement

Although Captain Cook passed the Noosa coastline during May 1770 it really wasn't until the mid 1800s that it could be said that modern 'white' settlement of the Noosa district really began. This early settlement was primarily driven firstly by timber logging and then secondly a gold rush in the Gympie area, north of Noosa.

In the last 50 years Noosa has been transformed from an isolated fishing village to a popular tourist destination. Although this has had its costs the shire is known for its generally greener approach to development. Most development in Noosa has been restrained. Noosa has no high rise buildings and much remaining native forest. Almost 35 per cent of Noosa shire comprises National Parks, Conservation Parks, State Forests, and other generally protected land. The local government has implemented a controversial population cap of 65,000 permanent residents for the shire.

Local Government Areas of the Sunshine Coast
Caloundra | Maroochy | Noosa

Sources

(2005). [Noosa Shire Council Home]. Retrieved May 4, 2005.

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