article
Reorganized meeting house system: the focus of social life in a contemporary village in Tabiteuea South, Kiribati
People and culture in Oceania • 17 • Published In 2001 • Pages: 83-113
By: Kazama, Kazuhiro.
Abstract
This document traces the “traditional” functions and seating arrangements for Kiribati village meeting houses as influenced by colonial rule and Christian missions prior to indipendence in 1979, comparing the information to observations made in the 1990s. The author recognizes the centrality of the structures in linking individual households with the central government and global markets, and how, by the time of fieldwork, meeting houses were qualitatively different from what had previously been reported. The most important change concerns the status and roles of different clans in the village council. In the past, functions and seating in the village meeting house were assigned strictly on descent, age and gender. In the new era meetings are attended by all residents, including young men, women, and newcomers whose ancestors never held seats.
- HRAF PubDate
- 2018
- Region
- Oceania
- Sub Region
- Micronesia
- Document Type
- article
- Evaluation
- Creator Type
- Anthropologist
- Document Rating
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- Analyst
- Teferi Abate Adem ; 2016
- Field Date
- 1994-1996
- Coverage Date
- 1892-1996
- Coverage Place
- Tabiteuea South, Southern Kiribati Islands, Republic of Kiribati
- Notes
- Kazuhiro Kazama
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 112-113)
- LCSH
- Kiribati