Moreland council votes to change name to Merri-bek

Moreland council in Melbourne's inner north has voted to change its name to Merri-bek after a community survey to find a replacement for the current slavery-linked name.

The council put three Woi-wurrung names in a survey to residents in consultation with the elders of Wurundjeri.

The rocky country Deputy Mayor Lambros Tapinos said it was a historic day for the council and local area. An overwhelming majority of the 6,315 votes went to Merri-bek.

It is a reintroduction of a name that existed for thousands and thousands of years.

It is a name that describes the land that this municipality sits on and its native language. He said it's a great starting point to move forward.

Congratulations to the council and thanks for the opportunity to share our culture and language. The elder Tony Garvey said it was a big step forward for Aboriginal people.

He said that this is the beginning of something big.

If you're on Aboriginal sites, remember that it's important that we stick to traditional ways and traditional names. The state government named the council Moreland in 1994 when Brunswick, Coburg and part of Broadmeadows merged.

The area was first named Moreland by land speculator Farquhar McCrae in 1839, who named it after a Jamaican slave plantation run by his father and grandfather.

Councillors Oscar Yildiz, Helen Davidson and Helen Pavlides-Mihalakos voted against the motion, while the other seven councillors in attendance voted for the motion.

There was not enough community consultation about the change, according to Yildiz.

He said that there should have been a fourth option in the survey to leave the name Moreland.

Some residents opposed the name change, according to a few councillors.

Councillor Sue Bolton said there should be more community education to help residents understand the dispossession of Aboriginal land and intergenerational trauma.

She said that the council will go further in trying to help people understand why this is so significant.

Money that will be spent on name change could be spent elsewhere, according to Ms Pavlides-Mihalakos.

She said that the Moreland ratepayers are the us.

The council has allocated $500,000 over two years to change signs and materials.

The change will need to be approved by local government minister Melissa Horne and Victoria's governor Linda Dessau.