Encyclopedia of World Cultures Volume 2 - Oceania - T pot

Tahiti
305
Tahiti
ETHNONYM:
Society
Islands
Orientation
Identification.
The
name
'Tahiti"-or,
as
Bougainville
first
wrote
it
in
1768,
"Taiti,"
and
Cook
in
1769,
'Otaheite"-was
the
name
the
natives
gave
their
island

and
which
Europeans
came
to
apply
to
the
indigenes.
If
the
Tahi-
tians
had
a
name
specifically
identifying
themselves,
it
is
not
known.
What
is
known
is
that
all
of

those
living
in
the
Society
Archipelago,
including
Tahiti,
referred
to
themselves
as
"Maohi."
Location.
The
island
of
Tahiti
upon
which
the
Tahitians
lived
is
the
largest
of
the
Society
Islands

and
is
located
in
the
windward
segment
of
that
group
at
149°30'
W
and
17°30'
S.
It
is
a
high
island
of
volcanic
origin
with
peaks
rising
above
1,500
meters.

The
mountainous
interior
is
covered
with
for-
est
and
ferns
while
the
lower
slopes,
especially
on
the
leeward
side,
are
brush
and
reed
covered.
In
the
inhabited
valleys
and
coastal

plains
open
stands
of
indigenous
trees
and
tall
grasses
were
scattered
between
the
cultivated
fields
of
the
Tahitians.
Wild
fowl
were
said
to
have
been
relatively
scarce
and
limited
to

a
few
species,
pigeons
and
ducks
being
specifically
men-
tioned.
Wild
four-legged
creatures
were
limited
to
a
few
small
lizards
and
the
Polynesian
rat,
the
latter
probably
brought
by
Polynesians.

Linguistic
Affiliation.
The
Tahitic
language
of
the
Tahi-
tians
belongs
to
the
Eastern
Polynesian
Subgroup
of
the
Malayo-Polynesian
Subdivision
of
the
Austronesian
lan-
guages.
Demography.
Estimates
of
Tahiti's
population
in

the
later
years
of
the
eighteenth
century
varied
from
as
few
as
16,050
to
approximately
30,000
persons,
and
thus
these
estimates
are
of
little
factual
value.
A
nineteenth-century
decline
in

population
due
to
wars
and
diseases
is
known
to
have
oc-
curred.
However,
by
1907,
after
which
it
was
no
longer
possi-
ble
to
segregate
indigenous
totals
from
those
of

foreigners
and
immigrant
Polynesians
from
other
islands,
the
number
of
Tahitians
was
said
to
number
11,691.
History
and
Cultural
Relations
Present
archaeological
evidence
supports
the
view
that
the
Society
Islands,

of
which
Tahiti
is
a
part,
were
the
first
to
be
populated
in
eastern
Polynesia
from
an
eastern
Polynesia
dis-
persal
center
in
the
Marquesas,
perhaps
as
early
as
A.D.

850.
Whether
later
prehistoric
migrants
ever
reached
the
Society
Islands
is
an
open
question.
Limited
archaeological
data
and
tradition
suggest
the
occurrence
of
prehistoric
Society
Island
emigrations
to
New
Zealand

and
Hawaii.
However,
by
con-
tact
times
Tahitian
voyaging,
primarily
for
political
and
trade
purposes,
was
limited
to
the
islands
of
the
archipelago
and
the
atolls
of
the
western
Tuamotus.

In
contrast
to
prehistoric
culture
change
on
Tahiti,
which
had
occurred
in
small
incre-
ments,
the
discovery
of
the
island
by
Wallis
in
1767
marked
the
beginning
of
strong
European

acculturative
forces
im-
pacting
on
the
traditional
life-ways
of
Tahitians.
Except
for
material
goods,
the
most
notable
changes
occurred
with
the
arrival
of
Protestant
missionaries
in
1797.
Within
several
years

after
their
arrival
a
number
of
Tahitians,
including
the
paramount
chief,
Pomare
11,
had
been
taught
to
read
and
write,
and
the
Christian
faith
and
mores
had
begun
to
be

ac-
cepted.
However,
objections
by
more
conservative
members
of
the
society
resulted
in
a
series
of
internecine
wars
and
it
was
not
until
1815
that
Pomare
11
crushed
his
opponents

and,
with
the
aid
of
the
missionaries,
successfully
guided
a
re-
ligious
and
political
modification
of
the
older
traditional
order.
With
the
development
of
American
and
European
whaling
arid
sealing

activities
Tahiti
became
a
prime
distribu.
tion
center
for
goods.
By
1840
South
American
currencies
had
come
to
be
accepted
as
a
substitute
for
the
old
trading
techniques.
At
the

same
time,
foreign
immigrants
and
invest-
ments
on
the
island
produced
a
variety
of
problems
for
which
the
Tahitians
were
ill
prepared.
Foreign
government
overtures
to
Queen
Pomare
to
establish

a
protectorate
resulted
in
the
French
moving
quickly
to
annex
the
island
in
1842
and
thus
dissolving
Tahitian
native
rule.
Settlements
Prior
to
European
intervention,
Tahitians
followed
a
pattern
of

dispersed
settlements,
dwellings
being
scattered
along
the
coastal
plain
and
up
the
broader
valleys.
By
the
nineteenth
century
missionary
activities
and
the
use
by
European
vessels
of
safe
harbors
on

the
island
resulted
in
the
formation
of
vil-
lages
near
these
locations.
The
Tahitian
house
resembled
a
flattened
oval
inground
plan,
the
long
sides
being
parallel
and
the
two
ends

rounded.
The
thatched
roof
extended
down
on
all
sides
from
a
central
ridgepole
extending
lengthwise
along
the
house.
Most
dwellings
were
enclosed
by
a
wall
of
vertically
lashed
bamboo
poles,

a
space
being
left
open
in
the
middle
of
one
long
side
to
serve
as
a
doorway.
Such
structures
averaged
about
6
meters
in
length
with
a
width
of
3.6

meters
and
a
ridge
height
of
2.7
meters.
However,
important
chiefs
might
have
buildings
measuring
as
much
as
91
meters
in
length
and
proportionately
wide,
with
a
ridgepole
resting
some

9
meters
above
the
tamped
earthen
floor.
Economy
Subsistence
and
Commercial
Activities.
Tahitians
were
horticulturalists
raising
a
variety
of
tree
and
tuberous
crops
as
well
as
plantains,
all
of
which,

except
sweet
potatoes,
origi-
nated
in
southeast
Asia
or
Melanesia.
Domesticated
animals
included
pigs,
dogs,
and
chickens.
Fish,
caught
by
a
variety
of
techniques,
were
a
dominant
source
of
protein.

Contact
with
Europeans
resulted
in
the
addition
of
several
American
and
Old
World
plants
and
domesticated
animals.
During
the
early
nineteenth
century
a
successful
pork
trade
with
New
South
Wales

was
carried
on
and
this
was
followed
later
by
exports
of
coconut
oil,
sugarcane,
and
arrowroot.
Provisioning
of
Euro-
pean
ships
became
a
major
nineteenth-century
source
of
income.
Industrial
Arts.

Decorated
bark
cloth
was
a
major
aborigi-
nal
industrial
art
created
by
women
and
used
as
clothing,
as
formal
gifts,
and
for
export
trade.
Bark-cloth
production
con-
tinued
into
the

twentieth
century,
but
such
cloth
is
no
longer
manufactured.
Trade.
Regular
aboriginal
trading
was
carried
on
with
the
leeward
islands
of
the
Society
Archipelago
and
the
western
306
Tahiti
atolls

of
the
Tuamotus.
The
principal
item
for
exchange
was
bark
cloth,
to
which
was
added
provisions
in
the
case
of
the
Tuamotu
atolls.
With
the
arrival
of
Europeans,
iron
became

the
dominant
item
traded
to
those
atolls.
In
exchange,
Tahi-
tians
obtained
dog
hair,
pearls,
and
pearl
shells
from
the
Tua-
motus
and
coconut
oil
and
canoes
from
the
leeward

islands.
Division
of
Labor.
Traditionally,
general
construction
work
and
manufacturing
of
tools,
weapons,
canoes,
and
fish-
ing
gear
was
men's
work,
as
was
fishing,
major
ritualism,
and
warfare.
Women
created

bark
cloth,
wove
mats,
and
fash-
ioned
clothing
from
both
materials.
Farming
was
shared
by
both
sexes.
Land
Tenure.
At
the
time
of
contact
landownership
with
the
right
of
inheritance

was
recognized
for
those
of
the
chiefly
and
commoner
classes,
with
only
the
lower
class,
known
as
teuteu,
being
excluded.
Such
lands
were
subject
to
taxation
in
kind
by
the

ruling
chiefs
who
could
banish
an
owner
if
such
taxes
were
not
forthcoming.
Missionary
activity
in
the
nine-
teenth
century
seems
to
have
resulted
in
at
least
some
of
the

teuteu
class
obtaining
land
rights.
Kinship
Kin
Groups
and
Descent.
Descent
was
bilateral
with
so-
cial
weight
tending
to
favor
patrilateral
ties.
Consanguineal
and,
perhaps,
affinal
kin
were
grouped
in

what
have
been
re-
ferred
to
as
kin
congregations
who
worshiped
their
own
tutelar
deity
at
their
group
religious
structure,
referred
to
as
a
marae.
Primogeniture
was
important
in
ranking

within
the
kin
congregation.
While
women
were
excluded
from
the
marae
of
the
large
kin
congregations,
that
was
not
always
true
for
marae
of
smaller
kin
congregations.
Kinship
Terminology.
The

term
matahiapo
was
applied
to
firstborn
as
well
as
all
representatives
of
a
family
stock
de-
scended
in
the
line
of
the
firstborn.
Teina
was
used
to
distin-
guish
younger

brothers,
sisters,
and
cousins
who
were
not
matahiapo;
otherwise,
the
Hawaiian
type
of
kinship
termi-
nology
was
used.
Marriage
and
Family
Marriage.
Tahitians
disapproved
of
marriage
between
dose
consanguineal
kin,

but
how
close
was
never
made
clear.
However,
marriage
was
not
permitted
between
those
of
differ-
ing
social
classes.
Therefore,
children
resulting
from
a
sexual
relationship
between
partners
of
differing

classes
were
killed
upon
birth.
In
the
eighteenth
century
young
couples
were
re-
quired
to
obtain
the
permission
of
their
parents
before
mar-
riage,
and
among
the
chiefly
class
early

betrothal
was
said
to
be
the
norm
and
concubinage
was
common.
Marriage
cere-
monies,
when
present,
consisted
of
prayers
at
a marae.
There
appeared
to
be
no
fixed
residency
requirement
and

divorce
was
by
common
consent.
Domestic
Unit.
The
nuclear
family
was
the
dominant
unit.
Inheritance.
The
firstborn
son
became
the
head
of
the
family
at
birth
and
succeeded
to
his

father's
name,
lands,
and
title,
if
any.
The
father
then
served
as
the
child's
regent
until
he
became
of
age.
In
the
event
of
the
firstborn
dying,
the
next
son

succeeded
him.
There
is
some
indication
that
in
the
ab-
sence
of
male
offspring,
an
oldest
daughter
might
be
the
inheritor.
Socialization.
Children
were
raised
permissively
by
their
parents,
although

those
of
the
chiefly
class
were
given
a
de-
gree
of
education
through
teachers
of
that
class.
Men
and
women
ate
separately,
and
there
was
a
variety
of
restrictions
regarding

who
might
prepare
another's
meal.
Sociopolitical
Organization
Social
Organization.
During
the
eighteenth
century,
there
were
basically
three
social
classes:
the
ari'i,
or
chiefs;
the
com-
moners,
variously
known
as
manahuni

or
ra'atira;
and
the
la-
boring
and
servant
class
known
as
teuteu.
Only
the
last
group
could
not
own
land.
By
the
beginning
of
the
nineteenth
cen-
tury,
perhaps
because

of
European
influence,
a
fourth
class
called
titi,
consisting
of
slaves
derived
from
warfare,
had
been
added.
Political
Organization.
In
the
early
years
of
European
contact
Tahitian
tribes
were
grouped

into
two
major
territor-
ial
units.
One
constituted
the
larger
northwestern
portion
of
the
island
and
was
known
as
Tahiti
Nui,
while
the
other
con-
sisted
of
the
southeastern
Taiarapu

Peninsula
and
was
known
as
Tahiti
Iti.
Each
maintained
a
paramount
chief
of
sociore-
ligious
power.
Below
this
highest
position
were
chiefs
who
ruled
over
what
may
be
likened
to

districts.
These
were
di-
vided
into
smaller
units
and
managed
by
inferior
ranked
chiefs.
A
paramount
chiefs
power
was
not
unlimited,
since
important
matters
affecting
most
or
all
of
his

region
were
de-
cided
by
a
council
of
high-ranking
chiefs.
Paramountcy
was
not
totally
preordained,
as
wars
and
kinship
alliances
served
to
maintain
such
a
status.
It
was
with
European

aid
and
com-
binations
of
these
factors
that
the
Pomare
paramountcy
was
maintained
well
into
the
nineteenth
century.
Social
Control.
Fear
of
divine
retribution
was
a
major
con-
trol,
while

human
sacrifice
and
a
variety
of
corporal
punish-
ments
for
secular
antisocial
behavior
were
also
used
as
sanc-
tions.
justice
in
the
latter
cases
was
determined
by
a
district
chief,

and
the
right
to
appeal
to
one's
paramount
chief
was
available.
Conflict.
Confusion
regarding
tribal
territories
and
overin-
dulgence
of
chiefly
demands
for
products
and
services
were
sources
of
irritation.

At
the
time
of
European
contact,
war-
fare
for
chiefly
aggrandizement,
rather
than
territorial
acqui-
sition,
was
dominant.
By
the
close
of
the
eighteenth
century
the
European
tradition
of
warfare

for
territorial
gain
had
been
added
to
the
traditional
theme
of
warfare.
Minor
interper-
sonal
conflicts
were
resolved
by
each
antagonist
being
al-
lowed
to
exhibit
publicly
his
strong
resentment

of
whatever
indiscretion
had
caused
the
conflict,
after
which
both
parties
soon
reconciled.
However,
more
important
conflicts
were
set-
tled
by
a
district
chief,
the
antagonists
having
the
right
to

ap-
peal
his
decision
to
the
paramount
chief
if
not
satisfied.
Religion
and
Expressive
Culture
Religious
Beliefs.
Just
as
with
Tahitian
society,
native
reli-
gion
recognized
a
ranked
series
of

gods
starting
with
one
su-
preme
deity
and
passing
down
through
lesser
gods
and
subor-
dinates
to
individual
family
spirits
of
departed
relatives.
Religion
was
centered
on
regional,
tribal,
and

kin
tutelar
dei-
Tairora
307
ties,
although
a
few
of
the
gods
transcended
such
limitations
and
were,
in
effect,
supratribal
deities.
Gods
required
a
wide
variety
of
appeasements
in
order

to
ensure
the
continued
wel-
fare
of
the
individual
as
well
as
the
tribe.
Early
nineteenth
century
missionary
activity
successfully
substituted
Christian
beliefs
for
the
earlier
traditional
ones.
Reigiou
Practitioners.

Aboriginally,
priests
were
of
the
chiefly
class
and
were
of
two
kinds.
There
were
those
who
conducted
formal
rituals
during
which
the
gods
were
prayed
to
and
appeased
by
gifts

in
order
to
gain
their
favor.
Others
were
inspirational
priests
through
whom
particular
gods
spoke
and
offered
oracular
advice.
AU
priests
received
some
sort
of
payment
for
their
activities
and

many
were
believed
to
have
powers
of
sorcery.
With
the
nineteenth-century
accept-
ance
of
Christianity,
various
Tahitians,
not
all
necessarily
of
the
chiefly
class,
were
trained
by
the
missionaries
to

become
lay
preachers.
Ceremonies.
Religious
ceremonies
were
carried
out
in
marae,
most
of
which
were
tabooed
to
women.
Some
ceremo-
nies
were
seasonal
affairs,
while
others
pertained
to
war
and

peace,
thanksgiving,
atonement,
and
critical
life-cycle
events
of
chiefs.
The
degree
of
ceremonialism
was
dependent
upon
the
deity
and
the
importance
of
the
marae,
those
for
com-
moners
in
districts

and
smaller
land
divisions
being
the
least
elaborate.
Arts.
Drums-and,
in
the
early
nineteenth
century,
shell
trumpets-were
the
only
musical
instruments
used
during
ceremonies.
The
raised
platforms
of
certain
marae

were
deco-
rated
with
carved
boards,
while
the
god,
Oro,
was
personified
by
a
wickerwork
cylinder
enclosing
sacred
feathers.
The
culture-hero
god,
Maui,
was
represented
by
a
large
humanoid
wicker

figure
covered
with
patterns
of
feathers.
Plaited
masks
were
worn
during
certain
ceremonies
on
the
Taiarapu
Peninsula.
Medicine.
Obvious
ailments
such
as
sores
and
open
wounds
were
treated
with
herbal

medicines
and
poultices,
and
splints
were
applied
to
broken
bones.
Less
obvious
ill-
nesses
were
thought
to
occur
as
a
result
of
sorcery,
contact
with
a
sacred
individual
or
object,

or
the
anger
of
one's
god.
Curing
was
attempted
through
priestly
prayers
and
offerings.
Among
the
chiefly
class,
these
cures
were
performed
at
the
patient's
marae
and
might
include
human

sacrifices.
Death
and
Afterlife.
Untimely
death
was
thought
to
be
because
of
the
anger
of
one's
god,
while
death
through
aging
was
regarded
as
a
natural
process.
Rank
determined
the

ex-
tent
of
expressions
of
mourning
and
the
length
of
time
the
corpse
was
exposed
on
a
platform
before
burial.
In
the
case
of
high-ranking
members
of
the
chiefly
class,

this
time
factor
was
greatly
extended
by
evisceration
and
oiling
of
the
body.
Simple
burial,
secretive
for
those
of
high
rank,
was
customary.
There
is
some
indication
that
cremation
was

employed
for
certain
individuals
on
the
Taiarapu
Peninsula.
Among
the
upper
classes
human
relics
were
preserved.
For
some,
the
af-
terlife
was
seen
as
a
state
of
nothingness,
but
for

others
it
was
believed
to
be
a
happy
life,
for
rank
in
the
spirit
world
re-
mained
the
same
as
in
life.
See
also
Hawaiians,
Marquesas,
Rapa,
Raroia
Bibliography
Ferdon,

Edwin
N.
(1981).
Early
Tahiti
as
the
Explorers
Saw
It.
Tucson:
University
of
Arizona
Press.
Newbury,
Colin
(1980).
Tahiti
Nui:
Change
and
Survival
in
French
Polynesia,
1767-1945.
Honolulu:
University
Press

of
Hawaii.
Oliver,
Douglas
L.
(1974).
Ancient
Tahitian
Society.
3
vols.
Honolulu:
University
Press
of
Hawaii.
EDWIN
N.
FERDON
Tairora
l~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ETHNONYMS:
Kainantu,
Ndumba,
Ommura,
Taiora
Orientation
Identification.
The
Tairora

live
in
the
Kainantu
District
of
the
Eastern
Highlands
Province
of
Papua
New
Guinea.
Group
names
and
place
names
are
usually
the
same;
for
ex-
ample,
"Tairora"
(or
'Tai-ora")
is

the
name
of
a
phratry,
set-
tlement,
and
creek
near
the
present-day
town
of
Kainantu.
This
designation
was
generalized
by
Europeans
in
the
1920s
to
include
all
of
the
much

larger
ethnolinguistic
group.
Location.
Tairora
speakers
occupy
about
1,035
square
ki-
lometers
of
the
region
south
and
east
of
Kainantu,
at
145°45'
to
146°15'
E
and
6°15'
to
6°45'
S.

With
annual
rainfall
of
220-250
centimeters,
the
region
is
a
catchment
area
for
the
Ramu
and
Lamari
River
headwaters.
The
terrain
is
highly
di-
verse,
with
large,
open
grassland
dominating

the
northern
ba-
sins
at
elevations
of
1,625
to
1,880
meters
above
sea
level,
and
steeply
incised
forest-
or
grass-covered
ridges
in
the
south,
where
the
Kratke
Range
culminates
in

Mount
Piora,
at
3,450
meters.
The
climate
is
fairly
uniform
throughout
the
re-
gion,
with
cool
nights,
warm
days,
and
relatively
wet
and
dry
seasons
that
alternate
with
the
southeast

and
northwest
mon-
soons,
respectively.
Demography.
Current
estimates
for
Tairora
speakers
place
the
population
at
about
14,000,
reflecting
a
steady,
if
slight,
rate
of
increase
since
European
contact.
Nowadays,
sizable

numbers
of
Tairora,
especially
from
northern
settle-
ments,
emigrate
to
the
towns
of
Kainantu,
Goroka,
and
Lae.
Linguistic
Affiliation.
Tairora,
with
at
least
five
dialects,
is
a
member
of
the

Eastern
Family
of
Non-Austronesian
lan-
guages
in
the
East
New
Guinea
Highlands
Stock.
Many
Tairora
are
bilingual
with
neighboring
languages
(Agarabi,
Auyana,
Binumarien,
Gadsup,
and
Kamano
in
the
north;
Awa

and
Waffa
in
the
south)
and
currently
most
males
and
younger
women
are
fluent
in
Tok
Pisin.
Summer
Institute
of
Linguistics
translators
have
produced
a
considerable
amount
of
religious
and

educational
material
in
Tairora,
but
the
num-
0
I
U9TUT
ber
of
people
who
are
literate
in
their
own
language
is
still
fairly
small.
History
and
Cultural
Relations
People,
perhaps

ancestral
to
Tairora,
have
occupied
the
re-
gion
for
at
least
18,000
years.
The
earliest-known
era
ar-
chaeologically,
the
Mamu
Phase,
appears
to
have
been
a
per-
iod
of
continuous

growth
and
development,
with
subsistence
based
in
hunting
and
collecting.
After
3,000
B.P.,
in
the
Ten-
tika
Phase,
evidence
for
sedentarism
occurs,
as
do
other
sug-
gestions
of
the
adoption

of
horticulture.
In
general,
oral
tradi-
tions
point
to
Tairora
homelands
to
the
west
and
southwest,
but
groups'
origin
myths
tend
to
be
highly
localized.
Tairora
territory
abuts
those
of

other
language
groups
on
all
sides,
and
many
different
sources
have
contributed
to
the
linguistic
and
cultural
diversity
of
the
region.
Since
earliest
contact
with
European
missionaries,
gold
prospectors,
and

adminis-
trators
(beginning
in
the
1920s
in
the
north
and
1950s
in
the
south),
the
Tairora
social
universe
has
expanded
considera-
bly.
The
establishment
of
the
Upper
Ramu
Patrol
Post

(now
Kainantu)
in
1932
and
the
Aiyura
Agricultural
Experimental
Station
in
1937-both
in
the
north-were
notable
events,
beginning
the
processes
of
pacification
and
economic
devel-
opment
leading
to
the
current

situation,
in
which
Tairora
play
a
prominent
role
in
provincial
government.
Settlements
Settlements
in
northern
Tairora
are
generally
closer
together
and
more
nucleated
than
in
the
south,
where
they
tend

to
be
hamlet
clusters
about
a
half
day's
walk
apart.
Most
settle-
ments
are
found
at
elevations
between
1,500
and
1,900
me-
ters,
and
typically
they
each
had
200-250
residents

until
re-
cent
population
surges.
Traditionally,
wherever
allowed
by
the
terrain,
ridge-top
locations
were
preferred
for
defensive
purposes;
also
for
defense,
except
for
a
few
groups
living
in
the
open

grasslands
of
the
north,
settlements
were
sur-
rounded
with
high
palisades.
In
an
arrangement
used
until
the
1960s
in
the
north,
and
still
used
in
much
of
the
south,
Tairora

settlements
focused
on
one
or
more
large,
separately
palisaded
men's
houses,
with
women's
houses
clustered
below
(where
slope
permitted)
and
with
seclusion
houses-
used
by
women
during
menstruation
and
childbirth

and
sometimes
for
sanctuary-separated
from
living
areas
and
usually
surrounded
by
their
own
fences.
The
traditional
style
for
all
houses
is
circular,
with
low
grass
and
timber
walls
and
conical

thatched
roofs,
windowless
and
tightly
insulated
against
the
night
cold.
Increasingly
nowadays,
Tairora
have
adopted
rectangular
house
styles
with
walls
of
woven
bamboo.
Economy
Subsistence
and
Commercial
Activities.
Tairora
derive

most
of
their
subsistence
from
a
wide
variety
of
gardens.
Sweet
potatoes
are
the
dominant
root
crop,
although
yams
and
taro
are
also
major
sources
of
carbohydrates,
especially
in
the

south.
Tairora
are
sophisticated
horticulturalists,
employ-
ing
fallowing,
mounding
of
sweet
potatoes,
and
ditching
of
gardens;
in
the
south,
elaborate
systems
of
bamboo
pipes
are
used
to
irrigate
taro
gardens.

Other
important
crops
include
legumes,
maize,
bananas,
sugarcane,
and
leafy
greens;
tree
crops
include
pandanus
nuts
and,
in
some
areas,
betel
nuts.
Domestic
pigs
are
a
major
source
of
protein,

but
they
are
gen-
erally
killed
and
the
pork
exchanged
only
on
ceremonial
occa-
sions.
Hunting
and
collecting
also
yield
food,
especially
in
the
more
heavily
forested
south
where
both

game
and
wild
plant
foods
are
more
abundant;
everywhere,
however,
game
has
special
salience
in
rituals
and
ceremonial
prestations.
The
forests,
and
to
a
lesser
extent
the
grasslands,
also
serve

as
the
source
of
countless
raw
materials
for
manufacture,
medicines,
and
ornamentation.
In
recent
decades
various
cash
crops
have
been
tried
by
Tairora,
with
coffee
being
the
most
suc-
cessfull;

in
the
north,
cattle
raising
has
also
become
an
impor-
tant
source
of
monetary
income.
Industrial
Arts.
Apart
from
structures,
such
as
palisades,
fences,
bridges,
and
houses,
a
partial
inventory

of
locally
pro-
duced
goods
includes
weapons
(bows,
arrows,
clubs,
spears
lin
the
north],
and
shields);
implements
(digging
sticks,
wooden
spades
[in
the
north],
adzes,
knives,
and
daggers);
and
string

bags,
pandanus
sleeping
mats,
and
bamboo
cook-
ing
tubes
(with
wooden
cooking
cylinders
also
manufactured
in
the
north).
Locally
made
traditional
clothing
for
both
sexes
includes
skirts
or
sporrans
made

of
pounded
bark
strips
or
rushes
and,
in
the
north,
wooden
'codpieces"
for
men.
Trade.
From
neighbors
at
lower
elevations
to
the
east,
Tai-
rora
obtain
black
palm
for
arrow

shafts
and
bow,
adze,
and
axe
staves;
bark
cloth
for
capes
worn
by
both
sexes;
and
shells
for
ornamentation.
Stone
adze
blades
were
traded
in
from
any
sources
available
and,

in
the
south,
Tairora
were
important
distributors
in
the
Baruya
salt
trade.
Major
export
items
in-
clude
rush
skirts,
string
bags,
and
plumes.
By
the
1980s,
many
of
these
items

had
been
replaced
by
Western
goods
that
were
now
available
in
indigenously
owned
trade
stores.
Division
of
Labor.
Except
for
modem
skills
such
as
auto
mechanics
or
carpentry
that
are

known
only
to
a
few,
there
is
no
occupational
specialization,
although
some
individuals
are
renowned
as
exceptionally
good
weavers
of
string
bags
or
arrow
makers.
Each
man
is
able
to

build
houses
and
fences,
clear
garden
land,
hunt,
and
fashion
his
own
weapons
and
implements,
just
as
all
women
are
gardeners
and
skilled
in
making
string
bags,
sleeping
mats,
and

items
of
clothing
for
both
sexes.
Construction
tasks
are
male
responsibilities,
as
are
clearing
garden
land,
fencing,
and
ditching;
women
are
charged
with
planting,
weeding,
and
harvesting
of
crops,
with

the
exception
of
tree
crops,
bananas,
sugarcane,
yams,
and
taro,
which
are
the
province
of
males.
Both
sexes
collect
wild
plant
foods
opportunistically.
Cooking
of
vegetable
foods
is
largely
a

female
task,
while
men
generally
both
butcher
and
cook
domestic
and
wild
meats.
Land
Tenure.
In
principle,
all
land,
whether
for
gardening
or
forest
resources,
is
held
by
patrilineal
descent

groups,
though
residence
in
itself
usually
confers
rights
of
usufruct.
However,
when
land
disputes
arise,
claims
to
land
associated
with
either
one's
father's
or
mother's
clan
are
usually
stronger
than

those
based
solely
on
residence,
with
elders
called
upon
to
authenticate
both
genealogy
and
history
of
use.
Water-
courses,
paths,
fences,
and
hamlets
or
village
open
areas
are
generally
considered

the
common
property
of
all
who
live
in
a
settlement.
308
Tairora
309
Kinship
Kin
Groups
and
Descent.
A
patrilineal
ideology
ascribes
at
birth
membership
in
one's
father's
lineage
and

clan,
al-
though
residence
in
itself
can
blur
such
distinctions,
espe-
cially
in
the
north,
where
immigrants
(such
as
refugees
in
time
of
war)
acquire
the
status
of
"quasiagnates."
Patricans

are
named
and
exogamous
but
not
localized;
while
land
in
any
settlement
is
associated
with
particular
clans,
clan
seg-
ments
may
reside
(and
claim
land)
in
a
number
of
neighbor-

ing
settlements.
Clan
members
seldom
act
as
a
unit
in
cere-
monies,
exchange,
or
war.
Kinship
Terminology.
In
the
north,
kin
terms
are
of
a
modified
Iroquois
type,
with
collaterals

in
Ego's
generation
other
than
mother's
brother's
children,
and
all
collaterals
in
the
first
descending
generation
other
than
sister's
children,
being
terminologically
equivalent
to
a
man's
own
children.
Farther
south,

terms
for
mother's
kin
show
Omaha-type
ten-
dencies;
however,
choices
of
terms
are
complicated
by
bride-
wealth
exchange.
Marriage
and
Family
Marriage.
Pairs
of
clans
often
have
long-standing
patterns
of

intermarriage,
with
adult
males
negotiating
complex
bride-
wealth
payments.
Settlements
have
high
rates
of
endogamy,
but
this
practice
is
not
an
explicit
preference;
substantial
numbers
of
women
in-marry
from
enemy

groups,
with
mar-
riages
in
the
past
sometimes
incorporated
into
peace-making
ceremonies.
Individuals
of
both
sexes
typically
are
assigned
likely
spouses
while
still
in
childhood,
with
formal
betrothal
deferred
until

young
adulthood.
Virilocality
is
the
norm,
with
a
new
bride
usually
moving
into
the
house
of
her
groom's
mother,
but
exceptions
can
occur.
Polygyny
is
allowed,
though
few
men
have

more
than
one
wife;
cowives
typically
live
in
different
hamlets
and
usually
object
strongly
to
their
husbands'
polygyny.
Divorce
or
extended
separation
is
not
unusual,
but
they
are
formal
options

only
for
men;
tradition-
ally,
a
married
woman's
only
alternatives
to
an
unhappy
mar-
riage
were
running
away
or
suicide.
Remarriage
for
both
divorcees
and
widows
is
usual;
there
are

very
few
permanent
bachelors
and
virtually
no
women
(apart
from
albinos
and
lepers)
who
go
through
life
unmarried.
Domestic
Unit
Traditionally,
out
of
concern
for
the
sup-
posed
debilitating
effects

of
contact
with
women,
all
males
past
the
age
of
10-12
lived
in
men's
houses;
a
family
house-
hold
would
include
one
or
more
adult
women
(sometimes
a
mother
and

daughter,
or
sisters),
their
uninitiated
sons,
and
unmarried
daughters.
Variants
include
households
of
several
nubile
young
women
or
young
bachelors.
Increasingly,
espe-
cially
in
the
north,
Tairora
are
adopting
the

practice
of
nu-
clear
families
residing
in
a
single
household.
Husbands
and
wives
seldom
form
a
work
unit,
except
in
early
stages
of
gar-
den
preparation.
Inheritance.
Upon
death,
gardens

and
movable
property
ideally
are
claimed
by
adult
unmarried
children;
otherwise
they
are
divided
among
married
sons.
Socialization.
Responsibility
for
nurturing
and
socializing
young
children
primarily
falls
on
the
women

and
older
girls
of
a
household;
once
male
children
are
initiated
and
move
into
their
fathers'
men's
houses,
their
socialization
is
largely
taken
over
by
adult
males.
Girls
work
side

by
side
with
their
mothers
from
an
early
age,
while
boys
are
allowed
to
roam
freely
with
age
mates
until
adolescence.
Distraction
and
oral
admonish-
ments
are
used
rather
than

corporal
punishment
for
young
children,
but
older
boys
are
sometimes
disciplined
severely
in
the
men's
house.
Nowadays,
and
especially
in
the
north,
siza-
ble
numbers
of
children
attend
mission.
or

government-run
schools,
where
parental
supervision
is
limited.
Sociopolitical
Organization
Social
Organization.
Especially
in
the
north,
Tairora
ex-
tend
genealogical
metaphors
widely,
qualifying
strict
reckon-
ing
of
descent
and
kinship
as

social
identities
are
based
more
importantly
in
residence.
Also
in
the
north,
clans
are
linked
in
phratries,
forming
near-connubia
within
which
warfare
is
disallowed;
in
the
south,
clans
may
be

joined
in
exogamous,
nonwarring
pairs.
Coresidents
of
a
settlement
act
as
a
unit
more
often
than
do
kin
groups
in
warfare,
ceremonies,
and
in-
tercommunity
exchanges.
An
egalitarian
ethos
pervades

so-
cial
life,
with
an
emphasis
on
individualism,
though
associa-
tions
are
strong
among
age
mates
of
either
sex.
Political
Organization.
Traditional
leadership
was
of
a
big-man
or
'strong-man"
type,

with
individuals
attaining
stature
through
warfare
and
management
of
affairs
between
communities.
In
recent
decades,
officials
appointed
by
the
Australian
administration
have
been
replaced
with
elected
members
of
the
provincial

government.
Social
Control.
Disputes
arise
most
commonly
over
sor-
cery
accusations,
failures
to
meet
compensation
and
bride-
wealth
obligations,
marriage
arrangements,
land,
depreda-
tions
of
pigs,
and,
nowadayg,-voffse
theft.
Parties

are
usually
supported
by
kin
and
age
mates
in
informal
moots.
Increas-
ingly,
disputes
unresolved
through
informal
means
are
re-
ferred
to
elected
officials
or
formal
courts
in
Kainantu.
Conflict.

Physical
violence
is
strongly
discouraged
within
one's
clan,
but
otherwise
it
is
not
infrequent,
with
domestic
violence
being
especially
common.
Traditionally,
warfare
was
endemic
throughout
Tairora,
and
it
has
seen

a
resurgence
in
the
1980s.
Each
settlement
has
"traditional
enemies"
among
its
immediate
neighbors,
though
enmity/amity
relations
are
subject
to
alternation
over
time,
with
periods
of
peace
ef-
fected
through

formal
ceremonies
that
often
include
inter-
marriage.
Competing
claims
to
land
are
less
often
the
source
of
intercommunity
conflict
than
are
murder
and
purported
sorcery
attacks.
Religion
and
Expressive
Culture

Religious
Beliefs.
The
Tairora
cosmos
is
filled
with
super-
natural
beings
of
a
wide
variety,
including
ghosts,
monstrous
anthropomorphs,
localized
nature
spirits,
and
zoomorphic
forest
spirits.
Men's
house
rites
draw

on
a
generalized
force
available
through
ancestors,
and
diverse
types
of
magic
are
employed
by
individuals.
Since
1940
in
the
north
and
the
1960s
in
the
south, a
variety
of
Christian

missions
have
oper-
ated,
with
a
decreasing
north-south
gradient
in
numbers
of
converts.
Religious
Practitioners.
Most
adult
Tairora
have
knowl-
edge of
spells
and
magic
to
meet
their
individual
needs.
Knowledgeable

elders
of
both
sexes
conduct
rituals
and
cere-
310
Tairora
monies
at
the
hamlet
or
settlement
level,
and
some
individu-
als
are
noted
diviners
and
shamans.
Nowadays,
too,
many
set-

tlements
have
resident
mission
catechists.
Ceremonies.
Life-cycle
ceremonies
include
feasts
for
ba-
bies
after
they
emerge
from
seclusion
houses;
septum-
and
ear-piercing
(for
both
sexes,
traditionally);
first-menstruation
and
nubility
rites;

a
two-stage
sequence
of
male
initiation;
weddings;
and
funerals.
Seasonal
yam
and
winged-bean
festi-
vals
and
peacemaking
ceremonies
draw
communities
to-
gether,
as
did
periodic
renewal
ceremonies
in
the
north.

Re-
cently
in
the
north,
public
community
dance
festivals
have
become
a
source
of
income,
with
outsiders
being
charged
admission.
Arts.
As
with
other
New
Guinea
highlanders,
plastic
arts
play

a
limited
role
in
Tairora
artistic
life;
apart
from
individ-
ual
costuming
and
ornamentation
on
ceremonial
occasions,
decoration
is
largely
restricted
to
string
bags,
arrows,
and
shields,
though
in
the

north
men
wore
wooden
frames
with
painted
bark panels
on
occasions
of
public
dancing.
Jew's
harps
are
played
occasionally
as
private
entertainment,
other-
wise
only
hour-glass
drums
supplement
the
human
voice.

Several
genres
of
oral
literature
provide
evening
household
entertainment
and
instruction
during
ceremonies.
Medicine.
Their
natural
environment
supplies
the
Tairora
with
an
extensive
range
of
medicines,
which
most
individuals
obtain

and
administer
themselves.
Some
individuals
of
both
sexes
are
renowned
diagnosticians
and
curers.
Nowadays,
most
settlements
have
or
are
near
a
mission-
or
government-
run
medical
aid
post.
Death
and

Afterlife.
Wakes
are
held
for
several
days,
at
the
conclusion
of
which
the
ghost
possesses
a
local
resident
who
transports
it
out
of
the
settlement
to
begin
its
journey
to

the
land
of
the
dead,
located
to
the
northeast
in
the
Markham
Valley.
There
it
will
live
a
life
that
replicates
the
or-
dinary
world,
complete
with
gardens
and
pigs.

The
corpse
left
behind
is
traditionally
buried
in
a
grave
with
its
individual
fence
on
clan
land.
See
also
Fore,
Gahuku-Gama,
Gururumba
Bibliography
Grossman,
Lawrence
S.
(1984).
Peasants,
Subsistence
Ecol-

ogy,
and
Development
in
the
Highlands
of
Papua
New
Guinea.
Princeton:
Princeton
University
Press.
Hays,
Terence
E.,
and
Patricia
H.
Hays
(1982).
'Opposition
and
Complementarity
of
the
Sexes
in
Ndumba

Initiation."
In
Rituals
of
Manhood:
Male
Initiation
in
Papua
New
Guinea,
ed-
ited
by
Gilbert
Herdt,
201-238.
Berkeley:
University
of
Cali.
fornia
Press.
Johnson,
S.
Ragnar
(1982).
"Food,
Other
Valuables,

Pay-
ment,
and
the
Relative
Scale
of
Ommura
Ceremonies
(New
Guinea)."
Anthropos
77:509-523.
Pataki-Schweizer,
K.
J.
(1980).
A
New
Guinea
Landscape:
Community,
Space,
and
Time
in
the
Eastern
Highlands.
Seat-

de:
University
of
Washington
Press.
Radford,
Robin
(1987).
Highlanders
and
Foreigners
in
the
Upper
Ramu:
The
Kainantu
Area,
1919-1942.
Melbourne:
Melbourne
University
Press.
Watson,
James
B.
(1983).
Tairora
Culture:
Contingency

and
Pragmatism.
Seattle:
University
of
Washington
Press.
Watson,
Virginia
Drew,
and
J.
David
Cole
(1977).
Prehistory
of
the
Eastern
Highlands
of
New
Guinea.
Seattle:
University
of
Washington
Press.
TERENCE
E.

HAYS
Tangu
ETHNONYMS:
None
Orientation
Identification.
The
term
"Tangu"
generally
refers
to
one
of
several
culturally
similar
communities
living
in
the
Bogia
re-
gion
of
the
Madang
Province
of
Papua

New
Guinea.
The
name
also
refers
to
the
language
spoken
by
both
the
Tangu
"proper"
and
certain
other
related
groups.
Location.
Tangu
live
on
a
series
of
steep,
forested
ridges

about
24
kilometers
inland
from
Bogia
Bay
in
the
northern
coastal
area
of
Papua
New
Guinea,
at
about
4°25'
S
by
144°55'
E.
Demography.
In
1951-1952,
the
ethnographic
present
for

this
report,
Kenelm
Burridge
estimated
the
Tangu
popula-
tion
at
roughly
2,000,
distributed
throughout
about
thirty
settlements
of
varying
size.
The
population
is
now
approach-
ing
3,000.
Linguistic
Affiliation.
Tangu

is
a
Non-Austronesian
lan-
guage
in
the
Ataitan
Language
Family.
History
and
Cultural
Relations
While
the
Tangu
are
ethnographically
quite
similar
to
their
neighbors,
they
consider
themselves
to
be
a

distinct
polity,
tied
closely
together
by
kinship,
trading,
and
exchange
rela-
tionships.
Perhaps
the
most
distinctive
feature
setting
them
apart
from
their
neighbors
is
their
participation
in
a
disputing
activity

known
as
br'ngun'guni,
in
which
grievances
are
aired
at
public
assemblies.
European
contact
with
Tangu
was
first
made
by
German
administrative
officials
shortly
before
World
War
1,
although
the
event

had
relatively
little
effect
on
traditional
life.
Effective
"control"
was
established
by
the
Australians
in
the
1920s,
at
which
time
a
Society
of
the
Di-
vine
Word
mission
was
also

founded.
Tangu
have
been
known
for
participation
in
cargo
cults
or
millenarian
move-
ments
under
the
influence
of
two
messianic
leaders:
first
Mambu,
in
the
1930s
and
1940s,
and
later

Yali,
in
the
1950s.
Tangu
311
Settlements
The
Tangu
population
is
roughly
grouped
into
four
named
neighborhoods.
Each
neighborhood
contains
one
or
more
large
settlements
of
some
twenty
or
more

houses
and
several
smaller
settlements,
some
comprised
of
only
a
few
home.
steads.
Settlements
are
strung
out
along
a
series
of
steep,
in-
terconnected
ridges.
Garden
sites
are
scattered
around

the
surrounding
countryside.
Tangu
usually
have
temporary
bush
settlements
associated
with
hunting
and
gardening
areas
far
from
the
main
village,
and
they
may
live
in
them
for
several
weeks
at

a
time.
Economy
Subsistence
and
Commercial
Activities.
The
Tangu
are
primarily
subsistence
farmers
who
practice
swidden
or
slash.
and-bum
horticulture.
Their
staple
crops
include
numerous
varieties
of
yams,
taro,
and

bananas,
planted
in
rotation
and
supplemented
with
sago
and
breadfruit,
especially
during
De-
cember
and
January,
which
are
months
of
relative
scarcity
of
the
primary
foods.
These
main
crops
are

supported
by
sugar-
cane,
coconuts,
pitpit,
gourds,
beans,
squashes,
and
greens.
Maize,
tapioca,
sweet
potatoes,
melons,
pumpkins,
tomatoes,
and
other
vegetables
have
been
recently
introduced.
Pigs
and
chickens
are
kept

domestically,
the
latter
mainly
for
their
feathers.
Tangu
forage
in
the
forest,
and
they
also
hunt
wild
pigs,
cassowaries,
lizards,
possums,
cuscus,
wallabies
and
other
small
marsupials,
and
birds.
Land

animals
are
usually
tracked
with
the
aid
of
dogs,
or
caught
in
snares
or
traps.
Birds
are
usually
shot
with
bows
and
arrows.
Fish
were
tradi.
tonally
netted
with
hand

nets
by
women,
speared
by
men,
or
stunned
in
pools
by
using
poison
roots.
This
life-style
of
basic
subsistence
farming,
supplemented
by
some
hunting
and
gathering,
is
also
augmented
by

migrant
or
occasional
labor
for
cash.
Industrial
Arts.
Tangu
produce
a
variety
of
utilitarian
ob-
jects
used
in
their
everyday
lives,
including
banana-fiber
un-
derskirts,
pandanus-fiber
skirts,
woven-cane
bands
and

per-
sonal
adornments,
and
pandanus-fiber
cord,
from
which
they
fashion
string
bags
and
fishing
nets.
They
manufacture
slit
gongs,
used
for
signaling
public
announcements,
and
tradi-
tional
musical
instruments
including

hand
drums
and
Jew's
harps.
Their
only
commercial
manufactures
are
clay
pots,
made
with
the
coil
technique,
and
string
bags.
These
are
traded
within
Tangu
and
also
sold
for
cash.

Trade.
Tangu
have
extensive
trading
relations,
both
among
themselves
and
with
neighboring
people.
Two
of
the
four
Tangu
neighborhoods
specialize
in
clay-pot
making
and
two
specialize
in
string
bag
and

sago
production.
These
items
are
traded
within
Tangu
and
are
also
sold
to
outsiders.
The
string
bags
and
sago
are
sold
mainly
to
people
from
the
coast,
while
the
clay

pots
are
sold
both
to
coastal
inhabitants
and
to
people
from
the
hinterland.
Other
traditional
items
of
ex-
change
include
hunting
dogs,
tobacco,
and
betel
nuts.
More
recently,
the
mission

trade
store
stocks
goods
of
European
manufacture,
which
are
sold
or
exchanged
for
local
products
and
services.
These
items
are
often
exchanged
again,
typically
with
hinterland
neighbors.
Division
of
Labor.

As
in
most
tribal
societies,
Tangu
divi-
sion
of
labor
is
based
on
age
and
sex.
Women
cook,
weed,
look
after
young
children,
and
do
certain
craftswork,
such
as
making

string
bags.
Men
hunt,
build
houses
and
shelters,
and
do
other
craftswork,
such
as
wood
carving.
Garden
work
is
carried
on
by
both
sexes,
although
the
sexes
once
again
per-

form
slightly
different
tasks,
with
men
doing
most
of
the
heavy
felling,
clearing,
and
digging
and
women
doing
most
of
the
daily
carrying,
weeding,
and
cleaning.
Land
Tenure.
Land
can

be
'inherited"
through
either
male
or
female
relatives,
but
the
practices
governing
the
ac-
tual
transfer
of
land
are
extremely
flexible.
Each
individual
has
'claims"
on
land
belonging
to
his

or
her
relatives,
de-
pending
on
the
closeness
of
those
relatives,
and
the
strengths
of
the
competing
claims
of
others.
Such
"claims,"
recognized
to
a
greater
or
lesser
extent
by

the
community,
are
always
greater
when
actually
exercised.
Particularly
strong
structural
claims
can
be
made
by
sons
on
their
father's
claims,
by
neph-
ews
on
their
mother's
brother's
claims,
and

by
husbands
and
wives
on
each
other's
claims.
In
general,
the
Tangu
have
ample
land,
and
they
tend
to
gravitate
toward
those
areas
where
their
claims
are
most
easily
exercised

and
their
personal
prospects
best.
Kinship
Kin
Groups
and
Descent.
Perhaps
because
individual
Tangu
can
choose
to
exercise
their
"claims"
in
a
variety
of
ways,
Tangu
have
no
named
lineal

descent
groups.
Kinship
is
based
on
mutual
relationships
between
people
rather
than
on
corporate
groups
defined
by
categories
of
parentage
or
quasi-
parentage.
The
most
important
interrelationships
are
be-
tween

brothers,
sisters,
brothers
and
sisters,
friends,
siblings-
in-law,
cross
cousins
not
intending
to
marry,
betrothed
couples,
and
spouses.
Kinship
Terminology.
Kinship
terminology
is
of
the
Iroquois
type.
Marriage
and
Family

Marriage.
Because
of
the
sexual
division
of
labor
in
Tangu,
there
are
few
unmarried
adults.
Marriages
bring
about
cooperative
exchange
relationships
between
the
families
of
the
husband
and
wife.
Ideally,

marriages
are
arranged
be-
tween
the
children
of
people
who
are
already
friends
or
be-
tween
certain
cross
cousins.
There
is
a
period
of
formal
be-
trothal
lasting
for
several

years,
marked
by
the
groom's
family
presenting
a
pig,
chaplets
of
dogs'
teeth,
and
other
valuables
to
the
wife's
family.
At
first
the
engaged
pair
practice
avoid-
ance
behavior,
but

later
they
exchange
labor
in
one
another's
households.
At
the
wedding
itself,
the
wife's
brothers
host
the
husband's
family.
This
practice
not
only
clears
the
debt
created
by
the
betrothal

pig
and
valuables,
but
it
also
sets
up
the
exchange
relationship
between
husband
and
wife's
broth-
ers
that
continues
through
the
life
of
the
marriage.
Either
partner
is
free
to

break
off
the
marriage
at
will,
but
the
dose
ties
between
their
families
make
it
difficult
to
do
so
without
good
cause.
Men
may
often
seek
a
second
wife,
commonly

a
sister
ofthe
first
wife,
or
sometimes
a
divorced
woman.
These
second
marriages
are
accompanied
by
relatively
little
cere-
mony:
a
payment
to
the
woman's
brothers
usually
contracts
the
marriage.

Later,
a
return
payment
to
the
husband
sets
up
the
exchange
relationship
and
frees
the
woman
to
divorce
the
man
if
she
wishes.
312
Tangu
Domestic
Unit.
The
basic
and

most
permanent
coopera-
tive
work
group
is
the
household,
generally
consisting
of
a
man,
his
wife
or
wives,
and
their
natural
and
adopted
chil-
dren.
Occasionally
an
aging
parent
of

either
spouse
may
re-
side
with
them,
but
households
are
typically
small
and
simply
constituted.
Inheritance.
Among
the
most
important
things
that
can
be
inherited
are
land
claims
and
friendship

relationships.
These
pass
fom
parents
of
either
sex
to
all
of
their
children.
People
of
the
same
sex,
whose
parents
were
friends,
are
ex-
pected
to
be
friends.
Land
claims

and
personal
relationships
can
also
be
inherited
from
other
close
relatives.
As
with
land
claims,
people
usually
inherit
more
friendship
relations
than
they
can
actually
use,
and
they
choose
to

activate
those
they
find
most
congenial
or
most
useful.
Socialiation.
Young
children
spend
most
of
their
time
with
their
mothers
and
mother's
sisters
for
the
first
few
years
of
their

lives.
For
girls,
the
natal
household
is
the
focus
of
their
lives.
They
follow
a
fairly
tranquil
transition
to
adult-
hood,
practicing
the
skills
of
Tangu
womanhood
from
an
early

age.
They
learn
the
skills
and
crafts
of
women
ftom
their
mothers
and
aunts:
how
to
cook,
carry,
collect
water,
clear
brush,
and
weed;
how
to
make
string,
skirts,
and

string
bags;
how
to
gather
and
use
wild
plants;
and
how
to
care
for
younger
siblings.
For
boys,
the
path
to
adulthood
is
less
smooth.
When
a
boy
is
about

6,
he
leaves
his
mother
and
be-
gins
to
spend
more
time
with
his
father,
for
whom
he
per-
forms
small
services,
and
is
taught
a
variety
of
skills.
He

learns
about
household
lands
and
his
father's
special
talents,
such
as
curing,
painting,
carving,
drumming,
dancing,
plaiting,
building,
trapping,
or
fishing.
At
the
same
time,
he
becomes
involved
with
his

mother's
brothers,
from
whom
he
learns
of
their
land
claims
and
their
special
skills.
Traditionally,
at
ado-
lescence,
boys
entered
a
clubhouse,
to
be
secluded,
circum-
cised,
and
initiated.
With

the
breakdown
of
this
system,
ado-
lescent
boys
have
some
difficulties
handling
the
authority
of
their
fathers
and
mothers'
brothers
as
they
come
of
age,
and
a
period
of
contract

labor
is
common
before
marriage.
Sociali-
zation
in
sexual
matters
is
provided
in
part
by
the
gangarin-
gniengi
or
'sweetheart"
relationship
with
a
particular
cross
cousin
who,
although
in
a

marriageable
category,
is
forbidden
as
a
marriage
partner.
'Sweethearts"
dance,
sit
together,
flirt,
and
fondle
and
stroke
one
another,
engaging
in
love
play.
Breast
and
penis
stimulation
are
common,
but

coitus
is
for-
mally
prohibited.
Sociopolitical
Organization
Social
Organization.
Traditionally,
local
communities
were
comprised
of
two
exogamous
intermarrying
groups
called
gagawa.
Households
would
establish
exchange
rela-
tionships
with
other
households

in
the
opposite
group.
Ide-
ally,
these
exchange
relationships
would
continue
through
time
as
parents
transmitted
them
to
their
children.
Today,
ex-
change
relationships
are
still
of
major
importance.
Through

marriage
and
formal
friendships,
individuals
in
different
com-
munities
are
also
linked.
Thus
Tangu
society
is
integrated
through
mutual
relationships
between
individuals
and
be-
tween
families.
Political
Orpnization.
Tangu
have

no
chiefs.
Instead,
groups
of
households
tend
to
be
held
together
by
wunika
ruma,
dynamic
and
hardworking
big-men,
who
have
no
spe-
cific
authority
but
lead
by
example
and
through

respect
gained
in
production
and
oratory.
Social
Control.
Social
control
within
the
group
is
main-
tained
largely
through
the
institution
of
br'ngun'guni:
debat-
ing,
talking,
and
disputing
in
public
assembly.

Matters
of
public
concern
are
brought
up
and
discussed
on
frequent
oc-
casions,
and
the
weight
of
public
opinion
is
usually
enough
to
make
people
conform
to
collective
norms
of

behavior.
Conflict.
Conflict
within
the
group
often
arises
out
of
competition
for
status.
Grievances
may
relate
to
competing
claims
on
fishing,
hunting
and
gardening
resources,
kinship
matters,
exchange
obligations,
or

allegations
of
sorcery
or
trespass.
Traditionally,
when
grievances
arose
between
people
whose
groups
were
not
sufficiently
close
to
engage
in
br'ngun'guni,
feuds
and
warfare
generally
resulted.
Warfare
with
outsiders,
such

as
the
Diawat
people,
who
were
trying
to
expand
their
territory
at
the
expense
of
the
Tangu,
was
also
common.
Religion
and
Expressive
Culture
Religion
Beliefs.
Tangu
believe
in
a

group
of
divine
be-
ings
called
puoker,
water
beings
called
pap'ta,
and
ghosts
of
the
dead,
who
ultimately
become
ancestral
beings.
Spirit
be-
ings
of
all
sorts
are
thought
to

be
capable
of
affecting
human
affairs,
but
they
are
somewhat
capricious
and
difficult
to
placate.
Religious
Practitioners.
The
nature
of
Tangu
religious
practitioners
is
linked
to
the
belief
in
ranguova,

men
who
practice
a
combination
of
sorcery
and
witchcraft.
Ranguova
are
responsible
for
inflicting
many
types
of
illness
and
death.
Their
identity
can
be
determined
by
dreamer-diviners,
and
they
can

be
killed
by
a
different
sort
of
specialist.
Ceremonies.
Dances
and
feasts
are
held
frequently
to
mark
a
variety
of
social
occasions.
Formerly,
elaborate
ritual
accompanied
boys'
circumcision
and
also

the
manufacture
and
positioning
of
wooden
slit
gongs,
but
these
rites
are
no
longer
practiced.
Arts.
While
goods
of
European
manufacture
are
increas-
ingly
taking
the
place
of
certain
traditional

arts,
finely
pro-
duced
personal
accessories
are
still
made,
including
banana-
fiber
underskirts
and
pandanus-fiber
overskirts,
bark-cloth
breechclouts,
woven-cane
ornaments
and
waistbands,
and
string
bags.
Slit
gongs
and
hand
drums

are
made,
but
without
the
carving,
incising,
pigmentation,
and
decoration
that
they
formerly
carried.
Medicine.
Tangu
recognize
certain
types
of
sicknesses
as
physiological
and
treat
them
with
a
variety
of

medicines.
Other
illnesses
are
linked
with
the
activities
of
ranguova
(sor-
cerers).
Such
illnesses
are
"treated"
by
determining
the
iden-
tity
of
the
sorcerer,
exposing
him,
and
forcing
him
to

cease
his
harmful
activities.
Death
and
Afterlife.
In
Tangu,
death
is
matter-of-fact,
and
deceased
are
buried
quickly,
often
within
an
hour
or
two
of
dying.
Traditionally,
personal
valuables
were
buried

with
the
corpse.
People
mourn
individually,
on
slit
gongs,
when
they
think
of
deceased
loved
ones
from
time
to
time.
Each
in-
dividual
is
thought
to
have
a
"soul"
or

"mind"
called
gnek.
Tanna
313
After
death,
this
soul
becomes
a
ghost
temporarily,
then
-
nally
becomes
an
ancestral
spirit.
Bibliography
Burridge,
Kenelm
(1960).
Mambu:
A
Melanesian
Millen-
nium.
London:

Methuen.
Burridge,
Kenelm
(1969).
Tangu
Traditions:
A
Study
of
the
Way
of
Life,
Mythology,
and
Developing
Experience
of
a
New
Guinea
People.
London:
Oxford
University
Press.
RICHARD
SCAGLION
Tanna
ETHNONYMS:

Ipare,
Tana,
Tannese
Orientation
Identificadon.
Tanna
Island
is
part
of
the
Southern
Dis-
trict
of
Vanuatu,
a
southwestern
Pacific
archipelago
once
called
the
New
Hebrides.
James
Cook,
the
first
European

to
visit
this
part
of
Melanesia,
gave
Tanna
its
name
in
1774.
"Tanna,"
in
many
of
the
island's
languages,
actually
means
"ground"
or
"land."
Cook,
pointing
downward,
no
doubt
asked

"What
do
you
call
this
[place]?'
The
Tannese
mistook
his
question
just
as
he
mistook
their
answer.
This
cross-
cultural
misunderstanding
was
the
first
of
many
to
follow.
Location.
Tanna

is
located
at
190
S and
1690
E.
The
is-
land
is
40
kilometers
long
by
27
kilometers
wide
at
its
broad-
est
point,
with
a
total
area
of
561
square

kilometers.
A
well-
populated
central
plateau
(Middle
Bush)
rses
in
the
south
to
mountains
more
than
1,000
meters
high.
The
island
is
mostly
tropical
forest,
except
for
a
grassy
plain

in
the
northwest
that
lies
in
the
rain
shadow
of
the
mountains.
In
the
east,
a
small
but
continuously
eruptive
cinder-cone
volcano
coughs
up
lava
bombs
and
spreads
volcanic
ash

across
the
island.
Demography.
There
are
about
20,000
Tannese,
10
per-
cent
of
whom
have
left
home
to
work
in
Port
Vila
or
Lugan-
ville,
Vanuatu's
two
towns,
and
in

New
Caledonia.
The
is-
land's
population
density
is
around
32.3
persons
per
square
kilometer;
the
population
is
growing
at
a
rate
of
3.2
percent
per
year.
Linguistic
Affiliation.
The
Tannese

speak
five
related
lan-
guages
that
are
syntactically
and
semantically
very
similar,
differing
mostly
in
phonology
and
lexicon.
They
are
part
of
the
Southern
Vanuatu
Subbranch
of
the
Oceanic
Branch

of
Austronesian
languages.
Most
Tannese
also
speak
Bislama
(Vanuatu
Pidgin
English),
and
some
are
schooled
in
English
or
French
as
well.
History
and
Cultural
Relations
Although
the
archaeological
record
has

yet
to
be
fully
ex-
plored,
it
is
thought
that
oceangoing
Melanesians
first
landed
on
tanna
about
3,500
years
ago.
The
island
has
also
experi.
enced
considerable
Polynesian
influence.
In

fact,
Tanna's
two
nearest
neighbors,
Aniwa
and
Futuna,
are
Polynesian
outliers.
From
the
1860s
through
1900,
labor
recruiters
re-
moved
more
than
5,000
Tannese
men
to
work
on
plantations
in

Queensland
and
Fiji.
During
these
years,
too,
Presbyterian
missionaries
opened
stations
on
the
island.
In
mission
litera-
ture,
Tanna
was
infamous
for
its
resistance
to
Christianity,
but
by
1910
the

missionaries
had
succeeded
in
converting
about
two-thirds
of
the
population.
Mission
success
corre-
lated
with
the
establishment
of
joint
British
and
French
colo-
nial
rule
over
the
archipelago
in
1906.

Vanuatu
remained
under
this
unusual
'condominium"
form
of
colonial
adminis-
tration
until
its
independence
in
1980.
Starting
in
the
late
1930s,
a
number
of
island
social
movements
emerged
in
reac-

tion
to
foreign
rule,
and
many
people
quit
the
missions.
The
John
Frum
movement,
much
influenced
by
World
War
11,
is
the
best
known
of
these.
A
spirit
figure,
John

Prum,
coun-
seled
people
to
return
to
traditional
practices
and
to
seek
help
from
American
troops.
This
movement,
once
a
cargo
cult,
re-
mains
an
important
religious
group
and
political

party.
Other
national
political
parties
are
also
active
on
the
island.
In
gen-
eral,
Presbyterians
support
the
Vanuaaku
party,
while
John
Frum
and
'Custom"
people
(traditionalists)
and
French-
educated
Catholics

support
its
rival,
the
Union
of
Moderate
Parties.
This
contemporary
political
opposition
reflects
an
enduring
traditional
dualism
in
island
culture.
Settlements
The
most
salient
feature
in
the
cultural
landscape
is

the
kava-
drinking
ground.
These
are
forest
clearings,
shaded
by
mag-
nificent
banyan
trees.
Men
convene
there
daily
to
prepare
and
drink
kava
(Piper
methysticum).
People
also
meet
there
to

dance, to
exchange
goods,
and
to
resolve
disputes.
Nucleated
villages
or
scattered
hamlets
are
located
along
the
periphery
of
these
circular
clearings.
At
the
last
official
census
in
1979,
Tanna
had

ninety-two
villages
that
included
370
hamlets.
Most
villages
are
small,
averaging
about
sixty
residents.
Most
families
possess
one
or
more
sleeping
houses,
plus
a
cook
house.
The
traditional
thatched
house

is
still
common,
al-
though
many
people
now
also
build
with
corrugated
alumi-
num
and
cement
brick.
Economy
Subsistence
and
Commercial
Actvites.
The
Tannese
are
swidden
horticulturalists.
Using
hand
tools,

they
clear
and
burn
off
plots
for
yams
and
taro,
ritually
the
two
most
im-
portant
staples.
They
also
grow
manioc,
sweet
potatoes,
ba-
nanas,
and
a
range
of
other

fruits
and
vegetables.
Thanks
to
fertilizing
ash
falls
from
lasur
volcano,
garden-plot
fallow
time
is
quite
short.
Domestic
animals
include
pigs,
dogs,
fowl,
and
also
introduced
cattle
and
horses.
Coastal

villagers
fish
and
gather
reef
products,
although
the
Tannese
are
indiffer-
ent
fishers.
People
are
engaged
primarily
in
subsistence
pro-
duction,
although
they
also
plant
cash
crops,
especially
coco-
nuts,

coffee,
and
vegetables.
The
average
family's
annual
cash
income,
however,
is
less
than
$500
[U.S.].
Industrial
Arts.
Traditionally,
island
industrial
arts
were
quite
simple,
consisting
of
stone
tool
making,
the

weaving
of
pandanus
mats
and
baskets,
and
the
manufacture
of
women's
314
Tanna
bark
skirts
and
tapa
belts
that
once
held
up
men's
penis
wrap-
pers.
Today,
a
few
men

earn
a
little
money
in
cement
brick
manufacture,
automobile
repair,
etc.
Trade.
The
island's
principal
exports
are
copra
and
coffee.
Its
imports
include
Japanese
vehicles,
fuel,
tools,
processed
foods,
and

clothing.
Cooperatives
and
small-business
owners
operate
a
handful
of
trade
stores,
and
women
sell
produce
at
several
roadside
markets.
Rudimentary
tourism,
focused
on
the
volcano,
also
brings
some
money
into

the
island.
Division
of
Labor.
Islanders
practice
a
muted
division
of
labor.
Men
do
heavy
garden
clearing,
plant
yams,
erect
house
frames,
fish
beyond
the
reef,
and
drive
trucks.
Women

per-
form
day-to-day
garden
work,
cook,
wash
clothes,
and
weave
baskets
and
mats.
Men,
however,
also
cook,
weed
gardens,
and
may
wash
their
own
clothes
in
a
pinch.
Both
sexes,

more,
over,
care
for
children.
Land
Tenure.
Every
Tannese
boy
receives
a
personal
name
that
entities
him
to
several
plots
of
land
near
a
kava,
drinking
ground.
Women's
names
have

no
land
entitlements.
A
name
also
may
entitle
a
male
bearer
to
perform
various
rit-
ual
acts,
to
control
a
section
of
traditional
road,
and
so
on.
Every
family
possesses

a
limited
number
of
names
that
are
used
each
generation.
If
a
man
has
no
sons,
he
adopts
boys
(or
other
grown
men)
by
giving
them
one
of
his
names.

In
ac-
tual
practice,
the
exact
connection
between
a
particular
per-
sonal
name
and
its
associated
lands
is
often
disputed.
Garden
land,
however,
is
plentiful,
except
in
a
few
locales.

Moreover,
most
people
neither
live
nor
garden
upon
their
own
lands;
permission
to
use
another's
land
is
usually
readily
obtained.
Kinship
Kin
Groups
and
Descent.
The
most
important
kin
group

is
the
nuclear
family.
People
have
a
notion
of
patrilineal
de.
scent,
and
families
group
into
something
like
patrilineages,
localized
at
kava-drinling
grounds.
These
larger
groups,
how-
ever,
are
perhaps

better
called
'name
sets"
rather
than
line.
ages
inasmuch
as
new
members
are
recruited
by
receiving
per-
sonal
names
rather
than
by
being
born
into
the
groups.
A
man
only

becomes
a
member
of
his
father's
lineage
if
he
re-
ceives
one
of
its
names.
Up
to
half
of
all
men
receive
names
from
someone
other
than
their
fathers,
and

thus
they
may
be-
long
to
a
different
name
set.
Single
lineage/name
sets
are
joined
into
larger
groupings,
associated
with
particular
places
or
regions.
Finally,
each
lineage/name
set
belongs
to

one
or
two
moieties,
Numrukwen
and
Kaviameta,
though
today
these
have
only
occasional
ritual
importance.
Kinship
Terminology.
The
terminological
system
is
of
the
Dravidian
type
in
which
every
person
of

one's
generation
falls
into
one
of
four
categories:
brother,
sister,
spouse,
and
brother/sisterin-law.
Marriage
and
Family
Mfarriae.
Kin
terminology
reflects
the
island
practice
of
sister-exchange,
bilateral
cross-cousin
marriage.
The
ideal

marriage
partner
is
a
child
of
one's
mother's
brother,
or
fa-
ther's
sister,
although
many
people
marry
less
closely
related
classificatory
cross
cousins.
The
ideal
marriage
also
consists
of
a

sister
exchange
between
two
men.
Many
marriages,
in
ac-
tuality,
involve
complex
transactions
in
which
women
are
'swapped'
among
three
or
more
families.
Many
men
obtain
a
wife
by
exchanging

a
classificatory
sister
or
some
other
female
relative.
Some
promise
a
firstborn
daughter
in
return
for
her
mother.
A
concern
for
balance
governs
marriage,
as
it
does
all
other
forms

of
exchange.
With
sister
exchange,
every
mar-
riage
entails
another,
and
divorce
is
very
uncommon.
Should
a
marriage
fail,
the
wife's
family
must
provide
the
husband's
family
with
another
woman

in
order
to
maintain
the
ex-
change
balance.
Domestic
Unit.
A
nuclear
family
is
the
basic
domestic
group
that
produces
and
consumes
food
and
other
goods.
Residence
is
virilocal.
As

boys
get
older,
many
build
their
own
sleeping
houses,
although
they
continue
to
eat
with
their
par-
ents
until
they
marry.
Inheritance.
There
are
few
material
goods
on
Tanna
that

survive
more
than
one
generation.
Women
inherit
little.
Men
inherit
land
as
well
as
rights
to
ritual
and
medical
knowledge
from
the
men
who
named
them,
most
often
their
fathers.

Men
also
succeed
to
the
social
positions
of
older
namesakes.
Socialization.
A
child
is
raised
by
both
parents
and,
impor-
tantly,
by
older
siblings.
Disciplining
is
rarely
physical,
but
rather

takes
the
form
of
teasing
and
shaming.
Boys
are
cir-
cumcised
between
5
and
10
years
of
age;
their
emergence
from
about
six
weeks
of
social
seclusion
is
an
important

cere-
monial
occasion.
Girls'
first
menstruation
is
sometimes
marked
by
the
gift
of
pig
and
kava
from
their
fathers
to
their
mothers'
brothers.
Sociopolitical
Organization
Social
Organization.
Two
or
more

lineages/name
sets
are
localized
at
each
kava
drinking
ground.
The
men
of
several
neighboring
kava-drinking
grounds
together
belong
to
a
named,
regional
group,
of
which
there
are
about
115.
Kava-

drinking
grounds
across
the
island
are
linked
by
a
complex
system
of
traditional
'roads"
along
which
men
exchange
mes-
sages,
goods,
and
spouses.
This
road
network,
by
which
each
Tannese

village
is
linked
to
all
others,
has
produced
cultural
homogeneity
across
the
island,
despite
linguistic
diversity.
Political
Organization.
Tannese
society
is
hierarchically
organized
on
the
basis
of
sex
and
age.

There
are
also
two
chiefly
positions
at
most
kava-drinking
grounds:
the
ianiniteta
("spokesman
of
the
canoe")
and
the
ierumanu
("ruler').
These
today
have
only
occasional
ritual
impor-
tance.
Among
adult

men
a
principle
of
egalitarianism
governs
social
interaction.
A
few
men,
however,
enjoy
more
influence
and
prestige
than
others.
In
the
main,
these
iema
ason,
big-
men,
are
unlike
those

found
elsewhere
in
Melanesia
whose
positions
depend
on
economic
ability.
On
Tanna,
a
village
leader
owes
his
status
to
his
age,
his
ritual
and
other
local
knowledge,
and
to
the

size
of
his
name
set.
A
second
kind
of
"ideological"
big-men
are
the
leaders
of
the
various
island-
wide
political
and
religious
organizations,
such
as
the
John
Frum
and
Custom

movements.
Social
Control.
Although
national
police
and
island
courts
operate
on
Tanna,
most
disputes
are
handled
unoffi-
cially.
Avoidance
is
a
common
tactic.
When
people
must
re-
solve
their
differences,

they
convene
a
dispute-settlement
meeting
at
a
local
kava-drinling
ground.
Here,
big-men
and
involved
third
parties
attempt
to
establish
a
social
consensus
that
at
least
temporarily
resolves
the
problem
and

ends
avoid-
Tasmanians
315
ance
between
disputants.
Resolution
is
signified
by
the
ex-
change
of
pigs
and
kava
between
the
two
sides.
Although
tra-
ditional
sorcery
is
today
uncommon,
islanders

believe
that
ancestors
displeased
with
conflict
may
make
them
sick.
A
se-
rious
illness
thus
induces
people
to
attempt
to
resolve
out-
standing
disputes.
Conflict.
The
root
of
most
conflict

is
exchange
imbalance,
particularly
within
sister-exchange
agreements.
People
also
dispute
land
ownership
and
boundaries,
and
disagreements
sometimes
occur
between
husbands
and
wives.
Traditional
raiding
and
cannibalism
ceased
in
the
early

1900s. In
the
per-
iod
leading
up
to
independence
considerable
social
disrup-
tion
took
place
but
today,
aside
from
occasional
fights
during
dispute-settlement
meetings
gone
awry,
the
island
is
remark-
ably

peacefuL
Religion
and
Expressive
Culture
Reliius
Beliefs.
Christianity
has
merged
with-not
re-
placed-the
traditional
concern
with
ancestors
and
spirits.
Missionaries
proscribed
a
number
of
customary
practices,
in-
cluding
dancing
and

kava
drinking,
and
reworked
local
politi-
cal
and
economic
structures.
The
John
Frum
and
other
move-
ments,
drawing
upon
both
custom
and
Christianity,
have
added
further,
syncretic
elements
to
Tanna's

religious
life.
In
addition
to
ancestors,
people
recognize
various
spirits
associ-
ated
with
particular
places,
such
as the
reefs
and
mountain
peaks.
The
Polynesian
Mauididtic
(Mwatiktiki
on
Tanna)
is
also
a

popular
culture
hero.
John
Frum
continues
his
work
as
a
spiritual
mediator
to
the
outside
world,
particularly
to
America.
The
John
Frum-Custom
people
of
the
southwest
claim
a
special
relationship

with
Prince
Philip
of
Britain
who
is,
they
maintain,
a
son
of
the
mountain
spirit
Kalpwapen.
Religious
Practitioners.
All
men
are
in
contact
with
their
own
ancestors.
Kava
drinkers,
spitting

out
their
last
mouthful
of
the
drug,
utter
prayers
to
surrounding
ancestors
buried
on
the
kava-drinking
ground.
A
few
men
and
women
are
known
to
have
particularly
good
contacts
with

the
supernatural
world
by
way
of
dreams
and
various
ritual
devices.
These
clevers"
diagnose
illness,
find
lost
objects,
and
so
on.
Most
of
the
Christian
denominations
have
ordained
local
pastors.

The
successful
prophets
of
John
Frum
and
other
notable
spir-
its
also
serve
as
religious
officiants.
Ceremonies.
All
Tannese
ceremonies
consist
of
exchange
(of
pigs,
food,
kava,
woven
goods,
and

lengths
of
cloth),
kava
drinking,
and
dancing
that
lasts
through
the
night.
Most
of
them
are
associated
with
important
events
in
the
life
cycle
of
individuals.
The
family
of
the

person
involved
gathers
goods
to
present
to
his
or
her
mother's
brothers,
with
an
equal
amount
of
goods
returned
when
the
exchange
is
later
re-
versed.
Two
ceremonies,
not
tied

to
individual
life
cycles,
function
to
maintain
regional
relations.
In
nieri,
people
of
two
kava-drinking
grounds
exchange
different
kinds
of
food
such
as
yams
for
taro.
The
nakwiari,
involving
several

thousand
people,
is
the
island's
most
spectacular
ceremony
and
in-
volves
exchange
of
pigs
and
kava
between
two
regions,
after
a
night
and
day
of
song
and
dance.
Arts.
There

is
little
material
art
on
Tanna.
Island
aesthet-
ics
focus
instead
on
singing,
dancing,
and
body
decoration.
Although
people
make
panpipes
and
bamboo
flutes,
they
use
no
musical
instruments
to

accompany
song
or
dance
that,
for
rhythm,
relies
instead
upon
hand
clapping
and
foot
stomp-
ing.
Women
paint
their
faces
in
mosaics
of
color
that
reflect
the
decorative
dyed
patterns

on
the
bark
skirts
they
wear
to
dance.
Medicine.
Island
etiology
cites
maleficent
spirits
and
an-
cestral
displeasure
to
explain
many
illnesses.
Also,
an
imbal-
ance
of
body
elements
may

cause
disease.
Everyone
knows
at
least
one
or
more
secret
herbal
cures
for
specific
ailments,
and
a
few
men
and
women
are
renowned
as
particularly
astute
curers
or
bone
setters.

Death
and
Afterlife.
Important
men
are
buried
on
the
kava-drinking
ground;
other
people
are
buried
in
the
village.
Christian
pastors
typically
officiate
at
burial.
The
traditional
funeral,
however,
that
takes

place
a
month
or
so
after
death
is
the
final
exchange
between
a
person's
family
and
that
of
his
or
her
mother's
brothers.
Ancestral
ghosts
go
off
to
a
land

called
Ipai";
they
may
also
remain
close
to
their
old
homes,
and
they
are
often
seen
in
gardens
and
the
forest.
Bibliography
Adams,
R
(1984).
In
the
Land
of
Strangers:

A
Century
of
Eu-
ropean
Contact
with
Tanna,
1774-1874.
Canberra:
Austra-
lian
National
University.
Allen,
M.
R.,
ed.
(1981).
Vanuatu:
Politics,
Economics,
and
Ritual
in
Island
Melanesia.
Sydney:
Academic
Press.

Bonnemaison,
J.
(1987).
La
derniere
ile.
Paris:
ORSTOM/
Plon.
Guiart,
Jean
(1956).
Un
siicle
et
demi
de
contacts
cultures
Tanna,
Nouvelles-Hibrides.
Paris:
Musie
de
l'Homme.
LAMONT
LINDSTROM
Tasmanians
ETHNONYMS:
None

Orientation
Identification.
The
term
'Tasmanians"
refers
to
the
native
inhabitants
of
the
island
of
Tasmania.
These
inhabitants
formed
a
number
of
societies
and
communities,
all
of
which
had
disappeared
as

distinct
cultural
groups
by
the
twentieth
century.
What
is
known
of
the
Aboriginal
culture
is
largely
the
result
of
archaeological
research
and
reconstructions
based
on
the
reports
of
early
European

visitors
and
settlers.
The
name
of
the
island
and
its
inhabitants
is
taken
from
the
Dutch
navigator,
Abel
Tasman,
who
discovered
the
island
in
1642.
Despite
being
extinct,
the
Tasmanians

have
continued
to
draw
scholarly
and
public
attention,
caused
in
part
by
their
316
I
LaimanansI__
_
isolation
from
other
cultures
for
thousands
of
years
and
the
Stone
Age
technology

they
used
when
first
discovered
by
Europeans.
Location.
Tasmania
is
an
island
of
some
67,000
square
ki-
lometers
located
about
240
kilometers
southeast
of
mainland
Australia,
with
the
two
land

masses
separated
by
the
rough
waters
of
the
Bass
Strait.
Tasmania
is
a
state
of
Australia.
At
one
time
a
peninsula
of
Australia,
Tasmania
was
cut
off
by
rising
waters

about
7,000
to
8,000
years
ago.
It
is
a
moun-
tainous
island,
with
a
variety
of
ecological
zones,
considerable
rainfall,
and
a
generally
mild
climate.
Land
mammals
such
as
kangaroos,

wallabies,
and
native
dogs
are
relatively
abundant
as
are
seals,
shellfish,
and
birds.
Demography.
Estimates
place
the
precontact
population
at
from
2,000
to
5,000
individuals.
Linguistic
Affiliation.
Experts
guess
that

from
five
to
twelve
different
languages,
with
some
grammatical,
phono-
logical,
and
lexical
similarities
between
them,
were
spoken
by
Aboriginal
Tasmanians.
What
relationship
those
languages
had
to
other
Papuan
or

Australian
languages
is
unknown.
History
and
Cultural
Relations
The
Tasmanian
peninsula
of
Australia
has
been
occupied
for
some
23,000
years.
Since
the
islands
separated
from
the
mainland
some
7,000
or

so
years
ago,
there
is
little
evidence
of
contact
between
mainland
peoples
and
the
Tasmanians.
In
fact,
it
is
likely
that
the
Tasmanians
were
largely
isolated
until
contact
with
the

Dutch
in
1642,
the
French
in
1772,
and
set-
tlement
by
the
English
in
1803.
The
English
regarded
the
Tasmanians
as
subhuman
and
hunted
them
down;
the
Tas-
manians
responded

by
both
fighting
back
and
retreating
far-
ther
and
farther
inland.
In
1835,
after
repeated
attempts
by
the
English
to
round
them
up,
the
203
surviving
Tasmanians
were
gathered
together

and
resettled
on
Flinders
Island
in
Bass
Strait.
Although
treated
more
kindly,
their
numbers
continued
to
decrease
and
in
1847
the
40
survivors
were
again
resettled,
this
time
on
a

reserve
near
Hobart.
The
last
"full-blood"
Tasmanian
died
there
in
1876.
While
the
native
languages
and
culture
have
disappeared,
there
are
still
some
few
dozen
individuals
who
claim
biological
links

to
the
indigo
enous
population.
Settlements
It
is
not
clear
whether
the
Tasmanians
were
nomadic,
moving
to
new
encampments
every
day
or
two,
or
transhumant,
mov-
ing
inland
in
the

warm
months
and
to
the
sea
in
the
colder
months.
There
is
some
evidence
of
regional
variation
in
set-
tlement
patterns,
with
groups
in
the
west
being
more
settled
than

those
in
the
east.
In
either
case,
the
location
of
settle-
ments
was
determined
largely
by
the
availability
of
food.
Tas-
manian
societies
were
territorial,
and
trespass
into
another
group's

territory
usually
led
to
warfare.
Shelters
for
nomadic
groups
were
windbreaks
made
from
bark,
while
more
settled
groups
lived
in
communities
of
beehive-shaped
shelters
lo-
cated
along
the
banks
of

rivers
or
lagoons.
Economy
Subsistence
Activities.
The
Tasmanians
were
hunters
and
gatherers
who
had
no
agriculture
and
no
domesticated
ani-
mals
but
exploited
nearly
all
animal
and
plant
foodstuffs
available

to
them.
Kangaroos,
wallabies,
wombats,
and
seals
were
speared;
snakes,
lizards,
snails,
insects,
eggs,
scallops,
and
other
mollusks
were
gathered;
and
root,
fungus,
berries,
and
native
root
crops
were
picked

and
dug.
There
is
some
evi-
dence
of
communal
hunting
of
kangaroos
and
birds
and
gath-
ering
of
plant
foods.
For
the
most
part,
however,
food
acquisi-
tion
was
a

matter
for
the
household
unit
of
a
man,
a
woman,
and
their
children.
The
most
interesting
and
perplexing
as.
pect
of
Tasmanian
subsistence
practices
was
the
absence
(during
the
last

4,000
years
of
their
existence)
of
fishing
and
consumption
of
scaly
fish.
Why
they
gave
up
fish
is
not
clear,
and
a
variety
of
explanations
citing
religious
factors,
isolation
from

the
mainland,
and
the
difficulty
of
catching
fish
have
been
suggested.
Industrial
Arts.
The
Tasmanian
tool
kit
was
limited
largely
to
objects
made
from
wood,
stone,
and
shell.
Wooden
spears

and
throwing
sticks
were
the
main
weapons,
and
flaked
stone
knives
and
scrapers
were
used
for
shellfish
gathering
and
food
preparation.
Shellfish
shells
served
as
cooking
ves-
sels,
along
with

kelp
baskets
and
baskets
and
nets
twined
from
grass,
reeds,
and
bark.
Trade.
There
is
no
record
of
trade
between
Tasmanian
so-
cieties
nor
between
Tasmanians
and
peoples
of
Australia

or
other
Pacific
islands.
Division
of
Labor.
Men
made
the
wood
and
stone
tools,
hunted
for
large
animals,
and
fought
in
wars
with
other
island
societies.
Women
did
most
everything

else,
including
build-
ing
the
windbreaks
and
huts,
gathering
water,
and
hunting
possums
by
scaling
trees.
Land
Tenure.
Weapons,
ornaments,
and
other
objects
could
be
owned
individually,
though
there
was

no
individual
ownership
of
land.
Evidence
suggests
that
each
community
in
each
society
controlled
access
to
a
300-
to
5,600-square-
kilometer
territory.
Use
of
another
community's
land
without
permission
was

the
primary
cause
of
war,
particularly
between
communities
from
different
societies.
Kinship,
Marriage
and
Family
Little
is
known
about
Tasmanian
kinship
and
kinship
terminology.
Marriage.
Marriage
was
evidently
community
exogamous

and
many
men
captured
wives
from
other
communities.
Ar-
ranged
marriages
are
also
reported.
Most
marriages
were
mo-
nogamous,
although
older
men
might
have
more
than
one
wife.
Divorce
was

allowed,
and
widows
were
considered
the
property
of
the
society
into
which
they
married,
suggesting
the
generally
lower
status
afforded
women
than
men.
Domestic
Unit.
The
monogamous
or
polygynous
family

(perhaps
with
an
additional
relative)
was
the
basic
residen-
tial,
production,
and
consumption
unit.
Early
reports
suggest
large
families,
with
later
accounts
noting
frequent
abortion
and
infanticide
after
contact
with

Europeans.
Socialization.
Children
were
cared
for
primarily
by
their
mothers.
Both
parents
were
indulgent
and
physical
punish-
ment
was
not
used.
The
major
childhood
task
for
boys
and
girls
was

to
master
the
hunting,
collecting,
climbing,
building,
and
manufacturing
skills
they
would
need
as
adults.
At
pu-
berry,
boys
were
initiated
through
a
ceremony
involving
.Tauade
317
scarification,
naming,
and

the
presentation
of
a
fetish
stone.
There
evidently
was
no
comparable
ceremony
for
girls.
Sociopolitical
Organization
As
noted
above,
the
term
'Tasmanians"
refers
to
an
unknown
number
of
groups
or

societies.
The
societies
had
no
formal
leaders
nor
were
they
landholding
or
war-making
units.
Each
society
was
composed
of
a
number
of
named
communities
which
were
further
subdivided
into
households.

Each
society
had
from
five
to
fifteen
communities
(with
from
thirty
to
eighty
related
members
in
each),
which
were
the
basic
landholding
and
war-making
units
and
were
led
by
an

older
man
renowned
for
his
hunting
ability,
although
he
probably
had
little
authority
except
during
warfare.
Community
affilia-
tion
was
expressed
through
shared
myths,
dances,
songs,
and
hair
style.
Affiliation

with
other
communities
within
the
soci-
ety
was
weak,
even
though
it
was
expressed
by
a
reluctance
to
fight
against
affiliated
communities
and
a
greater
willingness
to
allow
those
communities

access
to
community
land.
The
aged
were
afforded
some
prestige,
and
there
is
some
evidence
of
three
age
grades
for
males,
with
ceremonial
marking
of
pas-
sage
into
a
new

age
grade.
Social
Control.
In
the
absence
of
centralized
leadership,
social
order
was
maintained
by
the
community.
Individual
disputes
were
often
settled
by
throwing-stick
duels
and
viola-
tions
of
customs

were
punished
by
group
ridicule.
Transgres-
sions
against
the
community
were
punished
by
hurling
spears
at
the
stationary
offender
who
could
try
to
dodge
them
only
by
twisting
his
body

out
of
the
way.
Conflict.
War
between
communities
from
different
socie-
ties
is
reported
to
have
been
common,
although
this
may
re-
flect
only
the
postcontact
situation.
Trespassing
and
stealing

a
woman
were
the
major
reasons
for
war,
which
consisted
mostly
of
surprise
attacks
and
skirmishes
and
rarely
produced
more
than
one
death.
Religion
and
Expressive
Culture
Religious
Beliefs.
Tasmanian

religious
beliefs
focused
on
ghosts
and
their
influence
on
the
affairs
of
the
living.
While
they
might
occasionally
be
considered
beneficial,
spirits
of
the
dead
were
mostly
feared
and
thought

to
be
the
source
of
much
harm
and
suffering.
Consequently,
burial
spots
were
avoided
and
the
names
of
the
dead
tabooed.
They
also
be-
lieved
in
categories
of
spirits
more

powerful
than
ghosts,
in-
cluding
a
thunder
demon,
a
moon
spirit,
and
harmful
spirits
who
occupied
dark
places
such
as
caves
and
tree
trunks.
Magic
and
witchcraft
were
important
and

death
and
sickness
were
always
attributed
to
the
action
of
evil
spirits
or
witch-
craft.
The
bones
of
the
dead
and
certain
stones
were
believed
to
be
imbued
with
protective,

curative,
or
malevolent
powers.
Ceremonies.
Community
dances
were
an
important
form
of
social,
religious
and
artistic
expression.
Men
danced
until
collapse,
while
women
kept
time
with
sticks
and
rolled-bark
drums.

Religious
dances
were
open
only
to
the
men;
women
evidently
had
secret
dances
of
their
own
emphasizing
wom
men's
activities
such
as
digging
roots
or
nursing
infants.
The
in-
itiation

ceremony
for
boys
and
the
age-grade
ceremonies
were
of
considerable
social
importance.
Ceremonies
marking
birth
and
marriage
are
unreported,
although
death
was
marked
as
discussed
below.
Reliiu
Practitioners.
Part-time
shamans

used
bleed.
ing,
sucking,
baths,
massage,
and
vegetal
remedies
to
cure
ill-
ness
or
treat
injuries.
They
also
relied
on
the
supernatural,
which
they
reached
through
possession
trance
and
a

rattle
made
from
a
dead
man's
bones.
Arts.
In
addition
to
dances,
the
Tasmanians
decorated
trees
and
their
huts
with
charcoal
figures
of
people
and
ob-
jects
and
sang
of

the
heroic
deeds
of
the
singers
and
their
an-
cestors.
The
most
elaborate
form
of
artistic
expression
was
re-
served
for
body
adornment.
Men
colored
their
hair
and
skin
with

charcoal,
clay,
and
grease
and
both
sexes
wore
colored
feathers
and
flowers
in
their
hair.
Both
sexes
also
scarified
their
extremities
and
rubbed
charcoal
in
to
produce
rows
of
dark

scars.
Deat
and
Afterlife.
The
deceased
was
disposed
of
as
quickly
as
possible,
usually
by
cremation
and
then
burial
of
the
bones
and
ashes,
although
some
bones
might
be
retained

to
be
worn
by
relatives.
During
the
night
of
the
burial,
the
en-
tire
community
assembled
around
the
grave,
where
they
sat
and
wailed
until
dawn.
Widows
cut
and
burned

their
bodies
and
cut
off
their
hair
and
placed
it
on
the
grave.
Each
person
was
believed
to
have
a
soul
which
lived
on
after
death
as
a
ghost.
The

afterworld
was
though
to
be
much
like
the
real
world,
except
for
the
absence
of
evil.
BMiliography
Jones,
Rhys
(1974).
'Tasmanian
Tribes."
In
Aboriginal
Tribes
of
Australia,
edited
by
N.

B.
Tindale.
Berkeley:
University
of
California
Press.
Roth,
Henry
L.
(1890).
The
Aborigines
of
Tasmania.
London:
Kegan
Paul,
Trench,
Trfibner.
Tauade
ETHNONYMS:
Goilala,
Tauata
Orientation
Identification.
Tauata
is
one
of

a
number
of
closely
related
dialects,
and
the
name
'Tauatade,"
which
is
used
by
the
neighboring
Fuyughe
to
designate
the
speakers
of
all
these
di-
alects,
passed-slightly
modified-into
official
usage

as
"Tauade."
Location.
The
Tauade
live
in
the
Goilala
Subprovince
of
the
Central
Province
of
Papua
New
Guinea,
mainly
in
the
valley
of
the
Aibala
River,
at
8'
S,
147°

E.
The
elevations
of
this
valley
range
from
600
to
3,000
meters;
the
lower
slopes
are
grassland,
produced
by
prolonged
burning,
and
the
upper
slopes
are
forested.
Rainfall
averages
254

centimeters
per
year,
humidity
is
seldom
below
75
percent,
and
the
yearly
av-
erage
temperature
at
2,100
meters
18°
C.
The
main
rainy
sea-
son
lasts
from
the
beginning
of

December
until
the
end
of
318
Tauade
May,
and
the
months
of
June
to
September
tend
to
be
the
driest.
Demography.
In
1966,
the
population
of
the
Tauade
cen-
sus

districts
was
8,661.
The
precontact
population
was
proba-
bly
smaller.
A
number
of
Tauade
have
migrated
to
Port
Moresby
in
recent
years.
linguistic
Affiliation.
The
Tauade
language
is
a
member

of
the
Goilalan
Family
of
Papuan
languages.
History
and
Cultural
Relations
The
first
recorded
European
visitor
was
Fr.
V.
M.
Egidi
of
the
Sacred
Heart
Mission
in
about
1906,
and

the
first
patrol
by
the
Australian
government
was
in
1911.
Pacification
of
the
area
was
a
very
slow
process
and
was
not
fully
accomplished
until
after
World
War
II.
The

Sacred
Heart
Mission
came
to
the
area
in
the
1930s
and
established
a
school
at
Kerau
in
1939.
The
government
established
a
school
at
Tapini,
the
Subprovince
headquarters,
in
1962.

Graded
tracks,
con-
structed
under
the
supervision
of
the
mission,
extend
throughout
the
Subprovince,
but
there
is
no
vehicular
road
link
with
the
coast.
An
airstrip
was
built
at
Tapini

in
1938
and
another
at
Kerau
in
1967;
they
provide
the
main
access
to
Port
Moresby,
approximately
50
kilometers
away.
There
has
been
considerable
labor
migration
and
an
influx
of

trade
goods,
notably
steel
axes
and
other
tools,
and
alternative
sources
of
food,
such
as
rice.
Government
incentives
to
raise
cattle
as
a
form
of
income
have
generally
been
unsuccessful.

Local
councils
were
established
in
1963,
and
in
the
following
year
elections
were
held
for
the
national
House
of
Assembly.
Papua
New
Guinea
received
its
independence
in
1975.
Settlements
The

typical
settlement
pattern
is
one
of
scattered
hamlets
with
an
average
population
of
forty-five
and
about
fifteen
houses
(fewer
today),
often
located
on
the
crests
of
ridges
near
the
forest

line.
The
houses,
arranged
in
two
parallel
rows,
accommodate
the
women
and
children,
while
married
men
and
bachelors
occupy
the
men's house
at
the
head
of
the
two
rows.
In
modem

times,
men's
houses
have
mostly
fallen
into
disuse.
In
precolonial
days,
each
hamlet
was
surrounded
by
a
stockade.
The
space
between
the
houses
is
used
for
feasts
and
dances.
The

houses
are
often
protected
by
windbreaks
of
Cordyline
terninalis.
Hamlets
are
only
occupied
for
a
few
years
in
succession,
though
the
sites
themselves
are
often
reoccupied
periodically
for
a
long

time.
Large
villages
with
seventy
or
more
houses
are
built
for
ceremonial
purposes,
but
they
are
only
occupied
for
a
few
months.
Economy
Subsistence
and
Commercial
Atctivities.
The
Tauade
are

swidden
horticulturalists
whose
main
source
of
food
is
the
sweet
potato,
of
which
they
grow
at
least
twenty-two
varieties.
They
also
grow
bananas,
sugarcane,
some
yams,
and
a
little
taro.

Pandanus
nuts,
however,
are
a
very
important
supple-
ment
to
their
diet,
since
they
can
be
preserved
by
smoking.
Pigs
are
kept,
roaming
in
the
forest
and
bush,
often
destroy.

ing
gardens,
and
returning
to
their
owners'
homes
at
night
for
a
meal
of
sweet
potatoes.
Gardens
are
prepared
when
the
rains
cease,
and
strong
fences
are
constructed
around
them

to
keep out
the
pigs.
The
ground
for
gardens
is
cleared
by
fire
and,
nowadays,
with
steel
axes.
In
the
past,
stone
adzes
and
wooden
digging
sticks
were
the
only
tools.

The
preferred
area
for
gardens
is
the
secondary
rather
than
the
primary
forest,
but
grassland
is
seldom
used.
There
is
an
ample
supply
of
land,
the
population
density
being
approximately

7.7
persons
per square
kilometer.
The
pandanus
tree
is
the
main
source
of
house-building
materials:
its
outer
bark
is
easily
stripped
off
for
planks;
its
leaves,
when
dry,
are
an
ideal

roofing
material;
and
its
aerial
roots
supply
tough
bindings
for
the
framework
of
the
house.
It
is
likely
that
hunting-for
small
animals,
cas-
sowaries,
and
pigs-and
collecting
were
much
more

impor-
tant
in
the
past
than
they
are
today.
Industrial
Arts.
In
the
past,
stone
was
used
to
make
adzes
and
bark-cloth
beaters.
Stone
has
been
replaced
by
steel,
and

bark
cloth
by
imported
textiles.
String
bags
are
still
made
from
local
plant
fibers.
No
pottery
was
made,
and
green
bam-
boo
tubes
were
the
only
cooking
vessels.
Bows
were

made
from
black
palm,
while
bamboo
is
used
for
tobacco
pipes
and
as
a
simple
drum,
sounded
by
dropping
the
end
of
the
tube
on
the
ground.
In
general,
the

traditional
material
culture
was
extremely
simple.
Trade.
There
was
little
or
no
contact
with
the
tribes
on
the
south
coast
of
Papua,
but
feathers
were
traded
for
various
shells-and,
later,

steel-along
a
route
through
Fuyughe
country
that
ended
at
the
upper
reaches
of
the
Waria
River
in
New
Guinea.
Steel
tools
were
already
being
used
in
the
Aibala
Valley
at

the
time
of
Egidi's
visit
in
1906.
Division
of
Labor.
Men
are
responsible
for
felling
trees,
clearing
land
for
gardens,
erecting
fences,
climbing
the
pandanus
trees
to
cut
down
the

nuts,
and
house
building.
Men
plant
taro,
yams,
sugarcane,
bananas,
and
tobacco.
Women
plant
sweet
potatoes,
and
most
of
the
work
in
the
gardens
is
done
by
women,
who
also

carry
the
harvested
pandanus
nuts
home
in
their
string
bags
and
collect
dried
pandanus
leaves
to
bring
to
a
hamlet
where
a
new
house
is
being
built.
Women
also
care

for
the
pigs.
Land
Tenure.
There
are
roughly
demarcated
areas
of
land
belonging
to
each
clan,
and
it
is
said
that
the
clan
ancestors
who
first
cleared
the
forest
thereby

established
their
owner-
ship
of the
land
and
passed
on
these
rights
to
their
descen-
dants.
But
permission
to
use
clan
land
has
been
given
to
many
cognates,
affines,
and
friends

over
the
course
of
time,
and
this
practice
has
thus
also
established
inheritable
rights
of
use.
Customary
rights
to
make
gardens
on
the
land
of
a
clan
that
is
not

one's
own
need
to
be
exercised
from
time
to
time
if
they
are
to
be
respected.
In
practice,
therefore,
since
there
is
an
abundance
of
land
and
since
use
rights

have
been
so
diffused,
people
are
able
to
make
gardens
with
consider-
able
freedom.
Gardens
are
made
by
groups
of
friends,
and
often
different
groups
will
be
involved
in
making

gardens
si-
multaneously.
There
are
no
clearly
bounded
plots
of
land
owned
by
individuals
that
can
be
inherited.
Rights
of
use
in
land
are
also
transmitted
through
women,
so
that

men
may
make
use
of
the
land
rights
of
their
wives
and
mothers.
Pandanus
trees
are
owned
and
inherited
in
a
totally
different
manner
from
land.
Here
the
laws
of

ownership
hold-as
op-
posed
to
rights
of
use-and
the
model
of
hereditary,
clearly
demarcated
plots
of
land
can
be
applied
quite
realistically.
The
pandanus
forests
are
composed
of
many
named

areas,
Tauade
319
and
within
these
areas
are
the
plots
of
the
owners
marked
by
Cordyline
at
strategic
intervals.
Kinship
Kin
Groups
and
Descent.
There
is
no
word
in
the

Tauade
language
to
denote
"kin"
as
distinct
from
affine
or
cognate.
Nor
are
there
genetic
terms
for
'clan"
or
"lineage,"
but
there
are
named
groups
of
kin,
traditionally
descended
from

a
founding
group
of
ancestors,
that
it
is
appropriate
to
call
clans,
and
the
reckoning
of
descent
is
patrilineal.
This
is
not,
however,
a
strict,
jural
principle,
but
rather
it

seems
to
be
a
re-
suit
of
the
fact
that
influence
and
cooperation
are
organized
in
terms
of
social
relationships
between
people.
So
it
is
possi-
ble
for
a
person

to
claim
membership
in
more
than
one
clan.
Clans
not
only
claim
tracts
of
land;
each
clan
has
a
cave
in
which
the
bones
of
ancestors
were
deposited.
(Today,
burial

in
cemeteries
is
compulsory.)
Very
few
marriages
take
place
within
clans,
and
homicide
within
clans
seems
not
to
occur.
Clans
are
not
formally
subdivided
into
lineages,
although
im-
portant
ancestors

within
the clan
are
genealogical
reference
points
for
their
descendants.
Kinship
Terminology.
The
terminology
is
of
the
Iroquois
type.
Marriage
and
Family
Marriage.
About
10
percent
of
men
have
more
than

one
wife;
relations
between
cowives
are
frequently
hostile,
and
only
men
of high
status
succeed
in
maintaining
stable,
polygynous
unions.
By
far
the
greatest
proportion
of
divorces
occur
as
the
result

of
men
taking
second
wives.
First
mar.
riages
are
arranged
by
the
woman's
father
or
brother,
and
the
ideal
form
of
marriage
is
sister
exchange,
though
this
ideal
is
uncommon

in
practice.
Infant
betrothal
was
customary
and
the
marriage
was
completed
when
the
girl
attained
maturity.
Bride-wealth
was
paid
at
this
time
and
continues
to
be
an
im-
portant
feature

of
marriage.
Adultery
is
extremely
common,
and
compensation
is
often
offered
and
accepted
by
the
hus-
band,
but
some
men
attack
adulterers
if
they
catch
them
in
the
act.
Patrilocality

is
the
dominant
form
of
marital
resi-
dence,
but
it
is
normal
for
a
man
to
live
with
his
wife's
rela-
tives
for
several
years
to
establish
good
relations
with

them.
Only
about
20
percent
of
marriages
are
within
the
'tribe"
(see
the
section
on
social
organization),
and
while
some
of
these
marriages
are
between
members
of
fairly
hostile
tribes,

inter-
marriage
tends
to
be
inhibited
by
a
high
level
of
hostility.
Domestic
Unit.
The
basic
unit
of
production
and
cooper-
ation
is
the
nuclear
family.
Inheritance.
There
are
no

bounded
plots
of
land
that
can
be
treated
as
private
property;
houses
are
impermanent;
and
a
man's
pigs
are
slaughtered
at
his
funeral
feast.
Pandanus
trees
are
the
only
real

property
of
any
significance
that
can
be
in-
herited.
Normally
this
inheritance
is
through
the
male
line-
though
men
may
also
inherit
use
rights
through
their
mothers-but
if
a
man

has
no
sons,
his
trees
may
be
inherited
by
a
daughter.
Socializaton.
Parents
are
kind
and
indulgent
to
their
chil-
dren,
and
relations
within
the
family
are
close
and
affection-

ate.
In
the
traditional
society,
boys
at
puberty
were
subject
to
seclusion
for
a
few
months,
during
which
they
were
beaten
to
make
them
fierce.
Some
children
now
attend
the

mission
or
government
schools.
Sociopolitical
Organization
Social
Orgnization.
The
Tauade
are
divided
into
a
num-
ber
of
autonomous
named
groups
inhabiting
the
spurs
be-
tween
major
streams
on
the
side

of
the
valleys.
It
is
conve-
nient
to
refer
to
these
groups
as
"tribes,"
and
their
average
population
is
about
200.
Tribes
are
divided
into
several
named
clans,
who
live

dispersed
in
hamlets-usually
about
five
or
six
in
each
tdbe.
Hamlets
comprise
groups
of
brothers,
often
with
their
fathers
and
mothers
if
these
are
still
alive,
and
these
groups
are

linked
by
cognatic
and
affinal
ties
or
by
friendship
alone.
Men
frequently
move
from
one
hamlet
to
another
and
to
other
tribes,
but
there
are
norms
of
coopera-
tion
between

hamlet
members
and
fighting
is
rare.
Relations
between
members
of
different
hamlets
are
frequently
hostile.
Political
Orpnization.
In
each
hamlet
there
is
at
least
one
big-man
with
his
supporters,
who

may
include
agnates,
cognates,
affines,
and
friends.
The
functions
of
the
big-man
are
to
coordinate
ceremonies,
to
make
speeches,
and
to
give
generously,
and
in
each
tribe
there
is
a

senior
clan
whose
lead-
ing
big-man
traditionally
was
responsible
for
conducting
peace
negotiations
with
other
tribes
when
warfare
occurred.
While
the
status
of
big-man
is
not
inherited
and
depends
on

personal
qualities,
it
has
a
strong
hereditary
component,
and
in
many
cases
big-men
are
the
sons,
grandsons,
or
nephews
of
former
big-men,
whose
places
they
are
said
to
take.
Ceremo-

nial
exchange
of
pork
is
very
important
in
Tauade
society,
and
big-men
take
a
leading
part
in
this
practice,
but
they
are
not
the
managerial
figures
described
in
the
ethnography

of
highland
New
Guinea.
Some
of
them
were
war
leaders,
but
this
position
was
not
essential
to
becoming
a
big-man.
At
the
other
end
of
the
social
scale
are
"rubbish

men,"
who
are
usu-
ally
bachelors
(because
they
are
unable
to
attract
wives),
poor,
and
regarded
as
mean
and
useless
members
of
society.
In
traditional
times,
they
were
killed
with

relative
impunity,
unlike
the
big-men
whose
deaths
always
produced
large-scale
vengeance.
Social
Control.
Big-men
have
no
judicial
authority,
and
while
they
may
be
able
to
persuade
a
supporter
to
pay

com-
pensation,
they
have
no
authority
to
settle
disputes.
Disagree-
ments
are
extremely
frequent,
since
the
Tauade
are
very
sensi-
tive
to
insult,
and
there
was
a
high
level
of

violence
in
the
traditional
society
over
pigs,
women,
theft,
and
other
provo-
cations.
In
the
case
of
disputes
within
the
family,
the
relatives
of
the
husband
and
wife
may
try

to
make
peace,
and
residence
in
the
same
hamlet
restrains
disputes
fairly
effectively.
A
man's
fellow
residents
will
support
him
if
he
has
a
dispute
with
someone
of
another
hamlet

or
of
a
different
tribe,
and
they
may
even
accompany
him
if
he
goes
to
get
redress
for
a
stolen
wife
or
pig.
They
will
also
put
pressure
on
him

to
pay
compensation
if
he
is
the
guilty
party
in
a
dispute,
and
they
do
not
feel
obliged
to
risk
a
fight
to
defend
him
in
such
cases.
If
a

man
is
injured
in
some
way,
he
may
take
immediate
physi-
cal
revenge,
delay
retribution
for
years,
or
ask
for
compensa-
tion.
In
the
case
of
adultery,
such
compensation
is

often
paid,
but
there
is
no
way
of
legally
enforcing
claims
to
compensa-
tion
except
through
government
courts.
Those
who
are
on
bad
terms
avoid
one
another
and
live
in

different
hamlets,
320
Tauade
and
these
hostilities
are
often
long-standing,
so
that
when
the
Tauade
are
asked
why
they
do
not
live
in
a
single
village-
which
would
be
quite

practicable-they
reply
'because
of
our
ancestors."
In
the
case
of
homicide,
the
murderer
often
flees
to
his
wife's
or
mother's
tribe
and
stays
there
until
tempers
cool,
at
which
time

he
offers
compensation;
if
this
restitution
is
accepted
he
may
return
to
his
own
tribe.
Conflict.
In
the
traditional
society,
the
murder
rate
was
ap.
proximately
1
in
200
per

year
or
even
higher,
and
there
was
al-
most
as
much
killing,
violence,
and
theft
within
the
tribes
as
there
was
between
them.
Proximity
was
the
principal
cause
of
this:

adjacent
tribes
on
the
same
side
of
a
river
fought
most
often;
tribes
on
opposite
sides
of
a
river
fought
less;
and
tribes
on
opposite
sides
of
the
forested
mountain

ridges
fought
least.
A
man
who
had
killed
another
was
entitled
to
wear
a
shell
homicide
emblem
on
his
forehead,
and
this
medal
was
much
admired
by
women.
A
man

might
take
vengeance
against
any
member
of
a
tribe
that
had
killed
a
member
of
his
own
tribe
(or
one
of
his
friends
or
relatives
in
any
other
tribe)
so

that
there
were
many
occasions
for
vengeance.
Those
se-
lected
as
victims
were
usually
weak
or
insignificant
persons
whose
killing
could
be
readily
settled
by
an
offer
of
compensa-
tion;

grudges
were
remembered
for
many
years.
The
killing
of
a
big-man
could
start
full-scale
war
between
tribes,
in
which
hamlets
were
burned,
gardens
destroyed,
and
many
deaths
in-
flicted.
Members

of
a
tribe
that
was
losing
such
a
war
might
disperse
to
live
with
their
relatives
in
neighboring
tribes,
and
it
was
common
to
show
hospitality
to
those
driven
out

of
their
tribal
land.
But
tribes
usually
returned
to
their
land
after
a
year
or
two,
and
land
conquest
was
not
a
feature
of
Tauade
warfare.
The
bodies
of
slain

enemies
from
other
tribes
were
often
eaten,
or
they
were
mutilated
to
cause
distress
to
their
relatives.
Religion
and
Expressive
Culture
Religious
Beliefs.
The
relationship
between
the
'wild"
(kariari),
and

the
"tame"
or
domesticated
(vala),
is
funda-
mental
to
the
worldview
of
the
Tauade.
The
forest
is
repre-
sented
in
myth
as
the
antisocial
opposite
to
village
life,
but
it

is
not
merely
the
destructive
alternative
to
the
social
order-
and
it is
the
source
of
life
and
of
creativity
in
general.
The
Tauade
have
no
beliefs
in
any
kind
of

god,
but
their
elaborate
mythology
is
concerned
with
the
culture
heroes,
agotevaun,
who
are
supposed
to
have
inhabited
the
country
and
carved
out
the
valleys
before
the
first
human
emerged

from
a
rock.
The
agotevaun
were
preeminently
figures
belonging
to
the
wild,
with
superhuman
powers
which
they
used
to
kill
and
torment
humans,
but
they
also
instructed
humans
in
ceremo-

nies,
customs,
and
the
making
of
artifacts.
In
Tauade
myths,
women
are
portrayed
as
the
inventors
and
sustainers
of
cul.
ture
through
fire,
cooking,
betel
nuts,
string
bags,
and
the

useful
arts,
while
men
are
portrayed
as
basically
destructive.
Each
natural
species
of
plant
and
animal
is
sustained
by
a
su-
pernatural
prototype,
often
in
the
form
of
a
rock,

and
if
this
prototype
were
destroyed
the
species
would
die
out.
The
big-
men
are
thought
to
partake
in
some
aspects
of
this
power,
which
emerges
in
generation
after
generation

to
sustain
the
people.
In
traditional
times,
when
a
big-man
died
his
body
was
placed
in
a
sacred
enclosure,
hidden
from
women,
in
which
a
bullroarer
was
swung.
The
same

enclosure
was
also
used
for
the
initiation
of
boys,
if
suitable
numbers
were
ready
for
it.
Seclusion
lasted
for
three
or
four
months;
the
boys
were
fed
special
food
to

make
them
tough.
They
danced
inside
the
enclosure
and
were
beaten
with
nettles
to
make
them
fierce.
The
cult
of
the
dead
was
extremely
important.
Bodies
of
big-
men
were

placed
in
elevated
baskets
within
the
hamlets
to
rot,
while
the
bodies
of
ordinary
people
were
buried.
When
decomposition
was
complete
and
the
bones
and
skulls
were
collected,
a
great

feast
and
dance
was
organized
and
the
bones
of
the
dead
were
carried
in
the
dance
to
honor
the
ghosts.
The
bones
of
big-men
were
then
deposited
in
the
branches

of
oak
trees
and
those
of
ordinary
people
in
one
of
the
clan
bone
caves.
The
Tauade
also
believe
in
a
number
of
spirits,
almost
all
of
which
are
malevolent

and
which
inhabit
streams,
rocks,
trees,
and
other
natural
features.
Religious
Praiioners.
Some
men
are
supposed
to
be
powerful
sorcerers,
but
there
is
no
social
category
of
sorcerer
or
diviner.

Some
use
is
made
of
magical
substances
and
spells,
but
the
practice
of
magic
is
not
an
important
aspect
of
Tauade
life.
Ceremonies.
The
elements
of
Tauade
ceremonies
include:
the

killing
of
pigs;
the
distribution
of
pork
and
garden
pro-
duce,
especially
yams,
taro,
and
pandanus
nuts;
speeches;
and
dancing
(when
guests
from
other
tribes
are
invited).
Small
ceremonies
are

held
within
the
tribe
for
various
rites
of
pas-
sage,
especially
at
death,
but
the
largest
and
most
important
ceremonies
are
the
large
pig
killings
organized
by
the
whole
tribe

to
honor
their
dead.
These
rituals
are
arranged
by
the
big-men,
who
invite
many
other
tribes
(often
hostile).
Thus
there
is
a
strongly
agonistic
quality
in
these
occasions,
as
the

hosts
try
to
impress
their
guests
by
their
generosity,
the
splen-
dor
of
the
dance
village
and
men's
house,
and
the
speeches
of
the
big-men
(in
the
native
language,
"to

make
a
speech"
is
lit-
erally
'to
boast").
Dancing
that
lasts
all
night
is
a
feature
of
such
occasions,
as
a
means
by
which
hosts
and
guests
com-
pete
in

displays
of
stamina,
and
the
ceremony
concludes
with
the
slaughter
of
large
numbers
of
pigs.
Elaborate
platforms
are
built
for
the
speeches,
and
the
dance
villages
for
these
oc-
casions

may
have
more
than
seventy
houses,
with
a
very
large
and
decorated
men's
house.
Arts.
The
use
of
feather
ornaments
in
dances
is
the
only
significant
expression
of
visual
art

among
the
Tauade.
Sing-
ing
is
also
a
prominent
feature
of
dances.
They
are
familiar
with
a
large
variety
of
string
figures,
which
are
a
very
popular
form
of
amusement.

Medicine.
Traditionally,
plants
were
used
as
abortifacients
and
for
the
treatment
of
some
diseases,
and
there
were
also
a
number
of
magical
remedies.
Death
and
Afterlife.
Tauade
believe
that
a

person
con-
sists
of
flesh,
energy
or
strength,
and
a
soul,
which
becomes
a
ghost
after
death,
while
flesh
rots
and
energy
disappears.
The
world
of
the
ghosts
in
some

accounts
is
a
reversal
of
the
world
of
the
living.
Their
food
stinks,
they
sleep
in
the
day
and
wake
up
at
night,
and
so
on.
Ghosts
are
encountered
in

dreams
but
not
apparently
in
waking
life.
There
is
no
belief
that
the
ghosts
of
big-men
and
rubbish
men
go
to
different
places
after
death.
See
also
Mafulu,
Mekeo
Telefolmin

321
Bibliography
Egidi,
V.
M.
(1907).
-La
Tribili
di
Tauata."
Anthropos
2:675-
681,
1009-1021.
Hallpike,
C.
R.
(1977).
Bloodshed
and
Vengeance
in
the
Pap-
uan
Mountains:
The
Generation
of
Conflict

in
Tauade
Society.
Oxford:
Clarendon
Press.
C.
R.
HALIPIKE
Telefolmin
ETHNONYMS:
Kelefomin,
Kelefoten,
Telefol,
Telefomin
Orientation
Identification.
Telefolmin
are
one
of
a
group
of
related
peoples
known
as
the
Mountain

Ok
or
'Min"
(after
the
com.
mon
suffix
for
group
names).
Popular
traditions
derive
the
name
from
Telefolip,
the
ancestral
village
of
all
Telefolmin,
which
was
founded
by
the
culture

heroine
Afek.
Location.
Telefolmin
live
in
the
southern
portion
of
the
Sandaun
(or
West
Sepik)
Province
of
Papua
New
Guinea
atut
141°30'
E,
5°
S.
There
are
two
main
subgroupings

of
Telefolmin
in
the
Upper
Sepik
and
Donner
(or
Elip)
river
valleys,
with
a
small
outlying
group
along
the
Nena
(or
Upper
Frieda)
River.
Demography.
The
total
population
is
about

4,000,
con-
centrated
in
the
Upper
Sepik
and
Donner
river
valleys.
Since
1982
much
of
the
adult
male
population
has
been
working
at
the
Ok
Tedi
mining
project
in
the

Western
Province.
linguistic
Affiliation.
Telefol
belongs
to
the
Mountain
Ok
Subfamily
of
the
Ok
Family
of
Non-Austronesian
languages.
History
and
Cultural
Relations
Warfare
with
neighboring
peoples
was
often
intense,
and

in
the
nineteenth
century
the
Telefolmin
waged
a
successful
campaign
of
annihilation
against
the
fligimin,
whose
lands
they
settled.
Contacts
with
Europeans
date
from
the
early
part
of
this
century

but
only
became
significant
after
the
U.S.
Army
Air
Force
built
an
emergency
airstrip
in
Ifitaman
during
World
War
II.
The
postwar
administration
established
a
pa-
trol
post
at
this

site,
with
the
first
mission
following
in
the
early
1950s.
By
1953
an
accumulation
of
grievances
led
to
an
attempted
rebellion,
which
resulted
in
the
deaths
of
some
government
personnel

and
the
imprisonment
of
a
number
of
local
men.
Telefolmin
entered
the
cash
economy
through
participation
in
plantation
labor.
Mineral
exploration
in
the
early
1970s
gave
rise
to
hopes
for

prosperity
that
grew
with
national
independence
in
1975.
In
1974-1975
a
new
form
of
spirit
mediumship
emerged,
culminating
in
the
Ok
Bembem
cult
aimed
at
reestablishing
contact
with
the
dead.

Ok
Bembem
subsided,
but
it
was
followed
in
1978-1979
by
the
Rebaibal,
an
evangelistic
movement
inspired
by
female
medi.
ums
possessed
by
the
Holy
Spirit.
Rebaibal
resulted
in
the
de-

struction
of
men's
cult
houses
(with
the
significant
exception
of
Telefolip).
Rebaibal's
goals
included
conversion
to
Chris-
tianity,
closer
ties
between
men
and
women,
the
abrogation
of
traditional
cult
practices,

and
the
legitimation
of
the
sale
of
pork
for
cash.
This
movement
coincided
with
the
introduc-
tion
of
cash
crops
and
the
announcement
of
plans
to
go
ahead
with
large-scale

mining
in
the
area.
With
the
inaugura-
tion
of
the
Ok
Tedi
project
in
the
early
1980s,
large
numbers
of
men
left
their
villages
for
the
high
wages
offered
at

the
mine
site.
Settlements
Permanent
villages
range
in
size
from
about
60
to
300
per-
sons,
with
an
average
of
just
over
200.
These
villages
coexist
with
a
pattern
of

widely
dispersed
and
shifting
garden
houses.
The
system
is
thus
two-tiered,
with
a
constant
circulation
of
people
between
isolated
domestic
units
and
central
village
sites.
Traditionally
each
village
had
its

own
men's-house
complex
as
part
of
a
regional
ritual
system.
Churches
now
provide
a
community
focus
for
many
villages,
while
Telefolip
retains
its
traditional
cult-house
complex.
With
the
mining
boom

of
the
1980s
a
small
but
growing
'town"
has
emerged
along
a
roadside
strip
near
the
government
station.
Economy
Subsistence
and
Commercial
Activities.
Swidden
culti-
vation
of
taro
and
a

number
of
subsidiary
crops
(induding
ba-
nanas,
sweet
potatoes,
pandanus,
and
cassava)
provide
the
basis
of
subsistence,
supplemented
by
pig
husbandry,
hunt-
ing,
and
casual
collecting.
An
important
feature
of

the
tradi-
tional
economy
was
a
series
of
taboos
prescribing
differential
patterns
of
food
distribution.
These
taboos
were
abrogated
in
the
Rebaibal
movement-a
response,
in
part,
to
dilemmas
posed
by

the
anticipated
influx
of
cash
associated
with
copper
mining.
Traditional
shell
valuables
tended
to
circulate
mainly
in
bride-wealth
and
mortuary
payments
or
in
interethnic
trade.
Results
of
cash
cropping
(coffee

and
chilies)
have
been
disappointing,
largely
because
of
poor
market
access
(there
are
no
road
links
to
the
outside).
The
chief
source
of
cash
for
Telefolmin
has
been
migratory
labor,

whether
on
plantations
in
other
parts
of
the
country
or,
more
recently,
at
the
Ok
Tedi
mine.
Nowadays,
village
people
(including
women)
raise
cash
through
the
sale
of
pork.
Small

trade
stores
are
common,
but
only
a
few
local
entrepreneurs
have
had
success
in
business.
Industrial
Arts.
Traditional
industrial
arts
involve
house
building
and
carving.
The
houses
are
built
on

slender
piles
with
elevated
floors
and
thatched
roofs,
normally
with
a
pair
of
baked
clay
hearths
set
in
the
floor.
Techniques
for
fence
building
and
house
building
are
similar
(walls

are
fences).
Men
make
arrows
that
are
carved
and
painted,
as
are
war
shields
and
door
boards.
In
the
past,
men
made
woven
cane
cuirasses,
as
found
in
other
parts

of
New
Guinea.
Most
vil-
lages
have
at
least
one
or
two
returned
mine
employees
who
are
skilled
in
carpentry,
and
many
of
these
men
earn
supple-
mentary
cash
by

building
new-style
houses.
Trade.
Most
Telefol
trade
was
conducted
with
the
Faiwolmin
(Fegolmin)
to
the
south
and
the
Atbalmin
to
the
west,
with
the
former
playing
a
larger
role.
There

was
occa-
322
Telefolmin
sional
trade
with
the
Wopkaimin
to
the
southwest,
but
only
if
Telefol
traders
first
passed
through
Faiwol
territory,
since
the
direct
route
towards
Wopkaimin
country
was

blocked
by
the
Tifalmin,
enemies
of
the
Telefolmin.
For
the
Telefolmin,
trade
and
warfare
were
generally
incompatible,
so
there
was
virtually
no
exchange
between
Telefolmin
and
their
enemies
(Miyanmin,
Tifalmin,

Falamin,
Enkayaakmin,
etc.).
After
the
cessation
of
warfare,
Telefolmin
began
intensive
trade
with
the
Tifalmin
and
Wopkaimin,
since
the
latter
were
on
a
direct
route
to
the
path
of
shells

making
their
way
into
the
in-
terior
from
the
south
coast
via
Ningerum.
Division
of
Labor.
Both
sexes
participate
in
gardening,
though
to
differing
extent.
Men
are
traditionally
responsible
for

forest
clearance
and
fencing,
while
women
and
children
bear
the
major
burden
of
weeding.
Planting
and
harvesting
are
done
by
both
sexes
and
by
young
and
old
alike.
Pig
rearing

is
primarily
a
woman's
task,
as
is
the
collection
of
frogs
and
other
small
fauna;
hunting
is
a
male
occupation.
With
the
ad-
vent
of
Ok
Tedi,
however,
hunting
has

virtually
lapsed
as
a
subsistence
pursuit,
while
pig
rearing
has
been
dramatically
intensified
with
the
sale
of
pork
for
cash.
Given
the
high
level
of
male
absenteeism,
many
previously
masculine

tasks
are
ei-
ther
being
abandoned
or
are
now
taken
up
by
women.
Thus
it
has
become
common
for
women
to
clear
their
own
gardens
without
male
assistance,
and
gardens

are
only
rarely
fenced.
Older
people
and
women
gain
access
to
cash
through
pork
sales,
bride-wealth
payments,
and
remittances
from
mine
workers.
Land
Tenure.
Rights
to
garden
land
in
named

tracts
of
bush
are
conferred
either
by
first
clearance
or
bilateral
inheri-
tance.
Both
men
and
women
have
independent
land
rights
that
must
be
maintained
by
repeated
clearance
and
cultiva-

tion.
These
rights
are
individualized,
and
there
are
no
collec-
tive
blocks
of
land,
although
full
siblings
have
similar
pat-
tems
of
holdings.
Because
Telefol
agriculture
puts
a
premium
on

cultivation
in
different
altitudinal
zones,
most
people
have
claims
scattered
in
several
different
locations.
Claims
to
land
in
respect
to
hunting
are
much
more
diffuse
and
apply
to
large
stretches

of
bush
vaguely
associated
with
villages
or
clusters
of
villages.
Disputes
over
hunting
rights
were
tradi-
tionally
a
source
of
tension
between
Telefolmin
and
neigh-
boring
peoples.
Kinship
Kin
Groups

and
Descent.
There
are
named
and
overlap-
ping
cognatic
stocks;
these
stocks
are
nonlocalized
and
nonexogamous
and
have
no
corporate
features
apart
from
a
common
tale
of
origin.
Although
village

endogamy
produces
inwardly
reticulating
kin
networks,
there
are
no
formal
kin
groupings
as
such.
Male
action
sets
are
referred
to
as
niinggil,
nationally
"brothers.'
Incest
regulations
are
defined
with
ref-

erence
to
the
bilateral
kindred
within
first-cousin
range.
There
are
ritual
moieties
associated
with
the
men's
cult,
but
they
operate
independently
of
kinship.
Kinship
Terminology.
Telefol
kin
terminology
is
a

vari.
ant
of
the
Iroquoian
type
in
that
it
departs
from
usual
forms
by
differentiating
patrilateral
from
matrilateral
parallel
cous-
ins.
Terms
for
the
first
ascending
generation
are
bifurcate-
collateral,

with
parents'
same-sex
siblings
differentiated
by
seniority.
Siblings
are
differentiated
by
sex
and
seniority
and
are
distinguished
from
cousins.
There
are
separate
terms
for
three
types
of
cousin:
patrilateral
parallel

cousins,
matrilateral
parallel
cousins,
and
cross
cousins.
All
kin
of
descending
gen-
erations
are
designated
by
a
single
term,
though
optional
dis-
tinctions
can
be
made.
In
addition
to
these

terms,
Telefolmin
also
employ
more
complex
terms
for
varying
combinations
of
individual
kin.
Marriage
and
Family
Marriage.
Traditionally,
marriage
was
by
sister
exchange
accompanied
by
a
small
bride-wealth
of
shells

matched
by
a
return
payment
of
pork.
Marriages
were
ideally
between
fel-
low
villagers,
though
intervillage
marriages
sometimes
oc-
curred.
Divorce
was
relatively
easy
and
frequent,
with
an
at-
tempt

to
allocate
children
equally
to
the
mother
and
father
after
separation.
There
has
been
a
progressive
trend
towards
monetization
of
bride-wealth,
while
government
policies
for-
bidding
coercion
of
brides
have

made
sister
exchange
difficult
to
enforce.
Contemporary
marriages
are
less
likely
to
have
been
arranged
than
in
the
past,
often
take
place
between
vil-
lages
(with
virilocal
residence),
and
almost

always
include
a
bride-wealth
ranging
from
several
hundred
to
several
thou-
sand
kina
(one
kina-approximately
$1.50
U.S.)
in
value.
Domestic
Unit.
The
domestic
unit
is
a
two-generation
nu-
clear
family,

usually
allied
with
another
such
family
to
form
a
joint
household;
dwelling
houses
normally
have
two
hearths,
one
for
each
family.
The
component
families
of
a
joint
house-
hold
are

most
often
related
through
brother-sister
or
brother-
brother
links.
Despite
common
residence,
the
families
of
a
joint
household
have
separate
sets
of
land
rights
and
form
in-
dependent
productive
units.

Inheritance.
Rights
to
garden
sites
are
bilaterally
inher-
ited,
with
an
equal
division
between
siblings
of
both
sexes.
Children
may
in
principle
inherit
shell
valuables
and
pigs,
but
these
items

tend
to
be
dispersed
to
more
distantly
related
claimants
in
the
course
of
mortuary
rites.
No
clear
precedent
has
emerged
for
the
inheritance
of
modem
houses
built
of
permanent
materials.

Socialization.
Early
socialization
is
in
the
hands
of
moth-
ers,
although
fathers
and
elder
siblings
(especially
sisters)
also
play
a
role
in
caring
for
small
children.
Girls
grow
into
adult

roles
early.
Traditionally,
boys
underwent
a
series
of
ini-
tiations
from
the
age
of
about
7
until
their
late
twenties;
these
initiations
had
been
discontinued
for
some
time,
but
they

were
revived
in
the
late
1980s.
Since
the
1970s
a
number
of
children
attend
public
schools,
and
there
are
signs
of
increas-
ing
differentiation
between
school-educated
Telefolmin
and
others.
Sociopolitical

Organization
Papua
New
Guinea
is
an
independent
country
with
a
Westminster
form
of
government.
Telefolmin
and
their
neighbors
are
represented
by
elected
members
at
national
and
provincial
levels.
Social
Organization.

The
endogamous
village
is
the
basic
unit
of
social
organization
and
was
traditionally
tied
to
the
Telefolmin
323
men's
cult,
which
was
structured
in
terms
of
initiation
levels
and
ritual

moieties.
In
contrast
to
other
New
Guinea
socie-
ties,
exchange
traditionally
played
a
minor
role
in
intergroup
relations,
which
were
instead
organized
through
male
initia-
tions
centered
on
Telefolip.
Today,

church
groups
are
impor-
tant
at
the
village
and
intervillage
level.
Traditional
social
or-
ganization
emphasized
egalitarian
values
associated
with
a
community
differentiated
by
ritual
knowledge
rather
than
wealth,
and

one
issue
now
facing
Telefol
society
is
the
accom-
modation
of
wealth
differences
within
small
communities.
At
present,
the
general
tendency
seems
to
be
to
emphasize
con-
jugal
ties
and

the
nudear
family
while
restricting
the
claims
of
less
closely
related
kin.
Political
Organization.
There
are
no
formal
political
of-
fices
at
the
local
level
apart
from
elected
village
councillors

and
ward
committee
members,
who
have
only
marginal
influ-
ence
on
village
affairs.
In
the
past
prominent
men
(kamookim)
held
some
sway,
particularly
in
fights
with
ene-
mies,
but
even

their
influence
was
minimaL
Despite
this,
Telefolmin
displayed
a
remarkable
degree
of
unity,
which
is
largely
attributable
to
common
ritual
ties
to
Telefolip.
Telefolmin
were
unusual
among
New
Guinea
peoples

for
for-
bidding
warfare
within
their
ethnic
group;
however,
they
often
combined
en
masse
against
outside
enemies,
as
in
the
case
of
the
extermination
of
the
Iligimin.
More
recently,
Telefolmin

have
spearheaded
movements
toward
the
cre-
ation
of
a
'pan-Min"
political
identity
in
negotiations
with
the
central
government
concerning
the
Ok
Tedi
mine.
Social
Control.
There
is
little
exercise
of

authority,
even
on
the
part
of
parents
over
children,
and
social
control
is
for
the
most
part
informally
managed
through
shame and
with-
drawal
of
reciprocity.
Tact
is
highly
prized,
and

people
avoid
giving
offense
for
fear
of
sorcery.
Intravillage
disputes
gener-
ally
go
unaired;
the
parties
merely
avoid
each
other
until
mat-
ters
cool
down.
Conflict.
Traditionally,
warfare
only
took

place
between
Telefolmin
and
other
ethnic
groups
(especially
Falamin,
Tifalmin,
Miyanmin,
and
the
now-defunct
Iligimin).
Ten-
sions
between
Telefol
villages
sometimes
erupted
into
brawl-
ing,
but
more
often
it
surfaced

in
sorcery
suspicions.
Violence
between
fellow
villagers
was
and
is
rare.
The
government
holds
village
councillors
responsible
for
reporting
trouble
cases,
but
such
reports
are
made
only
when
all
else

fails.
Religion
and
Expressive
Culture
Since
the
late
1970s
the
majority
of
Telefolmin
practice
a
local
version
of
Baptist
Christianity.
Some
older
men,
and
es-
pecially
the
villagers
of
Telefolip,

however,
adhere
to
tradi-
tional
religious
practices.
Religious
Beihef.
Traditional
ritual
knowledge
is
parti-
tioned
along
lines
of
sex,
age,
and
ritual
moiety
affiliation;
cult
secrecy
is
highly
developed,
with

the
result
that
there
is
great
variation
in
belief.
The
division
in
cult
lore
parallels
a
ritual
division
of
labor,
with
the
Taro
moiety
responsible
for
life
promoting
(gardening,
pig

rearing)
while
the
Arrow
moi-
ety
is
responsible
for
life
taking
(warfare
and
hunting).
The
two
most
important
cosmological
figures
are
Afek
and
Magalim,
the
Bush
Spirit.
Afek
founded
Telefol

culture
and
the
men's
cult,
and
she
left
a
legacy
of
myths
and
rituals.
She
is
closely
identified
with
the
central
cult
house
at
Telefolip,
which
is
held
to
govern

the
fertility
of
taro
gardens
through-
out
the
region.
But
while
Afek
died
long
ago,
Magalim
con-
tinues
to
play
an
active
role
in
Telefol
life
by
disrupting
the
expected

pattern
of
things.
Christians
espouse
belief
in
God
the
Father,
Jesus,
and
the
Holy
Spirit,
who
intervenes
in
human
affairs
through
mediums.
Although
many
beliefs
sur-
rounding
Afek
seem
to

have
been
relegated
to
the
past,
Magalim
remains
active
in
Telefol
thought.
He
is
capable
of
assuming
many
forms,
including
posing
as
the
Holy
Spirit,
and
he
is
often
interpreted

by
Christians
as
a
manifestation
of
the
deviL
Religiotu
Practitioners.
Ritual
experts
officiated
in
the
men's
cult
on
the
basis
of
esoteric
knowledge;
outside
of
the
cult,
seers
or
diviners

diagnosed
illness
and
sorcery.
Nowa-
days
village
churches
are
presided
over
by
pastors,
and
a
num-
ber
of
women
act
as
diviners
and
mediums
for
the
Holy
Spirit.
Sorcerers
are

feared,
are
almost
always
unidentified,
and
are
generally
thought
to
belong
to
other
Telefol
villages.
Ceremonies.
Traditional
religion
revolves
around
a
com-
plex
series
of
male
initiations.
Senior
rites
were

performed
at
Telefolip,
where
they
have
recently
been
revived
after
a
long
hiatus.
AU
Telefolmin,
pagan
or
Christian,
also
celebrate
Christmas,
which
coincides
with
the
return
of
mine
workers
to

their
home
villages
for
the
holidays.
Arts.
Carved
and
painted
shields
and
house
boards
are
the
most
prominent
forms
of
visual
art.
Men's
arrow
shafts
are
often
intricately
carved
and

sometimes
painted,
and
women's
net
bags
are
locally
renowned
for
their
quality.
Although
some
individuals
are
better
at
these
things
than
others,
no
craft
specialization
exists
apart
from
the
sexual

division
of
labor.
Medicine.
Minor
ailments
are
treated
by
heating
the
body
with
warm
stones,
rubbing
with
nettles,
and
avoiding
foods
thought
responsible
for
a
particular
complaint.
More
serious
illnesses

are
attributed
to
sorcery,
violation
of
food
taboos,
cult
spirits
punishing
misconduct,
attacks
by
the
Bush
Spirit
(Magalim)
or,
nowadays,
the
Holy
Spirit.
Such
matters
were
usually
determined
by
diviners;

since
the
Rebaibal,
female
mediums
also
diagnose
illness
and
often
prescribe
a
course
of
treatment
involving
prayer
and
changes
in
the
patient's
pat-
tem
of
activities.
Most
villages
are
also

in
close
proximity
to
rural
aid
posts
where
routine
problems
are
dealt
with.
More
difficult
cases
are
brought
to
the
government
hospital
or
the
Baptist
maternity
clinic.
Death
and
Afterlife.

Burial
was
by
exposure
on
a
raised
platform,
often
in
or
near
a
garden
of
the
deceased.
Tradi-
tional
ideas
hold
that
ghosts
depart
for
an
underground
land
of
the

dead,
where
they
have
no
further
contact
with
the
liv-
ing.
Those
killed
in
warfare,
however,
were
inimical
to
the
liv-
ing
and
returned
as
fruit
bats
to
raid
gardens.

In
addition,
the
bones
of
noted
warriors,
gardeners,
and
pig
rearers
were
re-
trieved
as
men's
cult
relics.
These
relics
were
the
locus
of
the
spirits
who
voluntarily
remained
among

the
living
to
promote
village
welfare
in
return
for
pig
sacrifices
and
the
observance
of
food
taboos.
The
Australian
administration
prohibited
ex-
posure
burial
in
the
1950s,
and
since
then

Telefolmin
have
buried
their
dead
in
village
cemeteries.
Contemporary
beliefs
assign
the
souls
of
pagans
to
the
traditional
land
of
the
dead,
while
Christians
go
to
heaven.
See
also
Miyanmin

324
Telefolmin
Bibliography
Craig,
B.,
and
D.
Hyndman,
editors
(1990).
The
Children
of
Afek.
Tradition,
Place
and
Change
among
the
Mountain
Ok
of
Central
New
Guinea.
Oceania
Monograph
no.
40.

Sydney:
Oceania
Publications.
Jorgensen,
Dan
(1980).
'What's
in
a
Name:
The
Meaning
of
Meaninglessness
in
Telefolmin."
Ethos
8:349-366.
Jorgensen,
Dan
(1981).
"Life
on
the
Fringe:
History
and
So-
ciety
in

Telefolmin."
In
The
Plight
of
Peripheral
People
in
Papua
New
Guinea,
edited
by
R.
Gordon,
59-79.
Cultural
Survival
Occasional
Paper
no.
7.
Cambridge,
Mass.
Jorgensen,
Dan
(1983).
"Mirroring
Nature?
Men's

and
Wom-
en's
Models
of
Conception
in
Telefolmin."
Mankind
14:57-65.
Jorgensen,
Dan
(1985).
"Femsep's
Last
Garden:
A
Telefol
Response
to
Mortality."
In
Aging
and
Its
Transformations:
Moving
toward
Death
in

Pacific
Societies,
edited
by
D.
A.
Counts
and
D.
Counts,
203-221.
Lanham:
University
Press
of
America.
DAN
JORGENSEN
Tikopia
ETHNONYM:
Nga
Tikopia.
Orientation
Identificaton.
The
name
"Tikopia"
(sometimes
written
"Tucopia"

by
early
European
voyagers),
given
to
a
small
is-
land
in
the
Solomon
group,
is
also
applied
by
the
inhabitants
to
themselves.
The
expression,
glossed
as
"we,
the
Tikopia,"
is

commonly
used
to
differentiate
themselves
from
the
people
of
other
islands
in
the
Solomons
and
elsewhere.
Location.
Tikopia
is
a
little,
isolated,
high
island,
primarily
an
extinct
volcano
with
fringing

coral
reef,
rising
to
a
peak
of
350
meters
but
extending
only
4.6
square
kilometers.
It
is
in
the
southeast
of
the
Solomons,
at
168°50'
E
and
12°18'
S.
Historically,

until
the
mid-1950s,
the
Tikopia
people
occu-
pied
only
this
island.
But
then,
stimulated
by
the
pressure
of
the
population
on
the
food
supply
and
by
a
desire
for
experi-

ence
of
the
outside
world,
Tikopia
people
began
to
settle
in
groups
elsewhere
in
the
Solomons.
Now
the
substantial
set-
tlements
abroad
include
Nukufero
in
the
Russell
Islands,
Nukukaisi
(Waimasi)

in
San
Cristobal,
and
Murivai
in
Vanikoro.
All
Tikopia
live
in
a
tropical
climate,
with
altemat-
ing
trade-wind
and
monsoon
seasons;
during
the
latter
their
homes
are
subject
to
periodic

hurricanes
(tropical
cyclones).
Demography.
About
half
a
century
ago
Tikopia
had
a
dense
population,
about
300
persons
per
square
kilometer.
This
density
caused
anxiety
among
the
people's
leaders,
who
feared

food
shortages.
(In
1952-1953
a
famine
occurred
as
a
result
of
a
tropical
cyclone.)
In
1929
the
population
was
about
1,270;
by
1952
it
had
risen
to
about
1,750.
But

by
about
1980,
through
emigration,
the
population
on
Tikopia
Island
had
been
reduced
to
about
1,100,
while
another
1,200
or
so
Tikopia
lived
in
the
external
settlements
and
around
Honiara,

the
capital
of
the
Solomons.
There
is
much
inter-
change
of
population
between
the
settlements
and
Tikopia
Island.
linguistic
Affiliation.
The
Tikopia
are
Polynesian
in
lan-
guage
and
culture,
their

language
being
assigned
to
a
Western
Polynesian
grouping.
But
from
neighboring
peoples
they
have
acquired
some
Melanesian
loan
words
as
well
as
other
cul-
tural
items.
Tikopia
has
no
dialects.

But
as
a
result
of
external
contact
many
Tikopia
now
speak
English
and
all
can
use
pijin."
History
and
Cultural
Relations
From
recent
archaeological
research
it
appears
that
Tikopia
has

been
occupied
for
about
3,000
years.
Three
phases
of
tra-
ditional
culture
have
been
distinguished.
The
earliest
(c.
900
to
100
B.C.)
used
locally
made
sand-tempered
earthenware
of
Lapitoid
type;

the
second
(c.
100
B.C.
to
AD.
1200)
probably
imported
its
pottery,
of
more
elaborate
style,
from
the
New
Hebrides
(Vanuatu)
to
the
south.
In
the
latter
part
of
the

third
phase
(c.
AD.
1200
to
1800)
no
pottery
was
used
at
all.
Diet
changes
were
marked.
In
the
first
two
phases
pigs,
fruit
bats,
and
eels
were
eaten.
By

the
end
of
the
last
phase,
into
the
historical
period
(c.
AD.
1800
to
present)
no
pigs
were
kept
and
bats
and
eels
were
regarded
with
aversion
as
food.
The

third
traditional
phase
was
seemingly
the
result
of
a
sepa-
rate
immigration
and
bore
a
more
markedly
Polynesian
char-
acter.
It
is
clear
that
over
the
whole
period
of
occupation

Tikopia
people
have
had
irregular,
infrequent,
but
sustained
cultural
relations
with
Polynesian
and
Melanesian
peoples
in
other
islands
around,
by
arduous,
often
dangerous
canoe
voy-
ages.
European
contact
began
with

a
sighting
of
the
island
by
Spanish
voyagers
in
1606,
and
was
renewed
in
the
early
nine-
teenth
century
by
visits
of
Peter
Dillon
and
Dumont
d'Urville
and
by
later

calls
of
labor
recruiters
and
missionaries.
Only
toward
the
end
of
the
century
did
the
British
government
claim
control
over
Tikopia;
this
control
was
exercised
only
rarely
until
after
World

War
II,
during
which
Tikopia
re-
mained
undisturbed.
Since
then
both
mission
and
govem-
ment
contacts
have
been
fairly
regular,
though
often
inter-
rupted
by
poor
sea
communication.
Settlements
The

population
is
distributed
in
more
than
twenty
nucleated
villages,
situated
around
the
sandy
coastal
strip
at
the
base
of
the
hills;
there
is
no
settlement
on
the
rocky
northern
coast.

Houses
are
still
of
traditional
pattern,
built
directly
on
the
ground
in
rectangular
shapes,
with
low
palm-leaf
thatched
roofs
on
a
timber
frame,
and
doorways
to
be
entered
only
on

hands
and
knees.
Earth
floors
are
covered
with
plaited
coconut-palm-leaf
mats.
Houses
in
a
village
are
set
irregu-
larly,
in
no
formal
pattern,
with
canoe
sheds
adjacent,
giving
easy
access

to
the
sea.
In
the
settlements
abroad,
housing
is
often
of
traditional
style,
but
modem
types
also
occur.
Tikopia
325
Economy
Subsistence
and
Commercial
Activities.
On
the
island,
Tikopia
are

primarily
agriculturalists
and
fishers.
Crops
in-
clude
taro
(Colocasia),
manioc
(cassava,
Manihot),
giant
taro
(Alocasia),
and
sago
(Metroxylon).
In
the
settlements
abroad
their
occupations
include
agriculture,
plantation
labor,
police
and

hospital
work,
and
schoolteaching.
Several
Tikopia
men
have
become
priests
in
the
Church
of
Melane-
sia,
and
one
has
become
bishop
in
the
diocese
of
Temotu,
in
the
eastern
Solomons.

In
general,
Tikopia
have
not
engaged
in
commerce.
Industrial
Arts.
Traditionally,
Tikopia
men
practiced
crafts
of
canoe
building
and
other
woodwork,
net
making,
and
extraction
of
turmeric
pigment,
while
women

wove
mats
of
coconut-palm
leaf
and
pandanus
leaf
and
beat
out
from
the
inner
bark
of
a
tree
(Antiaris
toxicana)
the
bark-cloth
gar-
ments
and
blankets
used
by
both
sexes.

A
few
such
objects
are
now
made
for
sale
to
tourists
who
travel
on
the
rare
vessels
that
call
at
the
island,
but
there
are
no
industrial
arts
of
significance.

Trade.
Archaeological
and
ethnographic
records
indicate
that
since
archaic
times
Tikopia
residents
have
engaged
in
sporadic
trade
with
neighboring
island
communities,
receiv-
ing
items
such
as
arrows
and
shell
ornaments

from
Melane-
sian
sources
and
fine
pandanus
mats
from
the
closely
related
Polynesian
people
of
Anuta
in
return
for
turmeric
pigment.
Trade
with
Western
visitors
was
historically
by
barter-steel
tools,

fishhooks,
calico,
and
tobacco
being
sought
in
return
for
local
artifacts
and
food.
But
nowadays
money
is
used
freely,
even
in
transactions
among
Tikopia
themselves.
Division
of
Labor.
Men
do

woodwork
and
go
sea
fishing
in
canoes.
Women
do
domestic
work,
but
both
sexes
tend
the
earth
ovens
for
cooking.
Both
men
and
women
fish
the
reef,
men
with
spears

and
seine
nets,
women
with
hand
nets.
In
ag-
riculture,
men
do
the
heavy
work
of
breaking
up
the
soil,
both
men
and
women
plant,
but
women
do
most
of

the
weeding.
Specialization
was
recognized
particularly
among
men
(e.g.,
in
canoe
building).
Men
alone
could
be
priests
in
the
tradi-
tional
religion.
Land
Tenure.
All
the
land
of
Tikopia
is

divided
into
or-
chards
(tofi)
of
palms
and
fruit
trees
and
into
open
gardens
(vao),
marked
off
into
plots
for
annual
cropping.
Every
or-
chard
and
garden
plot
is
owned

as
of
ancestral
right
by
a
dis-
tinct
lineage
group,
with
titular
supreme
rights
exercised
by
the
clan
chief.
(A
similar
system
operates
in
overseas
Tikopia
settlements
that
have
agricultural

lands.)
Within
the
lineage
land,
rights
to
produce
are
held
by
individual
cultivators.
By
ancient
custom,
vacant
garden
land
may
be
used
for
a
season
by
other
than
its
owners,

on
payment
of
a
proportion
of
the
crop.
Permanent
transfers
of
land
from
one
group
to
another
were
rare,
but
historically
transfers
sometimes
occurred
when
a
chief
gave
some
land

to
a
daughter
on
her
marriage.
Sale
of
land
is
unknown.
No
land
on
Tikopia
is
held
by
other
than
Tikopia
people.
Kinship
Kin
Groups
and
Descent.
Tikopia
society
has

been
di-
vided
into
a
large
number
of
unilineal
named
descent
groups,
determined
genealogically
and
tracing
ancestry
back
for
up
to
ten
generations.
These
groups
are
termed
paito,
a
word

with
a
wide
range
of
meanings
including
'house"
and
'household."
They
can
be
conveniently
called
lineages.
Over
time,
segmen-
tation
can
lead
to
the
formation
of
new
lineages,
while
failure

of
male
heirs
leads
to
lineage
extinction.
For
corporate
kin
group
membership
as
regards
land
rights,
marriage
arrange-
ments,
and
funeral
rites,
the
principle
of
transmission
is
rig-
idly
patrilineal.

But
the
kin
bond
with
mother
and
mother's
lineage
is
also
very
strongly
held,
represented
by
formal
and
informal
support
in
a
variety
of
social
situations.
The
impor-
tance
of

this
bond
is
indicated
by
the
term
tama
tapu
(liter-
ally,
'sacred
child")
applied
formally
to
a
child
of
any
woman
of
a
lineage.
Members
of
a
mother's
lineage
rally

round
their
nephew
or
niece
at
birth,
initiation,
illness,
or
death.
Kinship
Terminology.
Tikopia
kinship
terminology
is
rel-
atively
simple
with
cousin
terms
of
the
Hawaiian
type.
Gene-
ration
differences

are
marked:
grandparent
(puna);
parent
(mitua);
father
(tamana);
mother
(nana);
sibling
(taina,
of
same
sex;
kave,
of
opposite
sex);
child
(tama);
grandchild
(makopuna).
In
general
the
system
is
classificatoryy,"
putting

all
kin
of
the
same
general
type
under
one
term.
But
distinct
terms
exist
for
father's
sister
(masikitanga)
and
mother's
brother
(tuatina),
who
have
special
social
roles.
Marriage
and
Family

Marriage.
Modern
Tikopia
marriage
is
solemnized
by
a
re-
ligious
service
in
a
Christian
church.
But
traditionally
it
was
initiated
by
elopement
or
abduction
of
a
woman
from
her
fa-

ther's
house
to
that
of
her
chosen
or
self-elected
husband.
Nowadays,
as
formerly,
the
crux
of
the
marriage
arrangement
is
an
elaborate
series
of
exchanges
of
food
and
other
property

between
the
lineages
of
bride
and
groom,
occupying
several
days.
The
bride
commonly
goes
to
live
with
her
husband,
ei-
ther
in his
parents'
house
or
in
a
new
dwelling
adjacent

to
theirs.
Entry
into
the
married
state
is
marked
by
assumption
of
a
new
name,
often
that
of
the
dwelling
where
they
live.
So
if
they
reside
in
the
house

"Nukuora,"
the
husband
is
known
as
Pa
(Mr.)
Nukuora,
the
wife
as
Nau
(Mrs.)
Nukuora.
Tradi-
tionally,
polygyny
was
permissible,
and
men
of
rank
did
often
have
more
than
one

wife.
No
woman
could
have
more
than
one
husband,
however.
Marriages
seem
to
have
been
fairly
stable.
Divorce
was
rare
and
adultery
by
married
women
was
not
common,
in
contrast

to
the
sexual
freedom
of
both
sexes
before
marriage.
Infidelity
by
married
men
did
occur,
but
if
it
came
to
the
wife's
notice
it
often
seems
to
have
elicited
a

vio-
lent
reaction
from
her.
Domestic
Unit.
The
core
of
a
Tikopia
domestic
unit
is
a
husband,
wife,
and
children,
but
ordinarily
a
household
is
apt
to
contain
additional
kin-an

elderly
widowed
mother,
an
unmarried
sister
or
brother,
a
youth
or
girl
fostered
from
an
allied
kin
group.
Occasionally
two
brothers
and
their
families
share
accommodations,
forming
a
multiple-family
house-

hold.
Adjacent,
kin-related
domestic
units
may
share
in
the
preparation
of
meals,
using
a
common
oven
house.
Inheritance.
Major
property
(e.g.,
land,
canoes,
houses,
and
house
sites)
is
inherited
patrilineally,

with
the
eldest
son
acting
as
the
main
controller
and
his
siblings
sharing
in
rights
of
use
and
residence.
But
sometimes
after
a
man's
death
his
sons
may
dispute
and

decide
to
split
the
landed
property.
Smaller
items,
such
as
a
wooden
headrest
or
shell
ornament,
326
Tikopia
may
be
allocated
personally
to
specific
kin
by
a
man
before
his

death.
Socialization.
Social
control
by
public
opinion
has
been
strong
in
Tikopia.
Although
raised
permissively,
children
are
very
aware
of
the
discipline
of
their
parents
and
are
also
trained
much

by
other
kin
and
by
peer-group
association.
Formerly,
the
educational
process
was
smooth
and
uninter-
rupted
from
birth
to
maturity;
nowadays
many
children
go
abroad
to
school
for
a
period

and
are
exposed
to
a
range
of
alien
influences.
Sociopolitical
Organization
Social
Organization.
A
major
social
division
in
Tikopia
is
into
four
kainanga
(clans),
each
an
aggregate
of
half
a

dozen
or
so
paito
(lineages).
Each
clan
is
headed
by
a
hereditary
chief,
with
an
order
of
precedence
based
upon
former
reli-
gious
ritual:
Kafilca,
Tafua,
Taumako,
Fangarere.
Crosscut-
ting

the
dan
organization
is
a
local
grouping
into
residential
districts.
Between
the
two
largest
of
these,
Ravenga
on
the
east
side
of
the
island
and
Faea
on
the
west,
there

is
tradi
tional
rivalry,
most
notably
in
dancing
and
political
prestige.
The
Tikopia
social
system
has
been
asymmetrical
in
the
rela-
tive
status
of
men
and
women.
Men
have
held

all
positions
of
political
and
ritual
power,
though
the
influence
of
women
has
been
strong
domestically
and
in
general
social
affairs.
Mod-
em
developments,
especially
in
the
overseas
settlements,
have

tended
to
modify,
and
not
necessarily
improve,
these
relations.
Political
Organization.
Traditionally,
Tikopia
chiefs
held
absolute
power
in
extremity
over
their
people,
espe-
cially
over
their
own
clanmembers,
though
this

power
could
be
modified
by
conventional
methods
of
constraining
a
chief
to
respond
to
public
opinion.
Chiefs
were
and
still
are
tapu
(sacred)
and
treated
with
great
respect.
Formerly,
chiefly

families
tended
to
form
an
intermarrying
class,
but
nowadays
unions
between
commoners
and
the
children
of
chiefs
are
frequent.
Conflict
and
Social
ControL
According
to
tradition,
con-
flict
between
individuals

and
between
groups
has
been
com-
mon
in
Tikopia
in
struggles
for
land
and
power,
resulting
in
slaughter
or
expulsion
of
sections
of
the
population.
Nowa-
days
external
government
sanctions

and
the
influence
of
Christianity
make
such
extreme
solutions
most
improbable,
and
social
friction
seems
to
be
held
in
check
by
a
sense
of
common
purpose
in
the
advancement
of

Tikopia
against
the
outside
world.
Internally,
chiefs
exercise
their
control
through
executives
(maru),
their
brothers
or
cousins
in
the
male
line
who
act
in
the
chief's
name
to
keep
public

order.
In
overseas
settlements,
men
appointed
by
the
chiefs
serve
as
leaders
and
advisers.
In
modern
times
especially,
public
as-
semblies
(fono)
are
called
by
maru
to
hear
the
instructions

of
chiefs.
Religion
and
Expressive
Culture
Religious
Beliefs.
Until
the
early
present
century
all
Tikopia
were
pagan,
practicing
a
polytheistic
religion.
They
believed
in
spirit
beings
called
atua,
a
term

including
ghosts
of
the
dead,
ancestors,
and
spirit
powers
that
had
never
as,
sued
human
form.
(These
last
beings
were
sometimes
termed
tupua,
a
word
now
applied
mainly
to
the

Christian
God.)
Religious
Practitioners.
The
major
practitioners
in
rites,
as
priests,
were
the
chiefs
of
the
four
clans,
assisted
by
ritual
elders
who
were
the
heads
of
the
most
important

lineages.
By
about
1923
about
half
the
Tikopia
population
became
Chris-
tian,
under
the
aegis
of
the
Melanesian
mission
of
the
Angli-
can
communion
(now
the
Church
of
Melanesia).
This

con-
version
led
to
friction
in
the
Tikopia
community,
but
the
new
religion
gained
ground
till
in
1956
the
last
pagans,
led
by
their
chiefs,
joined
the
church,
thus
radically

changing
ceremonies
and
practitioners.
Ceremonies.
The
major
spirit
beings
were
worshipped
in
elaborate
rites,
with
offerings
of
food
and
bark
cloth.
The
val-
idating
feature
of
every
rite
was
the

pouring
of
libations
of
kava,
a
liquid
formed
by
chewing
up
the
root
or
stem
of
a
pep-
per
plant
(Piper
methysticum).
Every
six
months
ceremonies
were
performed
in
which

canoes,
crops,
temples,
and
people
were
rededicated
to
gods
and
ancestors
for
protection
and
prosperity.
Arts.
The
Tikopia
traditionally
have
had
little
competence
in
graphic
arts.
Their
sculpture
consisted
of

simple
geometri-
cal
forms
applied
to
woodwork.
Their
great
performing
art
has
been
dancing,
which
has
inspired
a
profusion
of
songs
and
which
is
of
great
social
and
(formerly)
religious

importance.
Medicine.
Tikopia
medical
practices
were
rudimentary,
consisting
of
massage
and
external
application
of
coconut
oil
and
leaf
infusions.
These
practices
were
linked
with
appeals
to
spirit
forces,
usually
held

responsible
for
illness.
The
trance-in
which
a
medium,
man
or
woman,
explored
the
cause
of
illness
and
suggested
remedy,
in
alleged
spirit
guise-was
a
common
mode
of
treatment.
Such
practices

still
persist,
but
modem
Tikopia
rely
largely
on
Western
medicine
and
hospital
treatment.
Death
and
Afterlife.
A
death
is
an
occasion
for
great
mourning. Tikopia
funeral
ceremonies
continue
after
burial
of

the
body
with
periodic
wailing
and
massive
exchanges
of
food
and
other
goods
between
the
kin
groups
concerned.
Tra-
ditional
conceptions
of
the
afterlife
were
vague
but
involved
a
notion

of
a
series
of
heavens
on
different
levels
or
in
different
wind
points
(sources
of
prevailing
winds),
each
controlled
by
a
major
god.
There
was
also
an
image
of
a

'rubbish
pool,"
into
which
would
be
thrown
the
souls
of
those
who
had
consist-
ently
misbehaved
on
earth.
Life
in
the
afterworld
followed
much
the
same
pattern
as
on
earth,

but
with
dancing
as
the
main
activity.
Nowadaysconceptions
of
the
afterlife
follow
a
Christian
model,
but
elements
of
traditional
belief
may
still
persist.
See
also
Anuta
Bibliography
Firth,
Raymond
(1936).

We,
The
Tikopia:
A
Sociological
Study
of
Kinship
in
Primitive
Polynesia.
London:
Allen
&
Unwin.
Firth,
Raymond
(1939).
Primitive
Polynesian
Economy.
Lon-
don:
Routledge.
Tiwi
327
Firth,
Raymond
(1970).
Rank

and
Religion
in
Tikopia.
Lon-
don:
Allen
&
Unwin.
Firth,
Raymond
(1985).
Tikopia-English
Dictionary.
Auck-
land:
Auckland
University
Press.
Kirch,
Patrick
V.,
and
D.
E.
Yen
(1982).
Tikopia:
The
Pre

his-
tory
and
Ecology
of
a
Polynesian
Outlier.
Bernice
P.
Bishop
Museum
Bulletin
no.
238.
Honolulu.
RAYMOND
FIRTH
Tiwi
ETHNONYMS:
Bathurst
Islanders,
Melville
Islanders
Orientation
Idenificatin.
The
word
'Tiwi"
means

'people"
in
the
language
of
the
Aboriginal
inhabitants
and
owners
of
Mel-
ville
and
Bathurst
islands
of
north
Australia.
Location.
Melville
and
Bathurst
islands
are
located
40
ki-
lometers
north

of
Darwin
at
11°30'
S
and
131°15'
E.
The
land
(approximately
7,500
square
kilometers)
is
relatively
flat
with
a
low
central
ridge
on
Melville
Island
running
west
to
east.
Running

south
to
north
from
this
ridge
are
nine
rivers.
On
Bathurst
there
is
less
elevation
and
draining
rivers
are
small
and
largely
tidal.
Along
the
tidal
reaches
of
rivers
and

smaller
streams
are
mangrove
forests,
while
mixed
eucalyptus
and
cypress
forests
characterize
much
of
the
uplands.
At
the
freshwater
headlands
of
the
larger
rivers
are
small
areas
of
true
rain-forest

vegetation
and
along
the
coast
are
areas
of
sandy
beach
and
rocky
reef.
This
varied
environment
makes
for
a
varied
and
rich
diet for
the
Tiwi
today
as
in
the
past.

The
rainfall
is
monsoonal,
with
heavy
rains
occurring
between
November
and
March.
Almost
no
rain
falls
from
June
to
Sep-
tember,
the
nights
are
cool
and
the
air
is
filled

with
smoke
from
the
fires
of
hunting
parties.
The
range
of
temperatures
is
only
a
few
degrees
during
the
monsoon
season,
averaging
about
27°
C,
while
during
the
dry
season

the
range
is
greater.
Demography.
In
1986
the
Tiwi
population
of
the
islands
was
about
2,000,
divided
between
the
Bathhurst
Island
town-
ship
Nguiu
with
1,300
and
the
two
Melville

Island
townships
of
Parlingimpi
and
Milikapiti
with
300
and
400,
respectively.
Linguistic
Affiliationr.
The
Tiwi
speak
a
distinctive
lan-
guage,
distantly
related
to
other
Aboriginal
languages.
At
Nguiu
there
is

a
bilingual
literature
center
producing
texts
in
Tiwi
language
for
use
in
the
local
primary
school.
At
the
Par-
lingimpi
and
Milikapiti
primary
schools
education
is
in
Eng-
lish.
Both

Tiwi
and
English
are
used
by
nearly
everyone.
How-
ever,
elders
bemoan
the
loss
of
fluency
in
Tiwi
among
the
younger
generations.
In
the
past,
fluency
in
Tiwi
was
an

im-
portant
marker
of
full
adult
status,
enabling
both
men
and
women
to
participate
fully
in
the
important
ceremonial
activ-
ity
of
composing
and
singing
songs.
History
and
Cultural
Relations

The
prehistory
of
the
Tiwi
is
related
to
that
of
other
Aborigi-
nal
Australians.
Recently
calculated
(1981)
dates
for
earliest
signs
of
human
cultural
activity
are
approximately
forty
thou-
sand

years
ago.
The
Tiwi
themselves
are
mentioned
in
his-
toric
records
from
the
early
eighteenth
century,
when
they
came
in
contact
with
Dutch,
Portuguese,
and
British
explor-
ers.
Prior
to

these
recorded
contacts
by
Europeans,
there
is
evidence
for
early
Chinese
and
Indonesian
contact
but
no
sustained
settlement.
The
first
foreign
settlement
on
the
is-
lands
occurred
in
1824,
when

the
British
established
Fort
Dundas
near
the
contemporary
Parlingimpi
township.
After
five
years
of
hardship
the
settlement
was
abandoned
and
it
was
nearly
seventy-five
years
before
European
settlement
was
again

attempted
early
in
the
twentieth
century.
In
1911,
Fa-
ther
Gsell,
M.S.C.,
established
a
Catholic
mission
at
Nguiu
on
the
southeastern
coast
of
Bathurst
Island,
and
following
this
development
there

was
a
significantly
increased
amount
of
contact
with
White
Australians.
The
township
of
Parlin-
gimpi,
located
near
the
ruins
of
Fort
Dundas
at
Garden
Point,
was
first
established
as
a

government
settlement
in
1939.
In
the
late
1940s
the
government
settlement
was
moved
from
Garden
Point
to
Snake
Bay
(Milikapiti).
Milika-
piti
continued
as
a
government
settlement
until
the
late

1970s,
when
it
became
the
first
of
three
communities
to
in-
corporate
as
a
township.
Settlements
The
Tiwi
today
live
in
housing
largely
built
by
outside
con-
tractors
during
the

past
ten
to
fifteen
years,
each
with
two
to
four
bedrooms,
kitchen
and
bath,
electricity,
and
plumbing.
Some
families
have
built
housing
for
themselves
outside
of
the
townships
on
their

own
local
groups'
land.
What
they
gain
in
'rural"
peace
and
quiet
they
lose
in
proximity
to
school,
store,
and
clinic-all
of
which
are
located
in
each
township.
Many
families

own
private
vehicles
or
boats
and
leave
their
home
township
frequently
to
hunt,
visit,
attend
ceremonies,
or
fly
to
Darwin
for
shopping
and
visiting.
Per-
haps
the
most
important
recent

event
in
the
history
of
the
Tiwi
was
the
granting
back
to
the
traditional
Tiwi
owners
of
all
their
original
tribal
lands
(both
Bathurst
and
Melville
is-
lands)
under
the

Land
Rights
Bill
(Northern
Territory)
of
1976.
Economy
Subsistence
and
Commercial
Acivities.
Prior
to
Euro-
pean
settlement
on
the
islands,
the
Tiwi
had
an
abundant
subsistence
economy
of
hunting,
fishing,

and
foraging
in
the
bush,
sea,
and
along
the
shore.
Increasingly
after
European
settlement,
Tiwi
became
employed
in
a
variety
of
jobs
related
to
settlement
life,
including
education,
health,
community

service,
and
government.
While
each
community
has
a
shop
where
food
and
other
material
goods
may
be
purchased,
the
majority
of
Tiwi
are
concerned
with
the
maintenance
of
hunt-
ing

and
foraging
skills
among
the
young.
With
a
preference
for
'bush"
over
'store-bought"
foods,
Tiwi
make
up
much
of
their
weekly
diet
with
native
foods.
Industrial
Arts.
A
number
of

local
industries
have
had
commercial
success:
silk-screened
textiles;
clothing
manufac-
turing;
pottery;
and,
more
recently,
a
large
pine
(timber)
plan-
328
Tiwi.
tation-a
legacy
of
the
Australian
government-and
several
tourist

facilities.
Trade.
External
trade
with
the
mainland
peoples
did
not
exist
prior
to
the
early
twentieth
century
and
the
arrival
of
Eu-
ropean
settlers
on
the
islands.
Division
of
Labor.

In
the
precolonial
subsistence
econ-
omy
the
division
of
labor
was
such
that
hunting
in
the
sea
or
air
was
the
exclusive
domain
of
men,
while
extracting
roots,
seeds,
fruits,

etc.
from
plants
rooted
in
the
ground
was
the
ex-
clusive
domain
of
women.
However,
aside
from
these
particu-
lar
exclusions,
both
men
and
women
hunted
and
gathered
ground-
or

tree-dwelling
animals,
shellfish,
turtle
eggs,
and
the
like
from
the
shore,
and
both
sexes
contributed
equally
to
the
daily
diet.
There
were
no
full-
or
part-time
specialists.
Land
Tenure.
There

are
a
number
of
named
local
groups
that
hold
exclusive
responsibility
for
geographically
distinct
areas
(murukupupuni,
or
'countries')
on
the
two
islands.
The
number
and
boundaries
of
these
countries
are

known
to
have
fluctuated
over
the
nearly
one
hundred
years
of
recorded
Tiwi
history.
Currently
there
are
seven
countries
and
each
of
these
is
represented
by
delegates
to
the
Tiwi

Land
Council,
which
came
into
existence
in
1976
when
the
islands
were
deeded
back
to
the
Tiwi
under
the
Land
Rights
Bill.
Currently
one
is
considered
an
owner
of
one's

father's
country
although
in
the
presettlement
days
one
was
an
owner
of
the
country
in
which
one's
father
was
buried.
Owners
of
a
country
are
collectively
held
responsible
for
maintaining

that
country
(and
its
natural
and
spiritual
resources)
and
for
transmitting
the
knowledge
of
and
responsibility
for
that
country
to
the
next
generation.
Kinship
Kin
Groups
and
Descent.
The
matrilineal

dan
is
a
group
whose
members
assume
common
descent
from
an
ancestrally
conceived
group
of
unborn
spirit
beings
located
in
clan-
specific
localities
in
or
near
a
body
of
water.

In
the
precolonial
belief
system,
conception
is
accomplished
when
a
father
lo-
cates
one
of
these
unborn
spirits
and
sends
it
to
his
wife,
who
must
be
of
the
same

clan
origin.
Each
clan
is
named
and
members
of
a
clan
provide
physical,
moral,
and
emotional
support
to
fellow
clan
members
in
numerous
and
diverse
situ-
ations.
These
clans
are

further
grouped
into
four
larger
and
exogamous
groups.
For
each
individual,
two
clans
are
signifi-
cant:
his
or
her
own
clan;
and
his
or
her
father's
clan.
It
is
among

the
latter
clan
group
that
one
should
seek
a
spouse.
One's
father's
clan
and
the
natural
species
with
which
it
is
af-
filiated
is
also
considered
to
be
one's
'Dreaming."

One's
Dreaming
serves
as
inspiration
for
expressive
ceremonial
dances,
songs,
and
art.
In
the
social
world
of
the
Tiwi
every-
one
is
related.
Kinship
Terminology.
In
the
first
ascending
generation,

one's
parent's
siblings
of
the
same
sex
are
classified
with
the
parent,
and
their
children
(one's
parallel
cousins)
are
classed
with
one
and
one's
siblings.
One's
parent's
opposite-sex
sib-
lings

are
distinguished
from
each
other,
as
are
their
children
(one's
cross
cousins
and
potential
spouses).
One's
siblings
are
distinguished
in
several
ways:
first
by
gender
and
then
by
relative
age.

Further
distinction
is
made
for
siblings
who
have
the
same
father
but
whose
mothers
are
of
different
clans.
There
are
two
further
distinctions
that
are
behaviorally
signif-
icant
although
unmarked

by
terminology.
Aminiyati
siblings
are
those
who
have
the
same
(named)
father's
father,
and
"one-granny'
siblings
are
those
who
have
the
same
(named)
mother's
mother.
Among
the
latter
group
there

is
strict
avoidance
between
siblings
of
the
opposite
sex
once
sexual
maturity
is
imminent,
while
the
potentially
much
larger
group,
those
who
acknowledge
a
common
grandfather,
was
in
precolonial
days

the
group
of
siblings
that
was
largely
respon-
sible
for
the
integrity
of
the
countries.
Marriage
and
Family
Marriage.
In
precontact
times-and
in
some
cases
today-marriages
were
arranged
by
a

system
of
selecting
a
son-in-law
for
a
young
woman
at
the
conclusion
of
her
first-
menstruation
celebration.
The
young
woman
(who,
in
the
past,
would
already
have
been
married
by

this
time)
and
her
son-in-law
are
in
a
reciprocal
relationship
in
which
the
son-
in-law
is
obliged
to
"feed"
his
potential
wife's
mother,
provid-
ing
her
not
only
food
but

any
goods
and
services
she
de-
mands.
In
return
he
will
receive
as
wives
all
daughters
born
to
his
mother-in-law
prior
to
their
sexual
maturity.
For
each
woman,
this
kind

of
marriage
arrangement
generally
charac-
terized
her
first
marriage
and
also
often
her
secondary
mar-
riages
to
a
deceased
husband's
brothers)
through
the
levi-
rate.
For
the
male,
this
form

of
marriage
was
often
contracted
for
well
past
middle
age,
as
it
was
the
most
prestigious
and
re-
quired
considerable
political
acumen
and
accomplishment.
Earlier
marriages
for
men
(after
the

age
of
30
or
more
years)
were
most
frequently
to
older
women,
widows
of
older
broth-
ers.
Because
a
woman
was
usually
married
to
a
series
of
younger
men,
divorce

rarely
took
place.
Changes
in
the
regu-
lation
of
marriage
have
occurred
since
contact.
While
the
ac-
tual
cohabitation
of
a
young
girl
with
her
promised
husband
is
more
frequently

not
taking
place,
such
marriage
contracts
are
still
being
made.
In
many
of
these
cases
the
mother-in-
law/son-in-lw
relationship
still
follows
the
traditional
pat-
tem,
and
the
marriage
usually
conforms

to
the
societal
prefer-
ence
for
marrying
someone
in
one's
father's
matrilineal
clan-someone
who
falls
into
the
category
of
acceptable
po-
tential
spouses
yet
who
is,
at
the
same
time,

someone
closer
in
age.
There
are,
however,
an
increasing
number
of
marriages
of
Tiwi
to
non-Tiwi
Aboriginals
of
mixed
(Asian
or
European)
background.
Domestic
Unit.
The
precontact
domestic
unit-a
woman,

her
daughters,
her
daughters'
husbands,
and
her
grand-
children-remains
today
a
viable
domestic
unit,
although
monogamy
is
almost
universal.
Within
the
townships
there
are
groups
of
houses
in
close
proximity

to
each
other
that
op-
erate
as
economic
units.
The
modem
domestic
unit
is
often
under
the
"direction"
of
a
senior
woman
as
in
the
past,
and
all
members
contribute

differentially,
from
wages,
pensions,
and
foraging
activities.
Ceremonial
activities
(dancing
and
carv-
ing)
are
now
monetized,
as
is
gambling
(a
redistributive
institution).
Socialization.
The
socialization
of
children
is
carried
out

by
the
entire
domestic
unit
today
as
in
the
past.
All
children
attend
elementary
school
in
their
home
community
until
the
sixth
grade.
Some
may
continue
their
schooling
at
Nguiu,

in
Darwin,
or
even
farther
away
from
home
in
Brisbane,
Sydney,
Melbourne,
or
Alice
Springs.
A
few
Tiwi
have
gone
beyond
high
school,
and
in
each
community
there
are
women

and
Tiwi
329
men
who
have
been
trained
as
educators,
health
workers,
or
office
managers.
The
annual
kulama
yam
ceremony
was
the
event
at
which
initiation
of males
and
females
was

finalized.
Initiates
traditionally
participated
in
six
such
annual
ceremo-
nies,
advancing
in
rank
in
each
and
ultimately
reaching
sen-
ior
status
as
a
full
initiate
between
ages
40
and
50.

Today,
ini.
tiation
is
more
often
for
males
(though
women
attend
and
participate)
and
involves
only
one
or
two
participations.
In
contrast
to
practices
on
the
mainland,
there
is
no

body
scari-
fication
or
mutilation
(circumcision
or
subincision)
in
Tiwi
male
initiation.
There
is,
however,
a
ritual
sequence
of
body
painting
and
decoration,
heavily
imbued
with
symbolic
meaning.
Sociopolitical
Organization

Social
Organization.
The
precontact
social
organization
was
characterized
by
the
matrilineal
clans
and
by
the
local
groups
affiliated
with
each
country.
In
matrilineal
clans,
lead-
ership
was
largely
ceremonial
and

was
conferred
according
to
seniority
and
competence
among
the
males.
Under
the
coun-
try
system
of
organization,
some
leaders
in
the
past
were
men
who
achieved
great
prominence
through
arranging

multiple
(reportedly
sometimes
as
many
as
a
hundred)
marriage
con-
tracts
for
themselves;
they
also
were
men
whose
domestic
groups
were
very
large
and
regionally
influential.
Such
men
also
gained

notoriety
as
ceremonial
leaders
in
song,
dance,
and
art.
Political
Organization.
Today,
imposed
upon
the
kinship,
kin
group,
and
local
group
organizations
are
(in
ascending
order)
the
township
council,
the

Tiwi
Land
Council,
and
the
Northern
Territory
and
Australian
Commonwealth
govern-
ments.
In
each
of
the
three
communities
an
elected
township
council
is
empowered
to
impose
bylaws
regulating
community
affairs

and
is
responsible
for
budgeting
and
for
maintaining
township
services.
The
council
hires
a
town
derk
(a
manager)
and
other
personnel
to
manage
and
oversee
the
various
oper-
ations
of

the
township.
Both
men
and
women
serve
on
the
town
council.
Social
Control.
The
Tiwi
Land
Council
meets
once
a
month
to
decide
issues
that
concern
matters
outside
of
those

of
individual
townships.
While
most
of
these
have
to
do
with
land
and
its
use,
some
are
concerned
with
matters
of
law
and
its
enforcement.
Who
or
what
body
is

concerned
with
social
control
and
conflict
resolution
is
sometimes
problematic.
Clan
members
are
often
the
proper
ones
to
resolve
domestic
and
intradomestic
conflict.
However,
the
territory
govern-
ment
maintains
a

two-person
police
station
at
Parlingimpi
and
one
or
two
police
aides
in
each
township
to
handle
inter-
nal
disputes.
Conflict.
Conflicts
occurred
between
matrilineal
clans
and
patrifocal
local
groups
and

mainly
concerned
rights
to
women
as
wives,
almost
never
other
resources.
Today,
such
conflicts
are
still
settled
by
localized
close
cognatic
and/or
matrilineal
kin
groups
or,
if
this
fails,
by

affiliated
matrilineal
clans
that
consider
that
their
close
relationship
requires
their
involvement
on
behalf
of
their
kin.
A
very
few
interregional
conflicts
are
part
of
the
oral
history
of
contemporary

Tiwi
and
were
resolved
by
holding
a
'war"
at
a
designated
place
and
time,
during
which
the
opposite
sides
took
turns
throwing
and
dodging
spears
and
throwing
clubs.
Interpersonal
con-

flicts
were
often
settled
by
sneak
attacks
and
ambushes.
Religion
and
Expressive
Culture
Religious
Beliefs.
Tiwi
religion
focuses
on
ancestral
spirits
of
those
who
have
lived
in
the
recent
past

and
including
those
who,
in
'the
Dreamtime,"
created
the
land,
sea,
and
all
that
is
found
within.
The
Catholic
church
is
a
strong
and
consistent
element
of
daily
life
in

Nguiu
and
Parlingimpi
and
to
a
lesser
extent
in
Milikapiti.
At
the
present
time
there
is
open
accept-
ance
of
Tiwi
ceremonial
life
by
the
church
and
church
mem-
bers,

although
in
the
past
this
was
not
so.
Ceremonies.
The
annual
kulama
yam
ceremony
is
held
near
the
end
of
the
wet
season
(November-March).
The
three-day
ritual
involves
the
digging,

preparation,
cooking,
and
eating
of
the
kulama
type
of
wild
yam.
The
yam
symbo-
lizes
reproduction
and
maintenance
of
life,
both
human
and
nonhuman.
Participants
must,
in
addition
to
carrying

out
the
preparation
and
cooking
of
the
yams,
compose
and
sing
more
than
a
dozen
new
songs
throughout
the
three
days.
Other
major
ceremonies
include
the
celebration
of
the
transition

of
the
living
to
the
world
of
the
dead.
In
connection
with
funeral
rituals,
elaborately
carved
and
painted
poles
are
commis-
sioned
and
paid
for
by
the
close
kin
of

the
deceased,
and
for
related
activities
painted
bark
baskets
and
spears
are
also
manufactured.
In
the
songs
and
dances
of
these
ceremonies,
historic
and
mythological
events
as
well
as
contemporary

events
and
problems
(complaints
or
explanations)
are
re-
membered
and
marked.
To
both
compose
and
understand
the
sung
metaphoric
poetic
allusions
to
significant
elements
in
Tiwi
culture
requires
an
extremely

high
level
of
verbal
skill
in
the
Tiwi
language.
Arts.
With
the
slow
erosion
of
Tiwi
language
in
favor
of
fluency
in
English
in
postcontact
times,
the
verbal
arts
are

in
danger
of
substantial
loss,
whereas
the
visual
arts
(painting,
sculpture,
and
dance)
are
being
maintained,
as
they
not
only
are
an
essential
part
of
the
ceremonial
life
(reinforcing
the

Tiwi
worldview)
but
also
are
being
translated
to
the
commer-
cial
production
of
wood
sculpture,
textiles,
clothing
and
pot-
tery
design,
and
other
related
enterprises.
Medicine.
Traditionally,
good
commonsense
medical

knowledge
among
the
Tiwi
utilized
the
curative
values
of
the
island
environment.
Although
some
men
and
women
were
said
to
have
greater
knowledge
of
particular
plants,
animal
parts,
and
other

curative
items,
there
were
no
full-time
or
even
part-time
curers.
Magical
death,
sorcery,
bone
pointing,
and
kidney-fat
theft
are
considered
to
be
illnesses
caused
by
mainlanders
and
are
believed
to

be
cured
only
by
mainland
curers.
The
spread
of
these
illnesses
is
a
feature
of
contempo-
rary
Tiwi
life,
and
the
people
seek
cures
from
non-Tiwi
spe-
cialists
on
the

mainland.
Death
and
Afterlife.
The
most
important
myth
of
the
Tiwi
deals
with
the
permanence
of
death,
after
the
death-by-
neglect
of
Purukupali's
son.
This
culture
hero
walked
into
the

sea
with
his
son's
body,
declaring
that
henceforth
all
Tiwi
shall
die
and
never
return
to
life.
The
spirits
of
the
deceased
reside
in
the
country
where
they
are
buried,

although
to
ac-
commodate
the
increased
mobility
of
Tiwi
(over
to
the
main-
land
and
overseas)
the
spirits
are
said
to
be
able
to
travel
back
to
their
"homeland"
as

well.
The
life
in
this
spirit
world
mir-