DOCSLIB.ORG

02 Whole.Pdf (8.555Mb)

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
02 Whole.Pdf (8.555Mb) Copyright is owned by the Author of the thesis. Permission is given for a copy to be downloaded by an individual for the purpose of research and private study only. The thesis may not be reproduced elsewhere without the permission of the Author. Land and lineage: the articulation of social and physical space in an atoll village A thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology at Massey University Peter Stanton King 1996 / / ii Abstract This thesis examines relationships between the social and physical environments of a village on Butaritari atoll in Kiribati. The system of ambilineal descent and land inheritance obtaining there results in complex networks of genealogical relationships which affect most aspects of social life, including land rights. While previous studies conducted in Kiribati have recognised the intimate connection between genealogy and land rights, none has investigated its ramifications for the distribution of land rights within a community. In contrast, this study engages that question as a central concern using a framework which integrates Bourdieu's concepts of social space, field and habitus with post-neo-Darwinian ideas about the relationship between organism and environment. The social space was found to be primarily structured by relationships based upon genealogy and secondarily by age and gender, each of which constituted a field within the wider social space. The genealogical field was defined by a network of positions, each representing a particular descent group. In accordance with the prevailing system of ambilineal descent, residents could belong to more than one descent group and it was upon the resulting networks of relationships between -descent groups that the disposition of those groups within the genealogical field was defined. Because land-use rights were associated with genealogical connections the reconstruction of the genealogical field encompassing all of the village residents was a necessary precursor to discovering the distribution of those rights and the genealogical field was a central point of articulation between the social and physical spaces. The fields of age and gender relations provided further points of articulation between the social and physical spaces, the natures of which are examined through discussion of the material culture of the village and village and island politics. Despite a contemporary ideology of egalitarianism there were vestiges of a former hierarchy of social status groups. While the inter-group obligations, rights and responsibilities associated with this hierarchy were no longer practised, the association of contemporary residents with those social status groups bore a relationship to their position within the genealogical field and the amounts of land to which they shared rights. iii Preface and acknowledgements. This thesis examines the proposition that the aspects of reality commonly termed "society" and "nature" can be conceptualised as spaces, social space and physical space, and that the investigation of relationships between the social and natural realms can be approached in terms of the articulation of those two varieties of space. The proposition is examined through a case study focusing upona village on Butaritari atoll in Kiribati. The choice of Kiribati as a place to conduct fieldwork was based upon several factors. The first was associated with my having worked there for seven years between 1978 and 1985 during which time I became proficient in the I-Kiribati language and familiar with the culture and way of life of the people. The second factor was, by happy coincidence, the availability there of small relatively self-contained communities in which to conduct fieldwork. In choosing a village on Butaritari I took advantage of relationships developed over ten years earlier while working on Butaritari as an independent trader in local produce. Except where otherwise indicated, the data upon which this thesis is based was obtained by me from residents of Kuma. At the time this thesis was submitted, one academic paper based upon aspects of the research had been published (King, 1995). While conducting this study I have received assistance from many people and it is a pleasure to acknowledge their contributions. It is sometimes difficult to decide upon an appropriate order in which to make acknowledgements, but in this case I have decided to acknowledge iv individuals and groups in an order which reflects their position in relation to the social and physical spaces with which the study is concerned. First to receive acknowledgement, therefore, are the people of Kuma, without whose willingness to participate this study would never have been conducted. I am particularly grateful to the members of the Natirea Village Council in Kuma for their kind hospitality. From among the many Kuma people, who cannot be mentioned individually for want of space, I must single out Nan Ibutuna whose generous sharing of his knowledge of tradition and genealogy was invaluable. My easy and rapid entry into Kuma was facilitated by my oid friends Nan Binauea and the late Na Uan who accompanied me to Kuma from Butaritari on my first visit. Thanks are due to the Clerk of the Butaritari Land Court, for allowing me ready access to the Butaritari land records, to officials of the Land Office on Tarawa for allowing me access to records they held and to the staff of the Kiribati National Archives for their cooperation. I must thank the Government of Kiribati for granting me permission to conduct the study. For hospitality while on Tarawa I am grateful to my oid friends Mike Fudakowski and Robin White. This study has been made possible by material supportfrom several sources. Firstly I am grateful for the support of Professor Gregor McLennan and the Department of Sociology at Massey University in which I was given office space, employment for three years and financial assistance towards fieldwork. From Massey University I received a stipend and two grants from the Graduate Research Fund. The travel associated with fieldwork was made possible by a New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade International Assistance Research Grant. v Special thanks must go to my supervisors, Associate Professors Brian A. Ponter and Richard Harker for their encouragement and timely comment · on previous drafts of the material in this thesis. I am particularly grateful to Brian for his academic support and encouragement over a number of years. In addition, I must acknowledge the helpful suggestions made by Dr S. Ganesalingam as I investigated ways of representing the genealogical field. Professor Barrie Macdonald kindly allowed me to peruse copies which he had made of some original documents. Finally, to my wife, Mary and our children, Elizabeth and Jonathan, I express my gratitude for their support, encouragement and tolerance during the three years spent conducting this study and particularly during my six months absence while conducting fieldwork in Kiribati. Contents Abstract· ii Preface and acknowledgements iii Linguistic note xi Note on orthography xii Glossary. xiii Chapter One: Introduction 1 The physical context. 3 The social context. 14 Ambilineal descent and land tenure. 17 Conceptual issues. 24 Structure of the thesis. 26 Chapter Two: Theory and conceptualisation 28 Introduction 28 The theoretical object 33 Social practice 46 The field 55 Space 57 Ecology and practice: an integration 61 Summary. 65 Chapter Three: Methods and methodology 69 Introduction 69 Theoretical considerations 71 The delineation of fields, data and methods of collection 79 Reflections on methodology 93 Summary 95 Chapter Four: The genealogical field 98 Introduction 98 Constructing the genealogical field 105 Representing the genealogical space 113 The properties of the genealogical field 117 Socialising and borrowing 123 Rite of passage feasts 125 Babai pit pledging 135 Symbolic capital, movement and strategy in the genealogical field 141 The articulation of the genealogical field and physical space 143 Summary 145 Chapter Five: Land tenure 149 Introduction 149 Aspects of the pre-colonial system of land tenure 153 The development of the contemporary system of land tenure 158 The distribution of land use rights in contemporary Kuma 166 Summary 192 Chapter Six: The political fields 196 Introduction 196 Island politics 198 Village politics 205 Summary 237 Chapter Seven: Material culture 241 Introduction 241 Building 244 Food acquisition and production 257 Social isation 276 Summary 280 Chapter Eight: Conclusions 285 The articulation of social and physical space 285 In defence of method 297 Appendixes One. The distribution among households of land area and plots associated with the former social strata. 299 Two. Names and recorded places of residence of absentee landholders. 302 Three. Land distribution among descent groups. 303 Four. Distribution of land among members of a toka descent group. 305 Five. The distribution of land plots among the members of the largest descent group in Kuma. 306 Six. Household composition. 307 Seven. Distribution of Descent group members among households connected with Kuma's two village councils, Natirea and Taubatua. 310 Eight Descent group founders 314 Nine List of Butaritari land plots 317 Ten List of Kuma residents and households 332 Eleven Schematic map of Kuma land plots and households 342 Twelve Inter-descent group links 343 Bibliography 344 Tables 4.1. Th� numerical distribution of people among the zones of the genealogical space. 119 5. 1. The distribution of land among Kuma residents. 167 5.2. The distribution of land among households. 168 5.3. Recorded places of residence of absentee landholders. 171 5.4. Distribution of land, landholders and former social strata among the zones of the genealogical field. 174 5.5. Distribution of land plots among the descendants of Nei Bareia and Nan lakabo. 184 6.1. The frequency distribution of household membership numbers. 211 6.2. Types of household demographic composition and their frequency of occurrence. 212 6.3. The distribution of religious affiliation of residents by village section.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Hard Custom, Hard Dance : Social Organisation, (Un)
    PETRA M. AUTIO HARD CUSTOM, HARD DANCE SOCIAL ORGANISATION, (UN)DIFFERENTIATION AND NOTIONS OF POWER IN A TABITEUEAN COMMUNITY, SOUTHERN KIRIBATI Academic Dissertation to be publicly discussed, by due permission of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Helsinki, in Auditorium XII of the Main Building, April 17th, 2010, at 10 a.m. PETRA M. AUTIO HARD CUSTOM, HARD DANCE SOCIAL ORGANISATION, (UN)DIFFERENTIATION AND NOTIONS OF POWER IN A TABITEUEAN COMMUNITY, SOUTHERN KIRIBATI Research Series in Anthropology University of Helsinki Academic Dissertation Research Series in Anthropology University of Helsinki, Finland Distributed by Helsinki University Press P.O. Box 4 (Vuorikatu 3 A) 00014 University of Helsinki Finland fax +358-9-7010 2374 http://www.yliopistopaino.fi ISSN 1458-3186 ISBN 978-952-10-6150-9 (paperback) ISBN 978-952-10-6151-6 (PDF) Helsinki University Print Helsinki 2010 To my daughter Oili Raakel Maria CONTENTS List of illustrations vii Notes on names, citations and typographical conventions viii Acknowledgements ix 1. INTRODUCTION 1 Social Differentiation, Undifferentiation and Power in Southern Kiribati 3 Kiribati Introduced 11 The Kiribati Custom 15 Tabiteuea and Its Northern District 17 Tabiteuean Custom and Its Hardness 19 Kiribati Studied 21 Fieldwork and Research Questions 27 The Approach and Course of Chapters 29 2. THE ANCESTOR WITHOUT DESCENDANTS: DIFFERENTIATION AND NOTIONS OF POWER IN TABITEUEA 33 Chiefs Are Forbidden? Myth, history, concept 33 Story of the Story 36 The Story of Kourabi (Karakin Kourabi) 42 Lines of power: The Karongoa clan 46 The apical ancestor: Tematawarebwe the first-born 50 Children of many fathers 52 The twofold ancestor: Akau the younger brother 53 Karongoa clan and power 56 Dualities and Transformation of Power 58 Power in the (Un)making 62 Making men, making chiefs 64 Making women 68 Binding but Not Unbinding: Remaining tabu 76 Power in his things 77 Power in the bones 80 Summary: Differentiation and its cut-off point 83 3.
    [Show full text]
  • Financial Sector Development in the Pacific Developing Member Countries
    TABLE OF CONTENTS i FINANCIAL SECTOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE PACIFIC DEVELOPING MEMBER COUNTRIES Volume Two Country Reports Financial Sector Development in the Pacific Developing Member ii Countries: Country Reports © Asian Development Bank 2001 All rights reserved. First published in September 2001. This report was prepared by consultants for the Asian Development Bank. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in it do not necessarily represent the views of ADB or those of its member governments. The Asian Development Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in the publication and accepts no responsibility whatsoever for any consequences of their use. ISBN 971-561-392-6 Publication Stock No. 080401 Asian Development Bank P.O. Box 789, 0980 Manila Philippines Website: www.adb.org TABLE OF CONTENTS iii Abbreviations ADB Asian Development Bank ALTA Agricultural Landlord and Tenant Act, Fiji Islands AMU Asset Management Unit ANZ ANZ Bank, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group APRA Australian Prudential Regulation Authority ATHL Amalgamated Telecom Holdings (Fiji Islands) ATM Automatic Teller Machine AusAID Australian Agency for International Development BOK Bank of Kiribati BOT Bank of Tonga BPNG Bank of Papua New Guinea BSP Bank of South Pacific, Papua New Guinea CBS Central Bank of Samoa CBSI Central Bank of Solomon Islands CMDA Capital Market Development Authority (Fiji Islands) CNB Colonial National Bank (Fiji Islands) CPI Consumer Price Index CPSF Civil Service Pension Fund, Tonga DBK Development Bank of
    [Show full text]
  • The Human Relationship with Our Ocean Planet
    Commissioned by BLUE PAPER The Human Relationship with Our Ocean Planet LEAD AUTHORS Edward H. Allison, John Kurien and Yoshitaka Ota CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS: Dedi S. Adhuri, J. Maarten Bavinck, Andrés Cisneros-Montemayor, Michael Fabinyi, Svein Jentoft, Sallie Lau, Tabitha Grace Mallory, Ayodeji Olukoju, Ingrid van Putten, Natasha Stacey, Michelle Voyer and Nireka Weeratunge oceanpanel.org About the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy The High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy (Ocean Panel) is a unique initiative by 14 world leaders who are building momentum for a sustainable ocean economy in which effective protection, sustainable production and equitable prosperity go hand in hand. By enhancing humanity’s relationship with the ocean, bridging ocean health and wealth, working with diverse stakeholders and harnessing the latest knowledge, the Ocean Panel aims to facilitate a better, more resilient future for people and the planet. Established in September 2018, the Ocean Panel has been working with government, business, financial institutions, the science community and civil society to catalyse and scale bold, pragmatic solutions across policy, governance, technology and finance to ultimately develop an action agenda for transitioning to a sustainable ocean economy. Co-chaired by Norway and Palau, the Ocean Panel is the only ocean policy body made up of serving world leaders with the authority needed to trigger, amplify and accelerate action worldwide for ocean priorities. The Ocean Panel comprises members from Australia, Canada, Chile, Fiji, Ghana, Indonesia, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Namibia, Norway, Palau and Portugal and is supported by the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Ocean.
    [Show full text]
  • The Importance of the Pig in Pacific Island Culture
    The Importance of the Pig in Pacific Island Culture An annotated bibliography Secretariat of the Pacific Community 2007 Copyright ©Secretariat of the Pacific Community 2006 All rights for commercial / for profit reproduction or translation, in any form, reserved. SPC authorises the partial reproduction or translation of this material for scientific, educational or research purposes, provided that SPC and the source document are properly acknowledged. Permission to reproduce the document and/or translate in whole, in any form, whether for commercial / for profit or non-profit purposes, must be requested in writing. Original SPC artwork may not be altered or separately published without permission. Original text: English Secretariat of the Pacific Community Cataloguing-in-publication data Report on the Bibliography of on the importance of the pig in Pacific Island Culture Secretariat of the Pacific Community ISSN: 0377-452X 1. Veterinary medicine—Oceania—Congresses. 2. Livestock–Diseases—Oceania—Congresses. 3. Animal health—Oceania— Congresses. 4. Livestock productivity—Oceania—Congresses. I. Title. II. Secretariat of the Pacific Community. III. Series 636.089 AACR2 ISBN: 982-00-0136-6 BIBLIOGRAPHY Contents Methodology ...................................................................................................4 Melanesia .......................................................................................................5 Trobriand Islands .........................................................................................6 Vanuatu ........................................................................................................6
    [Show full text]
  • Teaiwa 1999 R.Pdf
    TIRAWATA IROUIA: RE-PRESENTING BANABAN mSTORlES A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI'I IN PARTIAL FULFilLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN PACIFIC ISLANDS STUDIES MAY 1999 By Katerina Martina Teaiwa Thesis Committee: Haunani-Kay Trask, Chairperson Terence Wesley-Smith David Hanlon We certify that we have read this thesis and that, in our opinion, it is satisfactory in scope and quality as a thesis for the degree ofMaster of Arts in Pacific Islands Studies. THESIS COM~lITTEE Chairperson ii © Copyright 1998 by Katerina Martina Teaiwa iii My research is dedicated to all my ancestors and guardians, but especially my Nei Kaka (grandmother), Takeua ofEita village on Tabiteuea. iv ACKNOWLEDGE~NTS I would like to say thank you and ''I love you THIS much" to my mum and dad John and Joan who've sacrificed so much for their daughters, my talented and hardworking sisters Maria and Tere, and ikatuni nephew Manoa. Au karabaraba to all the relatives and friends who agreed to talk to me "in English" in Suva, Rabi and Banaba, especially Nei Bure, Bauro,Banto (Tebannang), Kaukau, Maia, Bokanawa, Temarewe, Arariki, Taiman, Rengaua, Tebuke, Namaraki, Christine, Tokobea, Willie, Kewekewe, Tenikoria, Taukoriri, Terikano, Nawaia, Aren, Turenga c., Fatiaki, Turenga S., Temanarara, Baterea, Toma, Alipate, Ioane, Alofa, Tireta. Au kaitau naba to the whole Teaiwa kainga-Takaia, Teruamwi, Terianako, Rakomwa, Tebarutu, Eritai, Taita, Tekarika, Terereieta, Tamaria and their families. I am unable to directly quote the names ofthose I interviewed because of the ''Human Subjects" policy of the University of Hawai'i, something I had to negotiate with regret after I had already done my research.
    [Show full text]
  • Turtlephilia in the Pacific: an Integrated Comparative
    TURTLEPHILIA IN THE PACIFIC: AN INTEGRATED COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS FROM THE PERSPECTIVES OF BIOLOGICAL, CULTURAL, AND SPIRITUAL ECOLOGY IN A PARTICULAR CASE OF BIOPHILIA A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAIʻI AT MĀNOA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN ANTHROPOLOGY MAY 2013 By Regina Woodrom Luna Dissertation Committee: Leslie Sponsel, Chairperson Charles Birkeland Alice Dewey Sherwood Maynard Heather Young-Leslie Keywords: Sea Turtle, Traditional Laws, Cultural Take, Consumption, Tapu, Tabu, Kapu, Taboo, Oceania, Polynesia, Myth, Legend, Ritual, Creation Story Acknowledgments First and foremost, I would like to thank my wonderful husband, Jason Rudrud, without whose support -- both physically by picking up sea turtles with all their weight, and mentally by picking me up when it seemed as if my health issues would not allow me to finish – this dissertation would never have been completed. He is my hero and this is his accomplishment as much as it is mine. Next, I would be remiss without acknowledging the tremendous and never-ending support of my mother and chief editor, Mary Anne Woodrom; my dad and step-mother, Harold and Marilyn Woodrom; and my sister and assistant editor, Rebecca Reid and my brother-in-law, Lynn. My brother Roy Woodrom, whose generosity with his frequent flier miles sent me to ECOnference 2000, which set me on my path to study sea turtles as an undergraduate at Texas A&M. The rest of my extended family, especially my aunt Dr. Sandra Luna McCune for her editing assistance, also deserve acknowledgement for always being there for me regardless of the paths I choose to take.
    [Show full text]
  • 1 ABRAHAM, KATHLEEN Memoirs of a Medical Officer in Northern Nigeria 1957-1964 Carnforth: 2QT Ltd, 2010 Viii +248 Pp. ISBN: 97
    ABRAHAM, KATHLEEN Memoirs of a Medical Officer in Northern Nigeria 1957-1964 Carnforth: 2QT Ltd, 2010 viii +248 pp. ISBN: 978-190809802-3 (hbk.) ISBN: 978-1-90809-803-0 (pbk.) Reviewed in Overseas Pensioner 2011 101 58-59 (J.G.Harford) NIGERIA MEDICAL ADEBAYO, AUGUSTUS I Am Directed: The Lighter Side of the Civil Service Ibadan: Spectrum Books 1991 iii + 135 pp NIGERIA One Leg One Wing Ibadan: Spectrum Books 2001 134 pp ISBN 978-029140-7 The author was an administrator in the fifties' colonial government; a member of the Nigerian High Commission in London before independence; Permanent Secretary in various ministries in the sixties and seventies; and an academic and government advisor. NIGERIA White Man in Black Skin Ibadan: Spectrum Books 1981 xiii + 125 pp Memoirs of a Nigerian DO, with last 25 pages of reflections on public administration in colonial Nigeria. NIGERIA ADEBO, SIMEON OLA Our Unforgettable Years Lagos: Macmillan, Nigeria 1984 vi + 307 pp ISBN (hardback) 978-132737-5 (paperback) 9 781 32734 0 Adebo (1913-1994) entered Government service as an Administrative Officer cadet in 1942, rising to Assistant Financial Secretary in 1954 and Head of the Civil Service and Chief Secretary in 1961. This is the story of his first 49 years. NIGERIA . Our International Years Ibadan: Spectrum Books 1988 vi + 307 pp ISBN 987-246-025-7 The second half of Adebo’s autobiography describing his time as Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations 1962-1967 and as Executive Director of UNITAR 1968-1972. NIGERIA ADU, A L The Civil Service in Commonwealth Africa: Development and Transition London: George Allen & Unwin 1969 253 pp ISBN (hardback) 04-351-0256 (paperback) 04- 351026-4 Adu, a one-time Head of the Ghana Civil Service, became a Deputy Commonwealth Secretary-General.
    [Show full text]
  • The Role of the South Tarawa-Based Women's Interests Program in The
    Waves for Change: the role of the South Tarawa-based women’s interests program in the decolonisation process of the Gilbert Islands SAMANTHA ROSE BA (Hons), Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Submitted in full requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Division of Research and Commercialisation Queensland University of Technology Research Students Centre January 2014 i KEYWORDS History; women; decolonisation; Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony (GEIC); Kiribati; Tuvalu; women’s clubs; women’s interests; border-dweller; Church-based women’s clubs; women’s fellowships; indigenisation; gender; custom; Pacific women; community workers ii ABSTRACT Histories of the Republic of Kiribati (formerly the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony (GEIC)) have failed to fully acknowledge the pivotal role women played individually, as well as collectively through the phenomenon of women’s clubs, in preparing the Colony for independence. In the late 1950s, and in anticipation of the eventual decolonisation of Pacific territories, humanitarian developments within the South Pacific Commission (SPC) called for women's interests to be recognised on the regional Pacific agenda. The British Colonial administration, a founding member of the SPC, took active steps to implement a formalised women's interests program in the GEIC. Acknowledging that women were to have a legitimate role in the new independent nation, albeit restricted to that of the domestic sphere and at the village level, the British Colonial administration, under the leadership of Resident Commissioner VJ Andersen, initiated strategies aimed at building the capacity of organisational structures, personnel, training, networks and communication for community betterment. The strategy focussed on the informal adult education of village women through the creation of a national network of village-based women's clubs.
    [Show full text]
  • A Report on the Reassessment of Navigation Stones on Arorae, Kiribati
    People and Culture in Oceania, 35: 109-125, 2019 Communication A Report on the Reassessment of Navigation Stones on Arorae, Kiribati Akira Goto,* Hideyuki Ohnishi,** Tomo Ishimura*** 1. Introduction This report is a reassessment survey of “navigation stones” on Arorae Island, southern Kiribati. The survey was conducted by Akira Goto, Tomo Ishimura, and Hideyuki Ohnishi in August 2016. Kiribati (Gilbert Islands) lies on the southern border of Micronesia fringed with the Cook Islands, Samoan Islands (both belonging to Polynesia), and Fiji (Melanesia), and so the culture of Kiribati has been formed from the mixture of Micronesian traditions (e.g. Caroine Islands and Marshall Islands) with influences from these neighboring islands in the south and the east (Figure 1: left). The so-called “navigation stones” are a series of stones found on the northwestern tip of Arorae Island (Figure 1: right). H. E. Maude, who later became a famous historian, first became interested in these stones when he was working as a government officer in 1933. It was then that Figure 1. Left: Kiribati Right: Arorae Island (Red Circle Indicates the Researched Area) * School of Humanities, Nanzan University, Japan. [e-mail: [email protected]] ** Faculty of Contemporary Social Studies, Doshisha Women’s College for Liberal Arts, Japan. [e-mail: [email protected]] *** Tokyo Institute of Cultural Property, Japan. [e-mail: [email protected]] 110 A. Goto, H. Ohnishi, and T. Ishimura Figure 2. Area Where Navigation Stones Distribute on Northwestern Tip of Arorae he first made a rough sketch of these stones. Later, Captain E. V.
    [Show full text]
  • Atoll Research Bulletin No. 361 Batiri Kei Baravi: the Ethnobotany of Pacific Island Coastal Plants By
    ATOLL RESEARCH BULLETIN NO. 361 BATIRI KEI BARAVI: THE ETHNOBOTANY OF PACIFIC ISLAND COASTAL PLANTS BY R R THAMAN ISSUED BY NATIONAL MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A. MAY 1992 BATIRI KEI BARAVI: THE ETHNOBOTANY OF PACIFIC ISLAND COASTAL PLANTS1 R.R. ~harnan~ Jonathan Sauer (1961) remarked, in his Coastal Plant Geography of Mauritius, that the chance to study the coastal vegetation there was like being "admitted to a field worker's paradise" and stressed that "most tropical coasts are beautiful and exciting, particularly to people concerned with natural processes . .." The same can certainly be said for the tropical coasts of the often Edenized islands of the Pacific Ocean. Their "beauty and excitement" is considerably enhanced, however, when one is also "concerned" with cultural processes and ethnobotany, in particular, the immense cultural utility of coastal plants, a factor which strongly influences the distribution and character of plant communities. Because the use of plants, in particular, wild plants is so clouded in antiquity and so intimately associated with cultural origins, ethnobotanical research can shed considerable light on the the origin and nature of pre-European contact Pacific island societies. Ubiquitous coastal plant communities, because they are among the most useful, the most familiar to new settlers, and most subject to disturbance because of the attractiveness of coastal areas for human habitiation and development, would seem to be a particularly important focus for ethnobotanical studies. There is, however, a relative paucity of Pacific-wide systematic ethnobotanical studies, with most prehistories, ethnographies and ethnologies of the area having focused on aspects such as settlement sequence and routes, carbon dating, blood groups and physical types (human genetics), material technology, linguistics, social organization, cosmogeny and major agricultural and food systems.
    [Show full text]
  • Atoll Research Bulletin Nos
    ATOLL RESEARCH BULLETIN NOS. 481-493 -srtCSt: •? 5^fe',.-..- sa-fa :>.:«..'. ATOLL RESEARCH BULLETIN Issued by NATIONAL MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION WASHINGTON, D.C. U.S.A. JUNE 2001 1 ' '"' SW.' ' ATOLL RESEARCH BULLETIN NOS. 481-493 NO. 481. FIRST PROTOZOAN CORAL-KILLER IDENTIFIED IN THE INDO-PACIFIC BY ARNFRIED A. ANTONIUS AND DIANA LIPSCOMB NO. 482. SEABIRDS OF THE CAMPECHE BANK ISLANDS, SOUTHEASTERN GULF OF MEXICO BY JOHN W. TUNNELL AND BRIAN R. CHAPMAN NO. 483. A CENSUS OF SEABIRDS OF FREGATE ISLAND, SEYCHELLES BY ALAN E. BURGER AND ANDREA D. LAWRENCE NO. 484. CORAL AND FISH COMMUNITIES IN A DISTURBED ENVIRONMENT: PAPEETE HARBOR, TAHITI BY MEHDI ADJEROUD, SERGE PLANES AND BRUNO DELESALLE NO. 485. COLONIZATION OF THE F/V CALEDONIE TOHO 2 WRECK BY A REEF-FISH ASSEMBLAGE NEAR NOUMEA (NEW CALEDONIA) BY LAURENT WANTIEZ AND PIERRE THOLLOT NO. 486. FIRST RECORD OF ANGUILLA GLASS EELS FROM AN ATOLL OF FRENCH POLYNESIA: RANGIROA, TUAMOTU ARCHIPELAGO BY RAYMONDE LECOMTE-FINIGER , ALAIN LO-YAT AND LAURENT YAN NO. 487. BENTHIC ECOLOGY AND BIOTA OF TARAWA ATOLL LAGOON: INFLUENCE OF EQUATORIAL UPWELLING, CIRCULATION, AND HUMAN HARVEST BY GUSTAV PAULAY NO. 488. VARIABLE RECRUITMENT AND CHANGING ENVIRONMENTS CREATE A FLUCTUATING RESOURCE: THE BIOLOGY OF ANADARA UROPIGIMELANA (BIVALVIA: ARCIDAE) ON TARAWA ATOLL BY TEMAKEI TEBANO AND GUSTAV PAULAY NO. 489. I-KIRIBATI KNOWLEDGE AND MANAGEMENT OF TARAWA'S LAGOON RESOURCES BY R.E. JOHANNES AND BEING YEETING NO. 490. DECLINES IN FINFISH RESOURCES IN TARAWA LAGOON, KIRIBATI, EMPHASIZE THE NEED FOR INCREASED CONSERVATION EFFORT BY JIM BEETS NO. 491. GROUPER AND NAPOLEON WRASSE ECOLOGY IN LAAMU ATOLL, REPUBLIC OF MALDIVES: PART 1.
    [Show full text]
  • Weisler Et Al 2000
    Micronesica 32(2):191-220, 2000 Status, Health, and Ancestry of a Late Prehistoric Burial from Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands MARSHALL I. WEISLER Department of Anthropology, University of Otago, P. O. Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand. E-mail [email protected] J. KOJI LUM The Institute of Statistical Mathematics, 4-6-7 Minami-Azabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-8569, Japan. E-mail [email protected] SARA L. COLLINS State Historic Preservation Division, 555 Kakuhihewa Building, 601 Kamokila Boulevard, Kapolei, HI 96707 USA. E-mail [email protected] WAYNE S. KIMOTO Criminalist, Scientific Investigation Section, Honolulu Police Department, Honolulu, HI 96813 USA. E-mail [email protected] Abstract—A bioarchaeological study is presented for a chronometrical- ly-dated human burial from the Marshall Islands. Associated with 151 grave goods, the artifacts imply the individual’s relatively high status and point to prehistoric long-distance contacts between the Kwajalein community and distant island groups. The burial is a male, about 30 to 40 years of age at time of death, and in generally good health. There is no evidence for cause of death. MtDNA analysis, applied to prehistoric human remains from the Marshalls for the first time, raises the possibil- ity that lineages similar to the dominant one from the Marianas may have been more widespread in other parts of Micronesia. This may indicate a recent expansion of Lineage Group I, currently the most common throughout Micronesia, and confirms the complexity of Micronesian colonization and post-settlement histories. Introduction Recent summaries of Micronesian bioanthropology have lamented the lack of adequate well-provenanced skeletal samples from the geographic breadth of 192 Micronesica 32(2), 2000 the region (Hanson & Pietrusewsky 1997, Pietrusewsky 1990a).
    [Show full text]