Durham E-Theses Warfare in New Guinea a comparative study: a comparative study Sillitoe, P. How to cite: Sillitoe, P. (1972) Warfare in New Guinea a comparative study: a comparative study, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/9862/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk Abstract Nearly all anthropologists who work in New Guinea comment upon the importance of warfare in the life of the people. This thesis attempts to make a comparative study of primitive war in New Guinea and trace the significance of certain military characteristics in native society. The subject matter of the thesis is divided up into four chapters. The first chapter is a discussion of the comparative method and anthropological theory relating to a study of warfare. After Malinowski (19^1)» war is defined as organized hostility with the aim of political gain. Primitive war is distinguished from advanced war because in the former, political aims are implicit and war sometimes occurs for reasons which are not political, whereas in the latter, the political aim is always explicit. The second chapter is a discussion of ecological theories which relate to primitive war. The suggestions of "cultural ecologists" (Vayda 196l, 1971: Rappaport 1968), that people fight when their population density increases and they suffer a shortage of resources, are tested with ecological material, demographic information and ethnographic examples. The conclusion of this chapter is that few wars in New Guinea can be explained by ecological factors alone. The third chapter is a discussion of social organization and war. The argument of this chapter is divided up into three parts. Firstly, an outline of the concepts and a definition of the terms used in the survey. Secondly, a series of twenty seven ethnographic examples accompanied by diagrams of political and descent group organization, and the fields of war. Thirdly, a comparative analysis of war and social organization facilitated by a series of computer programmes. The argument of this chapter, following the political criteria stipulated for war in the first chapter, is that war in New Guinea is basically a struggle between small political factions led by big men. The fourth chapter is a discussion of primitive military organization. This analysis is based on a series of military principles suggested by Turney-High (19^9) and concludes with a comparative study of military organization and the different types of war discussed in the previous chapter. The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published without his prior written consent and information derived from it should be acknowledged. WARFARE IN NEW GUINEA; A Comparative Study- by P. SILLITOE (Van Mildert) B.A. Thesis submitted to the University of Durham the Master of Arts degree October 1972 "For what can war but endless war still breed*1 Milton - On the Lord General Fairfax "Qui desiderat pacem, praeparet beHum" Vegetius - De Re Mil. 3,prol. iv. Acknowledgements The research which constitutes this thesis has been aided by several people and to all of* them I owe a note of gratitude. In particular I must thank my wife, Jackie, for her patience, understanding and unfailing help, which was essential for the completion of this work. I thank my mother and father for their support and understanding. Academically, my greatest debt is to Professor Lucy Mair who supervised the early stages of this thesis and clarified several of the prohlems surrounding an anthropological study of war. I am grateful to other graduates within the department for informal discussions on various problems, in particular, during graduate seminars. I thank Professor E. Sunderland, head of the Anthropology Department, for his advice on the practical aspects of producing a research thesis. A thesis based on book research is dependent upon the help and co-operation of various libraries, and I thank all the institutions which helped during the research for this thesis. In particular I thank the Science Library of Durham University and the efforts made by staff to trace and borrow obscure books for me via the inter library loan service. A considerable part of the comparative analysis attempted in this study was facilitated by the use of a computer and I thank Mr. B.M. Youngman of Durham University Computer Unit for his patient guidance of a non-mathematician through the confusing maze of procedures which surround a computer programme. I thank Durham University for the award of a research studentship which financed my period of research for this Masters thesis. I also thank my department for the demonstrators position which I held for a year and which was a supplementary source of income, as well as a chance to experience university teaching. V. Table of Contents ABSTRACT i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv LIST OF TABLES vi. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS viii Diagrams; Maps; Plates. INTRODUCTION 1 Chapter 1 : COMPARISON AND THEORY IN THE STUDY 6 OF PRIMITIVE WAR Chapter 2 : ECOLOGY AND PRIMITIVE WAR .. .. 31 Chapter 3 : SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND PRIMITIVE 92 WAR Part 1 : Definitions 92 Part 2 : Ethnographic Examples 109 Part 3 : Comparative Analysis 261 Chapter k : PRIMITIVE MILITARY ORGANIZATION .. 309 Chapter 5 : CONCLUSION &pi BIBLIOGRAPHY £07 vi. LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Standard of information on warfare . XO 2. Reliability of people in the definition n of comparative groups .. .. .. .. 3. Highland and lowland classification 45 k. Population figures .. .. •« .. 53 5. Population density classification .. 54 6. Population density and ecological sub-types 55 7. Classification according to frequency 59 people fight for land .. 8. Correlation between fighting for land, g0 population density and ecological sub-types • 9» Frequency people fight for land (reduction 71 of table (7)) 10. Three types of social organization .« .. 270 11. Men recruited to principal group on criteria 274 other than residence .. .. .. .. 12. Classification according to types of major 277/8 war .. .. .. .... 13« Classification of minor war as war of 284 redress .. •• •• .. .. .. »• Ik. Presence of minor war correlated with types 285 of major war .. .. .. .. •» .. 15. Presence of minor war correlated; with types 285 of social organization .. .. .. .. 16. Presence of minor war correlated with size 286 of political groups .. .. .. .. .. 17. Relations and behaviour of individuals in 290/1 opposed enemy groups .. .. .. .. 18. Significance of descent correlated with 292 behaviour of related individuals as enemies 19* Clusters based on social organization 296 correlated with recruitment of allies .. 20. Reasons allies fight correlated with distance 297 of ally groups .. •. .. .. • • .. vii. 21. Conception of groups as territorial or 300 settlement groups (major war). .. .. 22. Conception of groups as territorial or 302 settlement groups (minor war). .. .. 23. Peace settlement correlated with types of 305 war .. .. .. .. .. •• .. .. 2k. Significance of trade compared with types 308 of war .. .. .. .. .. .... 25. Type of settlement and defence arrangements 333 compared with military engagements .. .. 26. Frequency of engagements and number of 388 casualties .. •• .. .. .. .. 27. Tendency for battles and frequent raids to 389 occur together as alternative engagements. 28. Occurence of different types of military 389 engagement .. .. .. .. .. .. 29. Occurence of different types of military 39O engagement according to people •. 30. Type of engagement correlated with social 39,1 organization .. .. .. .. .. •• 31• Conception of military groups correlated 392 with types of engagement .. •• .. .. 32. Different types of military engagement 39.2 correlated with ecological regions •. .. 33. Different military engagements correlated 393 with types of war .. .. .. .. 3k. Type of major war military engagement 39^ correlated with occurence of minor war •. 35. Peace settlements correlated with different 394 types of military engagement .. .. .. 36. Re-classification of types of war according 595 to military engagements .. .. 37. Societies with age groups, initiation and 393 no initiation .. .. .. .. •• ». 38. Type of settlement and presence of age 399 grades .. .. .. .. .. .. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Diagrams Diagram Page 1. Spatial representation of ecological 46 sub-type classification • . •* 2. Abelam territorial and descent group 110 structure .. •• .* • • *• 3. Abelam fields of war 113 4o Arapesh territorial and descent group 116 structure *. .. •> •• •• 5. Arapesh field of war .. •> 118 6. Asmat territorial and descent group 121 structure .. .. .o .. 7. Asmat fields of war .. .. .. .. , • 123 8. Bena Bena territorial and descent group 126 structure .. •. .. •• .. •. o> 9* Bena Bena fields of war .. • • 129 10. Bokondini Dani territorial and descent 132 group structure •. • . • • 11. Bokondini