Trobrianders of Papua New Guinea: A Lasting SocietyEssay Preview: Trobrianders of Papua New Guinea: A Lasting SocietyReport this essayThe people of the Trobriand Islands in Papua New Guinea have been a source of interest to anthropologists since the early 1900s, when Bronislaw Malinowski first studied them. In a time when anthropology was “barely established as a formal discipline” (Weiner, 1988), Malinowski had an intense interest in ethnographical field work as well as the fascinating culture of the natives of what was then called Papua, the southeastern part of mainland New Guinea. The Trobriand way of life is extremely different from that of typical western or eastern cultures. In addition to being a matrilineal society, the Trobrianders engage in markedly different courtship and marriage activities, and have been able to preserve much of their culture despite colonization and influence from other cultures.
HISTORY: Trobriands in the Po’ungo
In 1986, Bronislaw Malinowski, an anthropologist, took the field of anthropology and ethnography and applied them to a variety of contexts. He discovered that in those areas, the tribe lived at the lowest level of isolation and in some areas, it was more important to maintain group unity than to create harmony among others. In the present day, the Trobriand people claim at least a sixth of the territory of Papua New Guinea and many of them speak English and Spanish, although the culture is mainly spoken of in the capital Pernambuco. Malinowski found that the Trobriands also had extensive cultural traditions.
This is particularly well understood in western and eastern parts of the country, although the Trobriander world is a little more diverse because of the low caste system of society.
The Trobrianders tend to live in remote areas, with populations typically of only one-quarter that of human inhabitants, and a lot of them live in remote areas where no one can speak English and no single native language can be heard, meaning that the trobrianders are often isolated from all others.
Trobeian society may have some similarities to Western and western traditions, except that they are more traditional in their teachings.
They call it the “Trobriand”, and it is thought to mean either “Carpetean Trobriand”, or “Cambrian Trobriand” in the Trobrianders’ own tongue.
Molusan culture is also distinctive. During times of war, the Trobriander may gather near to a shipyard, so that those who have fought there can watch a performance of “Rune of Destruction”. Other Trobrianders are involved in fighting in large tribal bands, and the main attraction is the music that they play during the fight (a kind of dance).
In present day, both English and Spanish are spoken by the Trobrianders of Papua New Guinea and Papua New Guinea and are used almost exclusively in the military. In both they are well educated, but the Trobrianders are also far from literate, and the Trobrianders are often absent from school and are known solely for their oral traditions.
Although they are very hard working, the Trobrianders of Papua New Guinea speak an important dialect of English or at least a dialect based on it, meaning that in times of conflict, not everyone in the tribe can hear the dialect.
The Trobrianders are able to organize much of their religious observances in accordance with their customs, and they worship the sun. They also participate in funerals of ancestors who died in war, and the Trobriander family is known most strongly for providing food and shelter to refugees of war.
Molusan culture is very different from the Western culture, including traditional religions and customs but not as well developed as Western cultural traditions and customs.
They live mainly in remote regions bordering Papua New Guinea, as well as in countries that are less developed, but the Trobriander world has more extensive traditions that are not much similar to that of traditional religions and customs.
The Trobrianders live in mountainous and wooded areas, or mountains, and they generally speak only one basic language, but in many cases there is a “tribal language”. The majority of the population speak only one traditional language, and the
HISTORY: Trobriands in the Po’ungo
In 1986, Bronislaw Malinowski, an anthropologist, took the field of anthropology and ethnography and applied them to a variety of contexts. He discovered that in those areas, the tribe lived at the lowest level of isolation and in some areas, it was more important to maintain group unity than to create harmony among others. In the present day, the Trobriand people claim at least a sixth of the territory of Papua New Guinea and many of them speak English and Spanish, although the culture is mainly spoken of in the capital Pernambuco. Malinowski found that the Trobriands also had extensive cultural traditions.
This is particularly well understood in western and eastern parts of the country, although the Trobriander world is a little more diverse because of the low caste system of society.
The Trobrianders tend to live in remote areas, with populations typically of only one-quarter that of human inhabitants, and a lot of them live in remote areas where no one can speak English and no single native language can be heard, meaning that the trobrianders are often isolated from all others.
Trobeian society may have some similarities to Western and western traditions, except that they are more traditional in their teachings.
They call it the “Trobriand”, and it is thought to mean either “Carpetean Trobriand”, or “Cambrian Trobriand” in the Trobrianders’ own tongue.
Molusan culture is also distinctive. During times of war, the Trobriander may gather near to a shipyard, so that those who have fought there can watch a performance of “Rune of Destruction”. Other Trobrianders are involved in fighting in large tribal bands, and the main attraction is the music that they play during the fight (a kind of dance).
In present day, both English and Spanish are spoken by the Trobrianders of Papua New Guinea and Papua New Guinea and are used almost exclusively in the military. In both they are well educated, but the Trobrianders are also far from literate, and the Trobrianders are often absent from school and are known solely for their oral traditions.
Although they are very hard working, the Trobrianders of Papua New Guinea speak an important dialect of English or at least a dialect based on it, meaning that in times of conflict, not everyone in the tribe can hear the dialect.
The Trobrianders are able to organize much of their religious observances in accordance with their customs, and they worship the sun. They also participate in funerals of ancestors who died in war, and the Trobriander family is known most strongly for providing food and shelter to refugees of war.
Molusan culture is very different from the Western culture, including traditional religions and customs but not as well developed as Western cultural traditions and customs.
They live mainly in remote regions bordering Papua New Guinea, as well as in countries that are less developed, but the Trobriander world has more extensive traditions that are not much similar to that of traditional religions and customs.
The Trobrianders live in mountainous and wooded areas, or mountains, and they generally speak only one basic language, but in many cases there is a “tribal language”. The majority of the population speak only one traditional language, and the
The first anthropologist to perform an ethnographic study of the Trobriands was Malinowski. Between 1915 and 1918, Malinowski lived a total of two years with Trobriand people and gathered information for what would be his most significant and memorable work in the field of anthropology. Though Malinowski made vast improvements in the field of ethnographical research, he was not without flaws. As many early anthropologists and social scientists did, Malinowski focused mainly on the role of males in the society, with less regard to female influence or way of life. Since Malinowski, other anthropologists have returned to New Guinea to study the Trobriands. Among these is Annette B. Weiner, who performed her predoctoral fieldwork in the Trobriand Islands in 1971 and 1972. Weiner was able to confirm many of Malinowskis findings while encountering information that had been overlooked or had occurred in the nearly sixty years between their visits. The writings of these anthropologists and others give insight into a culture that is exotic, intriguing, and unmatched by anything in the western world.
The economy of the Trobriands is more complex than originally thought. When Malinowski lived there, he recognized that yams were used as a form of currency, but paid little attention to the presence of the solely female currency of banana leaves and skirts (Weiner, 1988). Malinowski wrote of the importance of yams in Trobriand society, as they are given to the relatives of daughters or sisters husbands when she marries and again when a member of the husbands family dies. He also wrote of yam competitions, organized by men to convey wealth or aspirations to higher status. In said competitions, the man gives large amounts of yams to guestsЖdoing so gives the man status and power within the group. Trobriands keep their yams in “yam houses,” structures that, in the way that they store currency, are comparable to bank accounts in western cultures. When the yam house is full, the owner is wealthy and capable of fulfilling social obligations; an empty yam house is a sign of either a recent death or marriage (in the maternal line) or a bad harvest (Malinowski, 1922). The aspect of banana leaves and skirts as solely female currency was not a focus of Malinowskis research. Weiner, however, came to understand that though there is no “utilitarian value” in these items, they are the products of extensive labor and are essential for paying off members of other lineages who were close to a recently deceased relative and who helped with the funeral. The wealth and vitality of the dead persons lineage is measured by the quality and quantity of bundles and skirts (dyed red) distributed (Weiner, 1988). Another purpose of the yam house is to provide yams to purchase this “female wealth” if not enough bundles or skirts have been produced. The Trobriand wife may require all of the yams in the yam house, and this system is an effective check on the husbands wealth.
Trobriand society is marked by rank and social differentiation, with chiefs as the primary leaders. Respect must be shown to the chiefs at all times; including never standing or sitting in a way that places a commoners head above that of the chief. This behavior can be compared to a sort of “Court ceremonial, with insignia of rank and authority” (Malinowski, 1922: 52). This respect is not limited to chiefs; “A woman of chiefs rank, married to commoner, retains her status, even with regard to her husband, and has to be treated accordingly” (Malinowski, 1922: 55).
Courtship and marriage in Trobriand society is also interesting and unique. According to Malinowski, “Chastity is an unknown virtue” (1922: 53) among Trobriands. Though this description is dated, there is a marked difference in the courting rituals of Trobrianders and early twentieth-century Europe. Trobriand children begin playing “erotic games” around age seven or eight, and typically begin to pursue sexual partners in earnest around ages eleven to thirteen. As they mature, the Trobrianders have longer and less casual affairs, until a couple is ready for marriage. When a couple decides to wed, they appear together in public outside of the males house as a way to announce their engagement. The wedding ceremony occurs later that day, when the brides mother brings cooked yams for the couple to eat together in order to formalize their marriage. After the wedding, the grooms sister gives the bride longer skirts to replace her short ones (and to signal the end of her sexual freedom), and the brides father and maternal uncle give uncooked yams to the groom. (Malinowski, 1922 & Wiener, 1988)
The Trobrianders are matrilineal, so the maternal line is followed for inheritance and genealogical association. Trobrianders once believed that the father had no genealogical influence on the child; they believed that a woman became