article
Disentangling the 'grass roots' in Tonga: 'traditional enterprise' and autonomy in the moral and market economy
Asia Pacific viewpoint • 43 (3) • Published In 2002 • Pages: 269-292
By: James, Kerry.
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
In this article, James examines economic development and change at the local level of Tonga's MIRAB economy. The local level of semi-subsistence household units accounts for 80 percent of the population. Borrowing from Weber's idea of the "generalized household," James describes an economic organization of linked household units, what he calls "traditional enterprises." According to James these units are engaged in diverse economic pursuits, some to meet household budgets, others to make a profit, all pool resources to make it work. The enterprise units continue to rely on traditional forms of exchange and reciprocity based on ceremonially maintained relationships. James ascertains to what extent these units are economically autonomous or a consequence of dependency. He also gives examples showing the difficulty international agencies have funding such traditional enterprises, because their multiple-household interests and concerns defy project-specific funding.
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- Production and supply
- Income and demand
- Mutual aid
- Household
- External relations
- 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.
- Ethnologist
- 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.
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- Ian Skoggard; 2004
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- unknown
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- 1970-2002
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- Tonga
- NotesAdditional notes
- Kerry E. James
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 290-292)
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- 96658155
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Tongans