article
The supernatural in Tonga
American anthropologist, n.s. • 23 • Published In 1962 • Pages: 415-444
By: Collocott, E. E. V. (Ernest Edgar Vyvyan).
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This source discusses various aspects of two key Tongan religious concepts: tabu and mana. Tabu refers to sacredness and prescriptions for proper behavior. Under the heading of tabu are prescriptions referring to: birth and puberty, social tabus, death, the Tui Tonga, ceremonious speech, the installation of the Tui Kanokupolu, fishing, and sin. Mana refers to supernatural force. It may be found in omens, people and tools, especially weapons, apparitions, divination, witchcraft, and spirit possession. Much of the information in the source is based on historical texts and the memory of older informants since Christianity has supplanted most of the beliefs and practices reported here.
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Fishing
- Status, role, and prestige
- Classes
- Etiquette
- Nuptials
- Chief executive
- Executive household
- Sorcery
- Magical and mental therapy
- Eschatology
- Sacred objects and places
- Avoidance and taboo
- Revelation and divination
- Magicians and diviners
- Ethnozoology
- Pregnancy
- Postnatal care
- cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- Tongans
- HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
- 2006
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- Oceania
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- Polynesia
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- article
- Evaluation
- Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Missionary
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- Martin J. Malone; 1978
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- no date
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- not specified
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- Tonga
- NotesAdditional notes
- By E. E. V. Collocott
- Includes bibliographical references
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- 17015424
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Tongans