Book

Fijian material culture: a study of cultural context, function, and change

Bishop Museum Press (232) • Published In 1968 • Pages: vi, 193

By: Tippett, Alan R. (Alan Richard).

Abstract
This document discusses change and continuity in Fijian material culture (with particular emphasis on clubs, boats, turtle fishing nets, and houses) in order to explore the contexts in which the object belonged, the people who made and used them, and the institutions that gave them value. For example, clubs were extensively used not only as weapons of war, but also as sacred objects in times of peace. Likewise, boats and turtle fishing nets had both secular and sacred contexts. With the advent of Christianity and British colonialism, most of the artifacts lost their sacred functions. Consequently, war clubs were gradually replaced by imported guns, and traditional temples and other sacred places became sites for building churches.
Subjects
Acculturation and culture contact
Shipbuilding
Boats
Water transport
Dwellings
Architecture
Building interiors and arrangement
Sacred objects and places
Avoidance and taboo
Division of labor by gender
Missions
External trade
External relations
Cooperative organization
Environmental quality
Fishing
Fishing gear
Weapons
Military organization
Animism
Prayers and sacrifices
Ethos
Warfare
Aftermath of combat
culture
Bau Fijians
Region
Oceania
Sub Region
Polynesia
Document Type
Book
Evaluation
Creator Types
Missionary
Anthropologist
Document Rating
4: Excellent Secondary Data
5: Excellent Primary Data
Analyst
Teferi Abate Adem
Field Date
1941-1961
Coverage Date
1839-1961
Coverage Place
Fiji
Notes
Alan Richard Tippett
Includes bibliographical references (p. 181-189)
LCCN
68022460
LCSH
Material culture--Fiji
Fiji--Social life and customs