When the first European explorer to see Uluru, William Gosse laid his eyes on the amazing monolith in 1873, he decided to name it Ayers Rock after Sir Henry Ayers, premier of South Australian government at the time. The name of the rock was changed from Ayers Rock to Uluru in 1995, 10 years after the Australian government formally returned ownership of Uluru to the traditional custodians of the land – the Anangu people. The change of the name is a mark of respect and recognition of Anangu people as the traditional owners of the land.