The Kokoda Trail

Kokoda: Track or Trail?

There has been much controversy over recent years about the name of that infamous native track that winds its way over the Owen Stanley Ranges to connect the former mandated territories of Papua and New Guinea.

Most of the wartime articles and books refer to it as the 'Kokoda Trail' but some also refer to it as a track.

So is it the Kokoda Trail or the Kokoda Track?

The Kokoda track is located in the sovereign nation of Papua New Guinea.

According to their statute books the official name is the 'Kokoda Trail' (the reference is PNG Government Gazette No. 88 of 12 October 1972, page 1362, column 2. Notice 1972/28 of the PNG Place Names Committee).

We should therefore respect their sovereign right to name their geographical features and refer to the track by its proper name.

The Australian War Memorial (Wartime Vol 19, 2002) advises:

There has been considerable debate about whether the difficult path that crossed the Owen Stanley Range should be called "Kokoda Trail" or the "Kokoda Track".

Both terms have been in common use since the war. "Trail" is probably of American origin but has been used in many Australian history books, including the official history, and was adopted by the Australian Army as an official "battle honour". "Track" comes from the language of the Australian bush. It too is commonly used by veterans, and is used in some volumes of Australia's official history.

Thus, both are correct, but "trail" appears to be used more widely. The Memorial has adopted the term "trail" because it is favoured by a majority of veterans and because it appears on the battle honours of units which served in Papua in 1942.

Kokoda: a focus of national identity, but is it Track or Trail?

Kokoda is one of the most famous names in Australian military history - perhaps only Gallipoli and Tobruk are better known. But should we refer to the setting of the desperate and heroic feats of arms as the Kokoda Track or the Kokoda Trail?

When Flinders history postgraduate Peter Provis won a scholarship to undertake a short research project at the Australian War Memorial, he was set the task of examining and evaluating the history of the two alternative terms, and found himself immersed in a debate that, far from fading away, has become more heated over time.

The current argument over which is the correct term divides politicians, government departments and even the veterans who fought there. Mr Provis said that both terms have been in use ever since the war, but the debate over which should hold sway sprang up around the fiftieth anniversary of the Papuan campaign in 1992.

Delving into the archives, Mr Provis found that the use of track and trail was inconsistent from the start - while the handwritten diaries and letters of the Diggers and the RAAF fliers in New Guinea tended to favour "track", war correspondents and initially Australian newspapers used "trail", "track" and other terms as well, demonstrating little consistency. As the campaign progressed, the press tended towards the use of "Kokoda Trail".

The famous poem spawned by the campaign, The Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels, refers to the Owen Stanley Track, but Mr Provis said while it is evident that the troops regularly used the term "the track", it was usually in a generic rather than an official sense.

Recent accusations that "Kokoda Trail" was adopted under American influence do have some merit, Mr Provis said, and he cites a correspondence between US General Douglas Macarthur's headquarters and the Australian high command that seems to show the Australians falling into line with American usage.

But even the four official histories covering the campaign are divided on the subject. Individual regimental histories, however, adopted Kokoda Trail, which also became the standard usage for regimental banners and flags. Battle honours used the same formula, and the Australian War Memorial, while acknowledging that both terms were used, has also opted for "Trail" over "Track".

Mr Provis said that at the outset of fighting in New Guinea, neither the Japanese nor the Australians realised the extremes of the terrain, and in many cases they had the Kokoda to Moresby route marked on maps as passable. The Japanese even called it a "road".

"They didn't realise what they were letting themselves in for," Mr Provis said. Australian veterans are active on both sides of the debate.

Some are urging a change in the official name to the more "Australian" version, while others want to retain the name they have honoured for almost 60 years. The debate has even taken a political turn. Paul Keating urged Australians to consider the Kokoda campaign a focal point for nationalism, describing it as the first military action in which Australians fought by themselves and for the security of their own country.

Keating called it the Kokoda Trail, but at the urging of some of its constituents, the Department of Veterans Affairs favours Kokoda Track, and the conservative side of politics, including John Howard, has followed suit. Mr Provis said he expected the argument to continue as national recognition of the significance of the campaign increases. "It's a very interesting debate," Mr Provis said.

"When I was first set the task I thought the whole debate seemed a bit trivial, but it's very complex, and the more I dug at it, the more fascinating it became. "My basic conclusion is that both are acceptable. One of the major authors in the area, Peter Brune, uses both - when he refers to the campaign, he refers to the Kokoda Trail, but he also uses "Kokoda track" when referring to the physical thing itself."

Flinders Journal: May 12-May 25, 2003

The debate continues ....

Whilst the debate over the name 'track' or 'trail' continues to be controversial I am guided by the decision of thePNG Government Place Names Commission in 1972 to proclaim it as 'The Kokoda Trail'. I am also influenced by the official battle honours we see on unit flags every Anzac Day which refer to 'The Kokoda Trail'. The only exception to this is the flag of the 39th Militia Battalion that has the name 'Kokoda' because it is the only unit to have fought a battle in the village of Kokoda.

I therefore refer to the area between McDonalds Corner and Kokoda village as 'The Kokoda Trail' but after that I refer to it simply as 'the track' - or as our diggers often describe it - 'the bloody track'!

The Koiari people of the track have provided a diplomatic compromise to the debate as can be seen in the picture.

We should therefore respect the right of Papua New Guinea to name their geographical features in accordance with their laws and practices. One can imagine the outcry if they referred to our iconic Snowy River as 'Snowy Creek' due to the lack of water flow since the Snowy Mountain Hydro Scheme was completed!

The official name is therefore the 'Kokoda Trail'.

Charlie Lynn