Encyclopedia of World Cultures Volume 2 - Oceania - S potx

Religion and Expressive Culture Ritual andthemen's secret society are the key cultural forces in Sambia.. In the middle of the nineteenth century, the aboriginal population of Western Sa

284 Sambia

Sambia

ETHNONYMS: None

Orientationidentification TheSambia,acongeries ofhistoricallyand

socially integrated phratries thatspeakthe Sambialanguage,

live in thefringeareasofthe EasternHighlandsProvinceof

Papua New Guinea.Theyaretribal,animistic, andprimarily

pagan The nameSambiaderives from the Sambiaclan,an

original pioneerpeoplethat settled the central Sambia region

inthe Puruya RiverValley,andismainlyusedbyWesterners

The term"Kukukuku"(derogatory)wasgenerically appliedto

Sambia and theirneighborsuntil the 1970s;uAngan (which

means 'house") is now more frequently used as an ethnic

term toembrace Sambia and related societies

Location The Sambia are located in the rugged Kratke

Mountains bounded by the Lamari River, the alluvial Papuan

lowlands, andadjacentrivervalleysof the Eastern Highland

Province, Marawaka District Virgin rain forest covers

ap-proximatelytwo-thirds oftheirterritory Settlements and

gar-dens are located at elevations of 1,000 to 2,000 meters, and

huntingterritoriesextend uptoelevations of3,000meters

Demopraphy. In 1989 thepopulationofSambiawas

esti-matedat2,700,includingabsentee coastal workers The

pop-ulation density averages 1.5 persons per square kilometer,

though settlement areas are much higher. The population

growth rate isabout5percent per year.Sambia-speaking

peo-ple constitute 95 percent of its resident population

Scat-tered, in-marryingspeakers oftheForeandBaruya languages

arepresent,andabout3percentTokPisinspeakersof other

New Guinealanguagesresidethere, mainlyingovernment or

missionjobs

LinguisticAffiliation Sambia is considered one of several

languages belonging to the Non-Austronesian Angan

Lan-guage Family of the Papuan Gulf Sambia and theneighbor,

ing Baruya tribe share60percent of their cognate terms, for

example, although a majority ofspeakers frombothgroups

cannot speak the other group's language.There are at least

two dialects of Sambia, represented in the northern and

southernparts of central Sambia.Theyaremutually

intelligi-ble, with minor lexical andvocabularyvariations and tonal

differences

History and Cultural Relations

The precise derivation of Sambia and related Angan peoples

isunknown, but they are believedto have migratedsouth to

the Papuan Gulf and later,perhapsasrecentlyas AD.1700, to

their present territory Their mythological place oforigin is

located near the area of Menyamya Legendandrecent

his-torical material suggests endemic warfare and raiding

be-tween Sambia and neighboring tribes,especiallythe Foreand

Baruya Initial contact with Europeans, at first Australian

government patrols, began about 1956 The Australian

colo-nial regime, operatingunderamandate from the United

Na-tions, entered and gradually enforced pacification around

1963 Warfare was haltedin 1967, and in 1968 the Sambia

area was"derestricted" andopenedto Westernmissionaries

and traders Coffee was introduced as a cash crop about

1970 An abortivehead-mansystem (modeled after African

colonialregimes)wasreplacedin1973, with komiti and sal(councillors) being freely electedto agovernment council

kaun-inthe district PapuaNewGuineaachievedindependencein1975; modernizationefforts have followedrapidly

Settlements

Villages range in size from approximately 40 to 250 persons

All villagesare spatiallydistinct.Thereare twovillagetypes:

pioneeringand consolidated.Thepioneering type is built on

asteep mountainridge, fortifiedby palisades and fences topreventattack Apioneervillage contains a great clan andcomponentclans,withsurrounding gardens,and a commonhunting andgatheringterritory.The consolidatedtypeis theresult of twopreviouslydistinctvillagesunitinginto alarger,somewhat less clustered settlement Houses arebuilt in a neatlinepattern atop theridges.Footpaths connect houses with

gardens above and streams and rivers below Each nuclearfamily lives in a hut, thoughotherextended family membersmayattimessleepthere The house isgabled, thatched, andsmall, with a hearth and no windows There are two othertypes ofdwellings.One isamenstrual hut builtslightly belowthe village, wherein birth and menstrual events occur andwomen's ceremonies are held.The other is a men's house,whereallmales dwellafter initiation (at age 7-10) until mar-riage (in the late teens to early 20s), when a separate resi-

dence isbuilt Militaryand secret male ritual activities occur

in that clubhouse The menstrual and men's houses are taboo

tothe opposite sex Casualsheltersare placed in gardens asnecessary Pig-herding and hunting lodges of more perma-

nentconstruction are built in distant gardens and the forest,and certain nuclear families or extended clan families reside

inthem, sometimes forseveralmonths

Economy

Subsistence andCommercial Activities Sedentary dening dominates the Sambia economy, supplemented bymodest pigherding,and,traditionally, extensive hunting forgame by men Sweet potatoes are the main staple Taro is alsosignificant Yams are aseasonal and largely ceremonial crop

gar-AUplanting and harvesting is done by hand, predominantly

by women Men,however,slash-andbum the land first andparticipate in harvesting Additional indigenous crops in-clude sugarcane, pandanusfruit and nuts, wild taro and yams,and avarietyof local greens, palms, and bamboo hearts.Eu-

ropean kitchenvegetablesare todayplentiful,especially greenbeans, corn, andtapioca, supplemented by potatoes, toma-

toes, and peanuts Commercial cropsincludecoffee, which isnow predominant, as well as chilies Traditional hunting wasmainly for opossums andnative marsupials, birds, andcasso-waries Fishing for freshwater carp and eels was traditionalbut sporadic.Allmeats were on occasion smoked for preser-vation and eventual consumption or trade In addition topigs, domestic animalsinclude dogs and chickens

Industrial Arts Thereare specialists in a few native crafts,but not industrial arts, invillages Weaving of grass skirts andstring bags is done bywomen; armbands, headbands, arrows,bows, and all military gear are made by men Sacred art is rare,and masks and carvings are not made

Sambia 285

Trade Vegetable salt bars, bark capes, feather

head-dresses,and driedmeatsand fishwereall tradedtraditionally

withtheneighboringWantuldu andUsurumpia tribes andas

far south as the Purari Delta Women today bring

home-grownproducetolocal markets

Division oflabor The sexualdivision of laborisstriking

andrigidamongthe Sambia Women domostof the

garden-ing,weaving,cooking, andchildcare Menhunt,fish, and are

responsible for war and public affairs Most household

chores, excepthouseconstructionitself,arefemaleactivities

Menand women share theharvestingoffeast crops and

now-adaysof coffeegardens

Land Tenure AUlandandwatercoursesareownedby

in-dividuals and clans as corporate groups Fishing, hunting,

gardening, and foraging rightsare inviolable, anduserights

may be extendedto distant kin, in-laws, ortrade partners

Landlessness is nonexistent

Kinship

KinGroupsandDescent Three levels of kingroupingare

found Theclan,linked by patrilinealdescent,isexogamous

The'greatclan"isformed fromtwo or moreclansthat trace

descentto arealancestor.Thephratryisconstitutedof many

clansand greatclans,whose putative ancestorsareregarded

as 'brothers," making inclusivemembers related They also

share adjacent territories, certain identity markers such as

dress, and ritualcustoms They intermarry In timesofwar

theyusuallysupporteachother,and for ritual initiation,they

conduct joint ceremonies for theirsons

Kinship Terminology Sambiakintermsareessentiallyof

the Omaha type, with marked generational skewing. Age

gradingintheinitiationsystemalsocreatesputativekin

rela-tions formales (brothers) andfemales (sisters)

Marriage and Family

Marriage There are four types of marriage: infant

be-trothal (delayed exchange), sister exchange (direct

ex-change), and bride-service (delayed exchange), which are

traditional;andbride-wealthmarriage,which has been

intro-duced since 1973 Marriageisprimarily arranged byparents

and clanelders.Because ofexogamy,intravillagemarriagein

pioneervillages isabsent,but itdoesoccur inconsolidated

villages Infant betrothal and sister-exchange marriage

ac-counted for 90 percent of all marriagetransactions

tradition-ally Father's sister's daughter marriage isapproved

Newly-weds establish patrilocalresidence soon after marriage in a

newhuthousehold Divorce israre. Polygynyisideally

pre-ferred but is infrequent

Domestic Unit Thenuclearfamilyisthe minimal

domes-tic unit.Theyeatandsleep together.Sons remaindomiciled

there until initiation, and daughters ideally remain aswell

until marriage Theextended familyoffamiliarity includes

grandparents,grandchildren,aunts,uncles,andcousins,

usu-ally within the samevillage All active adults contribute to

domestic labor andchildren alsohelp Cowives may reside

to-gether, buttypicallythey have separate residences

Inheritance Property is inherited mainly by males,

al-thoughdaughtershaveuserightsto certaingardenland

Sta-tusand offices are not inherited butachieved, except for tical powers of shamans

mys-Socialization Early infant care is exclusively done by

women Older children are cared for by both parents andolder siblings Independence and autonomy are stressed,but

morefor malesthan females Gender and sexual socialization

are accomplishedmainly through rituals

Sociopolitical Organization

Sambia wastraditionally an acephaloustribe Today it is anencapsulated semiautonomous tribal group within the bu-reaucraticadministration ofaparliamentarydemocracy, withthe English monarch as its putative head of state

SocialOrganization. Thetribe ishierarchically organized

on the basisof age and sex Older people are higher thanyounger people Clanelders, warriors, and ritual specialistshold the highest status Men are higher than women Socialclassisabsent However, modernization and mobilitybasedupon wealth and education arecurrently introducing class

statusdifferences

PoliticalOrganization. Politicalcontrolby the state atesfromthe provincial district levels Sambia is divided intocensus divisions with a head tax foradult men.Thevillageoperatesasthe mostpowerfulpolitical unit in daily public af-fairs However, administrative anddispute settlement tasks

oper-areoverseenbylocalcouncillors Warfare was organized marily at the village level.Thedanceground confederacy is ofspecial importance Villages that initiate together on thesamedance groundusuallydefendeachother's territory andintermarry Confederacies are usually constituted by onephratry; however, interphratry confederacies exist in centralSambia The Papua New Guinea government providesschool, court,andhealth services

pri-Social ControL Most features of social control devolvefromclanhamletelders Warleadersarecrucial Ritual initia-

tion instillsvalues of conformity and loyaltyinindividuals.Dance ground confederacies exert control in intertribalrelations

Conflict Minor disputes invillages are handled throughmoots.Traditionalwarfare between villages usually occurredoveradultery, sorcery accusations, ritual violations or theft ofritualcustoms, anddestruction of gardens by pigs Council-lors anddistrict courts handle conflicts today

Religion and Expressive Culture

Ritual andthemen's secret society are the key cultural forces

in Sambia Initiations occur on a grand scale every three

or four years andare mandatory for all males Female

initia-tions occur later, at marriage, menarche, and first birth.Initiation for males also involved military training in thewarriorhood

Religious Belief Sambia are animistic and believe thatallforcesand events have life Men are superior and womeninferior Female menstrualand birthpollutionareabhorred.Male maturation requires homoerotic insemination to attainbiological competence Initiation rituals thus involve com-plexhomosexual contact fromlate childhood until marriage,when it stops Female homosexual activityisbelieved to be

286 .JL4I6UU3L

absent Men's ritual cult ceremoniescentrally involve flute

spirits (female).Other formsofsupernaturalentitiesinclude

ghosts,forest spirits (male),andnaturesprites Bogs,for

ex-ample, are inhabited by ghosts and sprites Contemporary

mission activitiescenterprimarilyonthe localSeventh-Day

Adventistchurch.DailyandSaturdayservices areheld

Bap-tisms and marriagesare performed Missionized Sambia are

largely nominalconverts

ReligiousPractitioners Eachvillagehasatleastone

sen-iorritual specialistwho officiatesatinitiation Shamansare

themainreligious specialists,however, theymaybe maleor

female, though traditionally males were more frequent and

critical They divine, exorcise, and sorcerize They are

be-lieved to retrieve souls ofthe sick through magical flight.

There are strong and weak shamans Shamans organize

events in ritualand funeralceremonies.

Ceremonies Theseasonalcalendarisbasedon acyclical

senseof time, with ritual eventsand feastgardens

synergis-tic with dry season and early monsoon periods

(May-September)

Arts The greatestdecorative architectureisthe ritual cult

house,whichis notmaintainedfollowinginitiation.Carving

is limited to daily utensils and weapons Body painting is

elaborateinritualandwarfare.Featherheaddressesare

espe-ciallyadmired.Traditionalmusicalinstrumentsinclude ritual

flutes andbullroarers and theJew'sharp.Dancingisextensive

butsimpleand ispartof all initiations

Medicine Illnessisattributedtoghostsand sorcery

Pos-session isusually believed tobe by ghosts orforest spirits

Localhealingandspellsare common Herbal medicines are

widely used,especiallygingerandlocal salt Shamansarethe

mainhealers

Death and Afterlife Funeralswere traditionally shallow

ceremonial events The corpsewasplacedon aplatformuntil

itsbones wereexposed.The boneswereretainedbydosekin

for their sorcery power The soulisbelievedtosurvive death

and isseenindreams The widow observesayearor twoof

mourning.Today the corpseisburied.Anametaboo is still

observed for the dead for several years

See also Fore

Bibliography

Godelier, Maurice (1986).TheMakingofGreat Men

Cam-bridge: Cambridge University Press

Herdt, Gilbert (1981) Guardians of the Flutes New York

McGraw-Hill

Herdt, Gilbert(1987).The Sambia:RitualandGenderin New

Guinea NewYork: Holt, Rinehart& Winston

Herdt,Gilbert (1989) "SpiritFamiliarsintheReligious

Im-agination of Sambia." InThe Religious Imagination in New

Guinea, edited by G Herdt and M Stephen, 99-121 New

Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers UniversityPress

Lloyd, Richard G.(1973).'TheAnganLanguageFamily."In

The LinguisticSituationin theGulfDistrictand Adjacent

Ar-eas, Papua New Guinea, edited by K Franklin, 31-111 cificLinguistics,SeriesC.no 26.Canberra: AustralianNa-

moa as"people ofthe ocean or deep sea."

Locaio The SamoanArchipelago (about 3,000 square

kilometersinland area) lies in western Polynesia in the tralPacific, from 13° to 15'S to 173"W.TheManu'a group(Ta'u,Ofu,and Olosega),Tutuila, and 'Aunu'u comprise theTerritory ofAmerican Samoa; 'Upolu, Manono, Apolima,and Savai'i makeup the Independent State of Western Sa-moa.The islandsareofvolcanic origin Beyond the coastalplains, the mountain ranges rise steeply to a maximum of1,859 meters onSavai'i The climate is tropical with abun-dant rainfall Humidity averages 80 percent The averagemonthly temperature ranges from 22' to 30" C

cen-Demography In1980,the Samoan population was about188,000 (American Samoa: 32,000; Western Samoa:

156,000) In the middle of the nineteenth century, the

aboriginal population of Western Samoa was estimated at35,000;the aboriginal population ofTutuila was estimated at3,900 in 1865.The Samoan Islands are the home of thelarg-estconcentration offull-blooded Polynesians in the world.Today,many Samoans live and work abroad, mainly in NewZealand, Australia, Hawaii, and California

linguistic Affiliation The Samoan language belongs tothe Polynesian Group of Austronesian languages There are

nodialects;except for minorlocal variants the same language

is spokenonall the SamoanIslands

History and Cultural Relations

Settlement of theFiji-Tonga-Samoa area by people belonging

to the prehistoric Melanesian Lapita culture took place tweenabout 1500 and 1000B.c.Genealogical,mythological,and linguistic evidence suggests that relations with bothTonga and Fiji were maintained throughout the prehistoricperiod,withintermarriageoccurring among the upper classesespecially of the Samoan and Tongan population The firstEuropean tosight the Samoan Islands in 1722 was the Dutch

be-Samoa 287

explorerJacob Roggeveen, thoughhe didnotlandthere In

about 1800someisolated European sailors andescaped

con-victssettledonSamoa,bringingwith themthefirstnotionof

Christianity. In 1830, the missionaryJohnWilliams of the

LondonMissionarySociety (LMS) landedinSavai'iduringa

power struggle among factions, bringing with him native

Polynesian missionaries from Tahiti and the Cook Islands

The firstpermanent European missionaries arrivedin 1835

(LMSandMethodists), followedbyRomanCatholic priests

in 1845 During the nineteenth century, Germany, Great

Britain,and the United Statesstroveforinfluenceamongthe

diverse Samoanfactions In 1900, Western Samoa becamea

Germancolony(until1914)and EasternSamoa wasclaimed

by theUnited States From 1914 to 1962, NewZealand

ad-ministered Western Samoa, whichbecamean independent

state in 1962,withkingsMalietoa Tanumafili 11andTupua

Tamasese Mea'ole serving as joint heads of state Before

World War II,administrativepoliciesby the NewZealand

ad-ministrationled to the'Mau,"aresistancemovement

(1926-1936) that mustered the support of about90percentof the

Samoanpopulation at itsheight.American Samoa remainsa

UnitedStates territory Afterconstitutional changes, Peter

TabColeman became the first elected native Samoan

gover-nor in 1977

Settlements

TheSamoans have been mainlyacoast-dwellingpeopleliving

inself-governing,autonomoustowns(nu'u)linkedby

politi-cal andceremonial alliances Households center onthe

sa-cred centralplace malea) ofeach nu'u where theranking

high chief's assembly house is also situated Town

popula-tionsrangebetween 300 and 1,200 persons and average 450

to 600persons Inthe middle of the last century,town

popu-lationsaveraged 200 to 500 persons However, acensustaken

oftwenty-twotowns inthedistrictof Aana, Western Upolu,

Manono,and Apolimain 1867showsthattownpopulations

rangedbetween40and310personsonly, themeanbeing164

persons Inthe nineteenthcentury, therewere afew inland

settlements, too In recent years,there hasbeenatendencyto

give up settlements along the coast and to shift towns to

newlybuiltroads farther inland

EconomySubsistence and Commercial Activities. The Samoans

are horticulturalists, raising tubers (taro and yams) on a

swidden basis.Theyalso growbananas,breadfruit,and

coco-nuts and supplementtheir dietthrough fishing They raise

chickens andpigs, too, but porkisreservedas aspecialfood

forceremonial occasions Hunting for runaway pigs is still

practiced with the help ofdogs,but it'sprobablydonemore

forsport than forfood Pigeon snaring alsoformerly servedas

anentertainment and as a sporting event Terracing and

irri-gation are notpracticed Therearesmall house gardens for

raising staple foods in the back ofthe households, but the

main taro gardens often lie 3-4 kilometers farther inland

Theprimarycultigens are taro andbreadfruit Contact with

Europeans resulted in the additionofnew sorts ofbananas

andvegetables, whichare grown todaymainlyby the small

Chinesepopulation for consumption and sale Many Samoan

familiesearnasmallincomebysellingcoconuts totheWest

ern Samoan Trust Estate Corporation,which does the

pro-cessing.There are many smallfamily businesses, shops, andguest houses, the majority of them in Apia, the capital ofWestern Samoa Inmany localcommunities there is a smallshop where locals can buy a limited range of products, many

ofthemimported

Industrial Arts Aboriginal crafts included the making ofbark cloth, house building, boat building, and tattooing.House builders, boatbuilders, and tattooers were organized

in guilds They met the demands of prestige consumption,

sincesmallboats and houses were and are built by the malemembers of each household Mat weaving is practiced by

women

Trade Therewasonlya limited amount ofinterregional

tradeinprecontact times.Samoan finemats ('ie toga) wereexchanged for parrots and red parrot feathers from Tongaand sometimes from Fiji Intraregional trade, too, was lim-ited Someregions and places were noted fortheirproducts,such as nets, which are said to have been made mostly bytowns inthe interior Some places werenoted fortheirboats,adzes, and kava bowls After contact with the Europeans,trade ofcoconut products (oiland copra) was encouraged bythemissionaries, but it became aregular and important activ-

ityonly after the German firm of Godeffroy and SonfromHamburg founded a branch in Apia, Western Samoa, in

1857 TraderswerestationedinSamoa andonotherPacificislands, but there was also directtrading with the Samoans

In 1865, the firm established its first coconut plantations.Today, Western Samoa isdependent on the world market, itsthree most important export itemsbeing copra, cocoa, andbananas Western Samoan governments seek to promotetourism, and beerbrewing may develop into a profitable en-terprise, atleast for the regionalmarket

Division ofLabor Men do the more strenuous

agricul-turalwork,suchasclearingandplantingwithapointed

hard-wooddiggingstick,while women may weed and help in vestactivities Men are responsible forfishing beyond the reefand forcooking; they engageintoolmaking,house and boatbuilding, and ornament making Women look after thehousehold, raise the children, and plait mats and fans; for-merly they also made bark cloth They collect edible wildplants to supplement the diet and they forage in the lagoonand reef forsmall sea animals

har-Land Tenure Aboriginally, the widest social unit forlandownership was the community (nu'u) Its domain in-cluded allthe territory from thecentral mountain ridge to thereef The heads (matai) of the different descent groups('aiga) ofthe community wereentitled to claim blocks of landforthemselves and their dependents Overall authority overlands, however, wasvested inthe council of matai (fono),whose members could revoke ownership of the respective'aiga Individuals had the righttooccupy and cultivate theland of the descent group to which they belonged WhenWestern Samoa becameindependent, 80.5 percent of its ter-ritory was stillconsideredcustomaryland,administered out-side the statute law inaccordance with traditional principles

oftenure; 3.7 percent of the landwasfreehold; 11.3 percentwasgovernment land; and theWestern Samoan Trust EstateCorporationowned 4.5 percent AmericanSamoa, too, has

provisionsthatrestrictownership of landtoSamoans

288 Samoa

Kinship

KinGroupsandDescent In Samoathereareoverlapping

cognatic descent groups ('iiga) withan emphasis on

agna-tion.Each descent group hasalocalizedsection in a

commu-nitywhereitslandsandchiefly(matai)tidestraditionally

be-long;other members liveinothercommunitiesonthelands

of other'Miga Localized sectionshold and allocate land to

theirmembers, regulatemarriage, andcontrolconflictamong

members Between the descent groups thereexist

multifari-ous relationshipsthat are genealogically explained,forming

ramifieddescent structures,both at the community and at

thesupracommunitylevel Not all of thesestructuresare

de-scent groupsinthestrictanthropologicalsenseof theterm,

however, since in some ofthem only matai are members

Thesestructures are'iigainametaphoricalsenseonly They

play an important part in supracommuniry territorial

integration

KinshipTerminology KintermsfollowaHawaiian-type

system

Marriage and the Family

Marriage. Members ofthe father's andmother's descent

groups areforbidden as marriage partners, andcommunity

endogamyisalsodiscouraged Brideand groom should be of

similar rank Today, achurchwedding isan important and

costly affair, but many marriages are still customary ones,

manand wifelivingtogetherwith theirparents'consentafter

the appropriate exchange of goods Premarital virginity is

highlyvalued and agirl's moralcode prohibits sexual

rela-tionswitha manunlesssheisrecognizedashis wife

Custom-ary marriages among youngerpeople frequently end in

di-vorce,however,andthe partners may haveundergoneseveral

such marriagesbeforeeventuallycontracting a church

wed-ding Residence tends to be virilocal, but during the early

stages of married life a couple frequently resides with the

wife'sfamily Inpre-Christiantimes,polygynywaspracticed,

although probablyonlyby mataiofhigh rank

DomesticUnit The localizedsectionofadescentgroup,

forminganextendedfamilyandliving in agroupof houses

clustered arounda commonhearth,isthecustomary

domes-tic unit In modem times, the nuclear family has become

morefrequent

Inheritance Members of the descent groupretainrights

touseand control of customary landoccupiedand cultivated

bytheir'1iga,regardlessof wheretheylive Thesameapplies

to mataititles thatare not subjecttoanyautomatic

inheri-tancerule.Afamilycouncil willdecidetoconferavacanttide

upon a member-usually male-whom theyconsidertobe

the best choice.Especially withregardtohightitles,however,

agnatic succession ispreferred

Socialization Startingatabout 1 2 years of age, children

become subject to an education Europeans would label as

'authoritarian."Theyareexpectedtoobeytheir parents and

elders at once, without hesitation and withoutasking

ques-tions.Overtand direct expressions ofhostilityand aggression

arediscouraged, but musu, thestateofsullenunwillingnessto

comply with orders,isaculturallytoleratedoutlet Much of

the actual education work takes place in the peer groups

where older brothers andespeciallysisters aremade

responsi-ble for thebehaviorof their youngersiblings Formal

educa-don in schoolsis considered essential for thewell-being oftheentirefamilytodayand parentsusuallyencourage some oftheir children to remain inhigh school

Sociopolitical Organization

SocialOrganization Rank goeswith age and the position

amataitideholds within the complicated tide structure Anolder sister rankshigher than her brother The descendants of

a sisterstill enjoyaspecial respectedstatuswithin thedescent

group Christianity has emphasized the status ofthe wife,

however,and the sister's positionis not aspronounced today

as it once was.Withinmostdescentgroups,there are two sets

of matai: aristocrats (ali'i), who embodythegroup's dignity;andorators(tulafale),whotakea moreofficialrole whenthey

speakon behalfof the ali'i at certain formal public events.Eachmataisupervisesand looksafterthefamilyunder his im.mediate control and is responsible for it vis-a-vis thecommunity

Political Organization. Communities (nu'u) are cally independentbut are organized into districts and subdis-

politi-trictsfor ceremonial purposes Aboriginally, war, too, was a

supracommunityconcern.Ceremonies on asupracommunitylevel often focus onthe life-crisis rites of certain very high-

ranking titleholders, the tama-a-'diga, which are not to beconfused with matai and should rather be called kings For-malpolitical control within the community is exercised by thecouncil of matai(fono)with the 'aumaga (the untitled men'sorganization) serving asexecutive body Women's commit-tees existtoday in all communities, playing an important role

in community affairs as an unofficial armof local

govern-ment Theyreplace orcomplementthe aualuma, the groupmade up of the sisters and daughters of the community,which played an important ceremonial role in former times.Social Control Informal social control is exercisedthrough gossip and was formerly aided by the open Samoanhouses,which preventedprivacy Formalcontrol is exercisedthrough the fono,whichretains the right toexpel individuals

and, in rare cases,entire '&igafrom the communityand itslands

Conflict In aboriginal times and throughout the

nine-teenth century,conflicts overtitles and lands often resulted

in wars Such cases are adjudicated today by special lawcourts.Competitiveness-such as evidenced in, for instance,the zeal ofuntitled men to distinguish themselves as good ser-vants to theirmatai, in oratory, in donations to the church,etc.-adds areas ofconflict to social life

Religion and Expressive Culture

Religious Belief Today, Samoans aredevout Christians,following diverse Protestant denominations, as well as theRoman Catholic church Pre-Christian beliefs in ancestor-spirits (aitu) arestill widespread, but they are not openly con-fessedvis-a-vis Europeans Aitu formerly were family gods,andthey have retained their character as locally associatedandkinship-bounddeified ancestors.There was a belief in asupreme being,Tangaloa, but Samoa probably neverdevel-

opedanational cultlike thatoftheSocietyIslands or Hawaii.Tangaloa was a deus otiosuswho withdrew after having causedthe emergenceof the islands and set in motion the process

San Cristobal 289

which led totheevolutionof natural phenomenaand,

ulti-mately, humans.Aitu weretheactivenuminousbeingswho

interfereddirectlyineverydaylife

Reliio Practitiones In aboriginal times, eachmatai

was areligious practitionerresponsiblefor theworshipof the

familyaitu.Somemataiplayedparamountrolesasoraclesof

particular aituofsupralocalimportance Today,matai

con-tinuetoleadfamilyprayers(tothe ChristianGod),but there

arealsonativepastors,trainedinlocaltheologicalseminaries,

and priests who conduct formal churchservices

Ceremonies Many native ceremoniesfocus onlife-cycle

rites.Attendanceisanexpressionof therankof the persons

involved The kavaceremony, inwhichabeverageprepared

fromthe'avaroot(Pipermethysticum)wasconsumedin

cere-monialstyle,wasperformedtohonor important guests andto

mark important social events, suchasthe deliberationsofthe

fono

Art Oratory,dancing,singing,andtattooingcontinue to

be meansofaesthetic expression.Today, hymnsfor church

services areanimportantoutletfor expressive needs.The

tra-ditional art ofbark-cloth (siapo) makingand printingisnot

verywidespread today

Medicne Inaboriginaltimes,diseasewassupposedtobe

caused by the wrath ofsomeparticularaitu.Treatmentwas

sought with the aid of the special matai, Tauliitu (whose

name means'anchor oftheAitu") Theywereaskedto

inter-cede with the aitutheyrepresented.Variousherbs andplants

were administered and massage was alsoapplied

Deathand Afterlife Samoansbelieveinthedichotomous

character of human nature The separation of the 'soul"

(agaga) and body (tino) is tantamount todeath That the

agiga continued tolive after deathasan aitu wasthe focal

topic of the preChristian religion There are various

ac-countsof anafterworld,butnouniform picture ofitsnature

canbegleanedfrom the historical andethnographicsources

See also Ontong Java, Rotuma, Tokelau, Tonga

Biblography

Cain, Horst (1979) Aitu Eine Untersuchung zur

Autoch-thonen Religion der Samoaner Wiesbaden: Franz Steiner

Verlag

Finney,Joseph C (1973) "The Meaning of theName

Sa-moa." Journal of the Polynesian Society 82:301-303

Gilson, R P (1970) Samoa 1830 to 1900 The Politics ofa

Multi-Cultural Community Melbourne: Oxford University

Press

Holmes, Lowell D (1974) SamoanVillage. CaseStudiesin

Cultural Anthropology New York: Holt, Rinehart &

Winston

ETHNONYM: MakiraFour groupstotaling about 10,000individuals live on thehigh volcanic islandofMakira orSanCristobaL the Arosi,Bauro, Kahua,and Tawarafa SanCristobalislocated inthesoutheastern Solomon Islands at approximately 100 S and160°E.Thelanguages ofthe island are classified in theEast-

ernOceanicGroupofthe Oceanic Branch of Austronesian

languages.Mostsettlementsare on the coast, though they tend inlandseveral thousand feet Thesettlementsare organ-

ex-izedintohamlets consisting of a cluster of houses irregularlysituated around a central place Houses are of pole andthatch, and they are often decorated with paintings andstatues

Thedietisbasedoncoconuts, which arethespecialty ofthe coastal areas, and root crops (mainly yams and taro),which are the specialtyof theinland areas Sago is alsohatr

vestedalongthe coastalmarshes Other trees of importancearebreadfruit,Canariumalmond, and various fruit trees.Do-mesticatedpigsandhuntingarecomplemented byfishing inthe deep sea (for bonito) and along the shore The seasonalexploitation of the sea worm is an important source ofprotein Land is owned by the resident extended family.Canoe building was formerly a highly specialized and re-spected craft In the past, shell money, consisting of shellrings andstrings ofshell-diskbeads, was used in interislandtrading expeditions

The most important kin groups are bilateral extendedfamilies Bride-price payments are required and are generally

collectedfromthemembersofaman's entire domestic group.Residence ispatrilocal,descent is patrilineal, and polygyny iscommon among the wealthier men The primary domesticgroupisabilateralextended family- these families are organ-izedinto larger patrilineal descent groups, each of which tra-ditionally hadahereditaryline of chiefs Big-men also exist

on SanCristobal, andthey are generally the wealthiest andmostinfluential men in the community

In the past, human sacrifice was practiced to propitiatethe ancestors Mana,orsupernatural power, is greatly reveredand believed to be possessed by certain persons, ghosts, andcertainobjects Ancestorworship is a major part of theindig-

enousreligion,withghosts of ancestors considered to be themost importantsupernaturals

SeealsoGuadalcanal, Malaita

290 Santa Cruz

ETHNONYM:Nend6

Orientation

Identification The Santa Cruz IslandersareMelanesians

whoare in most respectsfully integrated,as a constituent

eth-nicsociety, intothe nationalpoliticaland economic system

of the Solomon Islands

Location Santa Cruz Island, or Nend6 (Nidu, Ndeni,

Nende,Nitende; 10045'S, 166000'E)isthelargestisland of

anarchipelago,called the SantaCruzIslands Nend5consists

ofa mountainous spine of volcanicrock, surroundedby

ex-tensive terracesof upliftedreef limestones From Octoberto

Maythe climateisdominatedbythe Australian-Asian

mon-soon system;fromJunethrough September,the southeastern

tradewindsystem prevails

Demography Inthe late nineteenth andearlytwentieth

centuryNend5 and theother Santa CGuz Islands suffered

se-veredepopulation, due tointroduced diseases The

popula-tionofNend5 between 1929 and 1931 isestimatedtohave

been about1,800persons,whichwasprobablyhalfthe

prede-populationnumber In 1960 thepopulation (by census)was

2,516;by 1970ithad increasedto3,126,andin1976ithad

reached 4,620, of which 273 were Polynesian-speaking

immigrants.

Linguistic Affiliation Santa Cruz Islanders speak three

closelyrelated Non-Austronesianlanguages,ofwhichtwo are

single-dialect languages andone is adialect chain A small

minority of Polynesian speakers have recently migrated to

Nend6 from islandsimmediately to the north

History and Cultural Relations

Archaeological researchreveals thatNend5wasinhabitedby

people with theLapita cultureasearlyas1200B.c.European

contactcommencedin AD. 1595 with the arrival of Alvaro de

Mendafia's second expedition. This Mendafia expedition,

whichgavethe island thename"SantaCruz," triedto

estab-lish a colony at Graciosa Bay, Nend6, but the settlement

failed because of poor relations with the inhabitants,

dis-eases,and the death of Mendaiia.For thenext250yearsthe

SantaCruz Islands wereseldom visitedby European ships,

but during the last decadesof thenineteenthcentury

Euro-pean contacts increased when the Anglican mission ship

Southern Crossbeganmakingregular pastoral calls thereand

when blackbirders started abducting men from the group.

During this period relationshipswith Europeans were poor

and therewereviolent incidents In 1898theSantaCruz

Is-lands were incorporated into the British Solomon Islands

Protectorate, but effective administration ofthem did not

commenceuntil the1920s and the "PaxBritannica"was not

fully establishedonNend6foranother decade Colonial

de-velopment proceededveryslowly during the1930sand

prose-lytizing by the Anglicanswaslargelyineffectual.Suddenly,in

1942, British authority was withdrawn whenJapanese

mili-tary forces invaded the Solomon Islands TheJapanese did

not occupythe Santa CruzIslands,butduringthefightingto

retake the Solomon Islands, therewere skirmishes andone

great battle in the area between Japanese and U.S navalforces.Following hostilities,someSanta CruzIslanderswere

recruitedbythe United StatestoworkatmilitarybasesintheCentral SolomonIslands,and whattheysawtherewas areve-lation AfterWorldWar 11 the British returned with anin-

creasinglyvigoroussocialdevelopment policy Likewise, the

Anglicanmission camebackwithdeterminationtocomplete

the conversion ofthe Santa Cruz people During the next

twenty years,nativecouncils,nativecourts,health and cal programs, churches, andlocal schoolswere established

medi-An administrative center with an airfield was build at

Graciosa Bay,Nend8, just before political independence was

granted the Solomon Islands in 1978 The Santa Cruz

Is-lands (including rikopia and Anuta) now constitute theprovince called Temotu, with its administrative center onNend5.The culture of Nend6 extends northward, with minor

ecological adaptations, to the Reef Islands and Taumako.Thelanguageof the MainReefIslandsisNon-Austronesianand relatedtothe languagesofNend6, but thelanguageofthe Outer ReefIslands (Nifiloli, Pileni, Nukapu, Nupani,

Matema) and Taumako is Polynesian The cultures ofUtupuaand Vanikorointhesouth,whileresemblingNend5culturein somerespects, are sufficientlydifferent toconsti-

tute a southern subcultural area Also, the languages ofUpupuaandVanikoro (threeoneach island) are Austrone

sian Until the 1930s, all the Santa Cruz Islands were volved in acomplex network of commercial trade, carried on

in-by largesailing canoes that cruised the entire archipelago andsometimesbeyond There were occasional contacts outsidethe Santa Cruz Islands withTikopia tothe east, the Torresand BanksIslands (part of Vanuatu) to the south, and withSantaAna/Catalina and San Cristobal(SolomonIslands) to

the west

Settlements

Allthepeople of Nend5 liveincompactvillageswith

popula-tions thatusually numberless than 200 persons Most

vil-lagesare nowlocated alongthe coast, but before the severedepopulation and imposition of colonial rule, settlementsweresmallerandmoredispersed, and many were located atinland sites Until peacewasestablished, each village wassur-rounded by a protective stone wall, and many dwellingswithin settlements werealsowalled

Economy

Subsistence andCommercialActivities AllNend6munities areintensely agricultural, employing a combination

com-of swidden(bush fallow orslash-and-burn) cultivation of

gar-densandarboriculture The most important traditional cropsare yams,taro, sweet potatoes, bananas, breadfruit, coconuts,andCanarium almonds.There is also a large variety ofsec-

ondary crops, some of which are post-European

introduc-tions Both fishing and marine collecting are important, andmuch attention is given to raising pigs.There is some hunting(of feral pigs andfowl, bats, and birds) and gathering of forestproducts Since 1960, much effort has been directed towardincreasing coconutplantings for copra, which is also sold forcash

Industrial Arts The most distinctive Nend6

manufac-tures wereoutrigger canoes,loom-wovenfabrics of banana

fi-Santa Cruz 291

bers, barkcloth, a currencymade of fibers and redfeathers,

and personal ornaments made from a variety of materials

Since World WarII the manufacture of local products has

rapidly declined,asgoods importedfrom the industrialworld,

and cash to purchase them, have become increasingly

available

Trade As mentioned, the most conspicuous feature of

traditionalNend6economy was intra-and interislandtrade,

inwhich profit and theamassingofwealthwerethemainob,

jectives.Since the trade concerned the distributon oflocally

produced commodities, it has all but disappeared as

im-ported, industrially produced goods have displaced local

products Feathercurrency, the former medium ofexchange

fortrade, has alsonearlydisappeared

Divisionof Labor Women domostof thegardeningand

collecting of reef products; men look after orchards, fish,

hunt,and collectintheforests; both sexestendpigs. Until

the 1930s therewasmuch specializationoflabor withrespect

totheproductionof commodities andperformanceof skilled

services. Every mature man was expected to have an

eco-nomicspecialty, by means ofwhich he earned wealth that

couldbe accumulated andstoredinfeathercurrency.Women

could alsohave economicspecialties.Suchspecializationhas

all butdisappeared Men leave theislandto workforwages

and process copra for cash

Land Tenure Land that has beenimprovedand used

'be-longs" to the user. Suchuse rights can be loaned, rented,

given away,and transmittedby inheritance,butonly recently

couldtheybe sold for monetary gain to another individual

Landrights thathavelapsedbyfailureto exercisethemrevert

to corporateownership byadistrict With districtconsent, an

individual may convert corporate ownership ofdesignated

plotstoexclusivepersonaluse rights byimproving or using

the land Rightsover reefsandlagoons arecorporatelyheld

by districts; men's associations control thecanoe passages

thatserve their club houses

KinshipKin Groups and Descent There are three kinds ofkin

groups onNend6: domesticgroups;dispersed descentgroups

(sibs); and men's associations. Amen's association canbe

startedbyanyadultmanwho wishestoformonefor hissons

and, often, his brothers and their sons. Some associations

flourish andgrow; somedonot. Intime,thosethat flourish

will include distantagnates,affines,andeven nonkin,butthe

consanguineal ideologyremains. OvermostofNend5,

indi-vidualsare affiliated with nonlocalized, exogamous, usually

totemic,matrilineal descentgroups (sibs) Insome areassibs

are arranged into matrimoieties. In several districts around

GraciosaBay,thedescent principleispatrilineal,but

individ-uals areoftenunsure oftheiraffiliations Inonedistricton

the southcoastdescentis notrecognized,althoughit is

be-lieved that matrilinywasformerly the rule

Kinship Terminology Kin terms vary between special

versions ofHawaiian and Iroquois types All terminologies

distinguish the relation of mother's brothertosister's child

from other avuncular relationships In some localities the

termfor'sister" (as usedbyamalespeaker) isappliedto

fa-ther's sister and father's father's sister with the logical

Marriage and FamilyMarriage Traditionally, all first cousins were marragea-ble, marriages wereusuallymonogamous, andalarge bride-price was, and still is, required. Nenda men often import

wivesfrom the ReefIslands, especiallyfrom the poorer

Poly-nesian-spealdng communitiesthere Sororal and nonsororalpolygyny were permitted; polygynousunionsrarely involvedmore thantwo wives Polygyny is not practiced now For-

merly, too, there was a pattern of collective concubinage,

which was alsoaformof femaleslavery,inwhicha group of

menjointlypurchaseda woman as a sexpartnerand tute.Theprotectorate governmentbannedthisconcubinagepatterninthe late 1920s Initialpostmaritalresidenceisusu-allyviripatrilocal,onlyoccasionallyuxorimatrilocal,but afterchildrenarebornresidence often becomes neolocal Maritalseparationsarefrequent;divorcehasalwaysbeendifficult,ex-cept incasesofsevere abuse andcontinuedadultery.Domestic Unit The most commondomestic group is anuclearfamily,oftenaugmented by elder dependentrelatives

prosti-ofeitherthehusbandorwife.Smallpatrilocal extended liesexist for a short period when a son marries.joint families,consistingof thedomesticunitsofbrothersand/or close maleagnates, are common Women ofthese joint families assisteachother with their domestic responsibilities

fami-Inheritance Garden and orchard plots are usually not

partible,and theycanbepassedon toeither male orfemaleheirs,butmostreal property goes tomales Personal property,especially heirlooms and valuables, are inherited along genderlines: mothers to daughters, fathers to sons

Socialization Boys andgirls are socialized separately andquite differently From an early age, girls are rigorouslytrained attheirmother'ssideto mastergardening anddomes-

ticskillsas soon astheycan At ayoung ageboysmoveawayfrom theirdwellings and into dormitories or men's associa-

tionhouses, and an avoidance of their sisters and other

fe-malesisinvoked.Thereare no initiationritesfor either sex,but at marriage women undergo a formal transition from

minor to adult socialstatus

Sociopolitical Organization

SocialO0ganization. Formerly, there was amarked socialdichotomy and separation between men's and women'sspheres of life Women were focused on their gardens andhouseholds, men on their specializedskillsand men'sassocia-

tions.Underattack from mission and government alike, thisdivisionby gender, which amounted to a generalized avoid-

ance,has greatlylessened over the past few decades.Political Organizaton. Traditionally, the basic politicalunitwas the set of households (one to twenty or more) whosemale headsbelonged to the same men's association One ormore men's associations, in a looseconfederation, formed avillage, and most villages, over time, became incorporated totheextent that they controlled and defended a boundedterrn

tory.Such was the corporate district Most districts were

hos-tile to each other, butalliances between men's associations ofdifferent districts made it possible for men to cross theboundaries Trade moved along these lines of men'sassocia-

tionalliances,eachassociationagreeing topurchase and

re-distribute locally all the goods offered by an allied

associa-292 Santa Cruz,

tion.Therewere nopoliticaloffices Each men'sassociation

was governed, autocratically, by its most influential senior

men (big-men); district policies and interdistrict relations

werehandled byinformalgroupsofseniormen.Personal

ri-valriesamong senior men werecommon,and this constant

tensionledtodivisiveness andfightingateachpoliticallevel

SocialControland Conflict Interpersonalsocial control

isgreatlyenforcedby fearsof sorcery and malewitchcraft

Be-fore peace was established, the ultimate secular coercive

threatwasfightingwith bows and arrows;interpersonal

vio-lenceand feudswerecommonplace.Feudscould be endedby

offeringtheunavengedsideavictimtokill Seriousdisputes

couldescalateinto warsbetweendistricts,butlarge-scale

vio-lencecould be avoidedbyresortingtocompetitiveexchanges

that were continueduntiloneside wentbankrupt.

Religion and Expressive Culture

Religious BEelief The most significant beliefs are that

Nend6 culturewasgivenby supernatural beings;thesebeings

continue to control humanevents for good andbad; each

adultmale, andsomewomen,musthaveapersonal

supernat-uraltutelarytoprotect and promote hisorhergeneral

wel-fare However,notalltutelariesareequal;somehavemore

in-fluence over events than others Individuals who have

attentivetutelaries willsucceed; thosewho succeed the most

have the mostpowerfultutelaries Misfortuneisbelievedto

be causedby supernaturalinfluences Initially,Christian

be-liefs were grafted onto these traditional bebe-liefs, sothat God

wasthe mostpowerfuloftutelarydeities

Religkou Practitioners The only religious practitioners

are female mediums who are called upontodetermine the

causes of misfortune Otherwise, each adult performs or

sponsors propitiatory rites to his or her tutelarydeity.

Ceremonies Thepreeminentceremonyis anextended

se-ties, lasting several years, of invitational feasts and dances

sponsoredbyasmallgroupofmen topropitiatetheirtutelary

deities As wellas being costly religious rituals, these were,

and still are, the mostenjoyedsocialevents,andtheyarethe

occasionsatwhichmuch of Nend5 aesthetic and expressive

cultureisdisplayed.Theseceremonies arestillcelebrated,but

inabbreviated forms

Arts Themostdistinctiveartsincludereligioussculpture,

lyric poetry, costumery and dramatizations, precision

danc-ing, andpersonalornamentation.This ornamentation is

as-sociatedwithhierarchicalposition amongseniorpersons;the

otherartsaremostly associatedwith propitiatingtutelary

dei-ties.Manytraditionalartshave declinedordisappearedin

re-centdecades

Medicine For minorandacutedisorders there are

special-ized practitioners andnonreligiousremedies, but treatments

ofsevereand chronic illnessesmustbeaccomplishedthrough

tutelary deities

Deathand Afterlife Forsociallyunimportant persons,

fu-neralsareperfunctory, but for personagestheycan bemajor

observances, includingextended viewing of the corpse and a

postburial feast Formerly, burialwas inthe earthen floor of

thedeceased'sdwelling, butit is nowdoneincemeteries

Tra-ditional ideas about the aferlife are notelaborate: the soul

goestothewesternextremityofNend6 whereitresides withother souls and supernaturals

Seealso Anuta

Davenport, William H (1985) "A Miniature Figure fromSanta Cruz Island." Bulletin no 25 of the Mus&e Barbier-Muller Geneva

Koch, Gerd (1971) Materielle Kultur der Santa Cruz-lseln.Berlin: Museum furV51kerkunde

their primordial residential site

Location The people live in the Valley of the PumuneRiver, atributary of the Kwama River, and along the wind-ward slopes of a low coastal range to the north, located on theHuon Peninsula, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea,around 6°Sand 147° E, mainly at altitudes of 900 to 1,800meters They arebounded tothe east and west by the morenumerous KombaandTimbe peoples Together these threepeoples are separatedfromthe other mountain peoples of theHuon Peninsula by a natural barrier formed by the 3,000-3,900-meterSaruwaged and Cromwell ranges

Demography The 1980census states that 3,600 personsspeak the Northern Selepet dialect and 2,700 speak theSouthern The mountain population is relatively dense: 19.6persons per squarekilometer as compared to a national aver-age of 4.6

linguisticAffiliation The language is a member of theWestern Huon Family, Finisterre-Huon Stock, Trans-NewGuinea Phylum of Papuanlanguages It has two major dia-lects: the Northern, spoken along the coastal slopes and the

Selepet 293

Lower Pumune Valley; and the Southern, spoken in the

Upper PumuneValley

History and Cultural Relations

Thecentral location of the Selepet amongthemountain

peo-pleshasbeenvery fortuitous TheSelepetpeoplehavecon,

tinuallybenefited by theexpatriates'choosingtheir location

as the point of entry for developingthe interior Lutheran

missionaries opened a station on Selepetland overlooking

the coast in 1928.Theyalso builtaschool,ahospital, anda

trade store, andtheyconnected thesebyroad tothe coast,

thereby creating a route forchanneling Europeangoods to

the interior peoples Fortuitously, there already existed a

tradesystemstretchingthroughouttheHuonPeninsula,and

theSelepet people werepivotalto it.Thusthey gaineda

com-mercial advantage over all the other peoples After World

War 11 theAustralianadministration establisheda station on

the coast and later moved it near the mission station In

1960, in order to facilitate theadministrationof the interior

peoples,the government builtacentralairstrip,asubdistrict

office, an agricultural station, and an Englishlanguageschool

atKabwum in the heart of the Selepet country An expatriate

missionary and trade stores followed As roads were built

from Kabwum into theadjacentvalleys, theSelepetpeople

benefitedbecause theycouldmorereadilymarkettheircoffee

beans, purchaseexpatriate goods, andsupplythegrowing

ex-patriatecommunitywith producethancouldtheneighboring

peoples The netresult, however,wasthatbythe 1970s they

weregenerallycharacterized aslethargicbecausetheydid not

have towork as hard as otherpeoplestogainprosperity Such

lethargy, however,isconsistentwith theirbeliefthatfertility

andprosperity are gained byaskingforablessingfrom one's

ancestors, rather thanby strenuous personal effort

Settlements

Inaboriginal times the peoplelivedindusters of related

ham-lets,each hamlettypicallyconsisting of apatrilineal dan

cen-tered on a men's house Whenthe missionaries arrivedthey

encouraged the people to build central villages revolving

aroundchurches.TheAustralian administrationalso

encour-aged the building ofcentral villages, butsubsequent

over-crowding led to adeclineinvillagehygienethatcontributed

to the spreadofdisease It alsoledto ashortage of arable land

near thevillages with resultantintravillage feudingand the

destruction ofgardens Life in thevillagebecameundesirable,

andlargenumbersofpeoplenowlive in shelters in their

gar-densand returntothevillagesprimarilyto meetwith

admin-istrative officers or to attend church Some larger villages

havesubdivided,andsomeleaders have talkedofrelocating

whole villages across the coastalridgeinthe unclaimed

terri-toryoverlookingthe coast Since the 1960s, 60 percent of the

population have livedin sevenvillageswithinanhour's walk

of Kabwum

EconomySubsistence and Commercial Activities The people

practicehorticulture, withthe maincropsbeingvarietiesof

sweetpotatoes,taro,yams,andpandanus Theyalsogrow

co-conutpalmsand sago near thecoast.Wildpigs and wallabies

are hunted in the coastalgrasslandsandsmallermarsupialsin

themountain forests.Pighusbandryhasbeenpracticedfromaboriginal times, and morerecentlythemissionarieshavein-troduced cattle They also introduced many European vegeta-blesandother tropical fruits, so that today the peoplesupple-

ment their diet with maize, cabbages, European potatoes,tomatoes, pineapples, oranges, and papayas The main cashcrops are copra along the coast and coffee at the higheraltitudes

Industrial Arts There never has been aspecialization of

labor,sothat every personcanproduce the necessities of lifefrom local resources,though with differing degrees of skilland success Byknockingout all but thelast node in a length

ofbamboothey make containers for carrying water ortubesforbaking food in the open fire Men use adzes to makewoodenbasins and they carve bows fromblack palm Lengths

of wild cane are usedfor arrow shafts, and points are craftedfrombamboo, black palm, or animal bones The lack of feath-ers and ofweighted arrow points contributes to poor accu-racy,but points made ofbone arereputed to be more accuratebecausethebones ofthequarryattractthebone arrow point.Women weavestringbags from twine rolled fromhemp, makeskirts from a long-bladed indigenous grass, and plait arm-bands from rattan

Trade TheSelepet peoplewere pivotalto thetrade routes

connecting the hinterland and coastal peoples In exchangefor tobacco, taro, bows and arrows, dogs, and pigs, they re-ceived fish, coconuts, seashells, lime, wooden bowls, claypots, obsidian, and boars' tusks

Division of Labor Traditionally, members of each sexmanufacturedthe artifacts concerned with their roles Menmade the loincloths andcloaks of armorfrom the bark of anindigenous tree, items for hunting and warfare, lime gourds,and spatulas Women made grass skirts and string bags.Today, the men clear the land and dig the soil, and thewomenbreakup theclodsof soil andpreparethe garden forplanting Men build the garden fences to keep out the wildpigs and generally care for the domestic pigs and cattle.Womendraw waterand carry anything that fits into a stringbag, such asinfants, piglets, and garden produce Men carrythe heavier items such asbeams, planks, andgrown pigs.LandTenure With the exception of land purchased bythegovernmentor the mission, all land is ownedby thepatri-

lineal clans If a man's clanlacks sufficientarable land,heandhis wife oftenprepare their gardens on land belonging toher clan

Kinship

KinGroupsandDescent Selepet villages consist of one

or more exogamous, patrilineal clans centered on men'shouses and organized into localized, agamous phratries.When membership increases, the members subdivide alonglineage or sublineage lines and build a new house The men'shouses werethe context for theculticreligious activities, andwomen wereforbiddenentry.AlthoughChristianizationhastransferred thereligious activities to the church, women still

do not entermen's houses.Loyaltyisprimarily to one's ownlineage, then to the other lineages (if any) affiliated with thesame men'shouse, and last to thephratry Phratryloyaltyismanifested by the exclusive patronage of the businesses ofone's own phratry Members of a phratry combine their re-