The Hobart City Council will today be offered a new Indigenous name for the Tasmanian capital in palawa kani, the revived Tasmanian Aboriginal language.

The Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre (TAC) will present the traditional name for Hobart to the council this afternoon as part of Reconciliation Week.

TAC chief executive officer Heather Sculthorpe wanted to keep the name under wraps until after today's formal presentation but said it was the original and proper name for the city.

Tasmania's dual place names truwana/Cape Barren Island (Gazetted in 2014)

truwana/Cape Barren Island (Gazetted in 2014) yingina/Great Lake (2016)

yingina/Great Lake (2016) taypalaka/Green Point (2016)

taypalaka/Green Point (2016) kunanyi/Mt Wellington (2014)

kunanyi/Mt Wellington (2014) wukalina/Mt William (2016)

wukalina/Mt William (2016) kanamaluka/River Tamar (2014)

kanamaluka/River Tamar (2014) pinmatik/Rocky Cape (2016)

pinmatik/Rocky Cape (2016) laraturunawn/Sundown Point (2016)

laraturunawn/Sundown Point (2016) titima/Trefoil Island (2016)

titima/Trefoil Island (2016) takayna/The Tarkine (2014)

takayna/The Tarkine (2014) nungu/West Point (2016) Locations with standalone Aboriginal names larapuna (Bay of Fires, 2014)

larapuna (Bay of Fires, 2014) putalina (Oyster Cove, 2014)

"Today we are really pleased to be able to talk to representatives from the Hobart City Council about offering them the original and proper name for the town on which they operate and many of us now live," she said.

"What has come through very clearly [during Reconciliation Week] is that it is the non-Aboriginal population that has to decide what steps they want to take to reconcile with the Aboriginal community.

"How can the non-Aboriginal community face up to the fact of Tasmania having an Aboriginal past and a violent past? What steps can be taken try and mend the wrongs of the past?

"That is where we are going with this."

Ms Sculthorpe said if the council chose to adopt the name it would be a great achievement.

"I think we would be immensely proud," she said.

"Brisbane has started to gain currency with its original name but none of the other capitals have got anywhere near it.

"It will be fantastic if Hobart were to become the first [capital] in Australia that was able to adopt the original name for the territory on which it is located.

"It would be a fantastic fillip to our sense of Aboriginal history, it would be a great boon for all the citizenry and I think it wouldn't do bad for tourism either."

nungu/West Point was gazetted in 2016. ( Instagram: viking_photographer )

Mayor Ron Christie welcomes the offering

Hobart Lord Mayor Ron Christie welcomed the Aboriginal name offering and was confident the community would embrace it.

"[Hobart] is a very close-knit community and I am absolutely sure they will embrace it," he said.

"It is part of our history. Why shouldn't we recognise it? The theme of Reconciliation Week is: 'Don't keep history a mystery' and this is just one way of expanding on that.

"It is happening all around the world in other cities, over in New Zealand, why not here in Hobart?"

To date, 13 places have been assigned Aboriginal names under the Tasmanian Government's Aboriginal and Dual Naming Policy, including Hobart's mountain kunanyi/Mount Wellington.

The policy was developed in partnership with the TAC in 2012 to allow geographical features and places to be given traditional language names.

But last year the State Government announced it would review the policy after some Aboriginal Tasmanians called for the consultation process around dual naming to be reviewed.

At the time, a government spokesman said: "While it is recognised that the Aboriginal and Dual Naming Policy contributes to the broader community's understanding of Aboriginal history and culture in Tasmania, a number of Aboriginal groups have indicated they would like more involvement in the process".

"To this end, the Government is committed to reviewing it with a view to encouraging greater consultation and engagement with the entire Aboriginal community regarding dual naming," he said.

pinmatik/Rocky Cape was gazetted in 2016. ( Flickr: Tasmanian.Kris )

TAC wants to bypass official policy

The move angered the TAC, which has now chosen to bypass the Aboriginal and Dual Naming Policy and the state's Nomenclature Board.

"We want to share with [the council] why we know this is the original name and why we think they should adopt it, even though we have not tried to make it official through the Nomenclature Board," Ms Sculthorpe said.

"Unfortunately, after our high hopes for an official dual naming policy, the Premier politicised that process to such a degree that now if anyone wants to say that we did not consult them then there is going to be a hold-up, a review and referrals, so these names will never get into public use.

"So [instead] will go straight to the people."

titima/Trefoil Island was gazetted in 2016. ( Facebook: Osbourne Heli Tours )

Ms Sculthorpe did not rule out presenting the Hobart place name to the Nomenclature Board in the future.

In the meantime, she did not expect it to appear on signs like kunanyi (Mount Wellington) had.

"kunanyi has been gazetted; it is on official maps and so on," she said.

"I don't think immediately the proper name will be used like that, but I know that if enough people start using it, if the council starts using it, then eventually it will become the name like kunanyi is for Mount Wellington."

Alderman Christie said the council would need to discuss how, when and where the name would be officially used.

"It will come up at one of our committee meetings or a council meeting and we will then use this name in appropriate areas," he said.

"It might be used in civic receptions. We will certainly use it where we possibly can.

"After today, we will discuss how we can incorporate it more into our city."