Kwaio
The Kwaio historically lived in small, autonomous groups in the interior of the large island of Malaita. Their religion was heavily based on ancestral deities and their maintenance of moral standards within the community. The Kwaio were notable for their fierce resistance to colonisation and Christianisation, which resulted a punitive expedition being mounted against them in 1927, during which their religious sites were deliberately desecrated. Subsequently, many Kwaio converted to Christianity, although around a third continue to adhere to their indigenous religion to this day.
Traditional Culture(1890)Expand All +
Belief
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Supernatural Beings |
| Nature Spirits | Present, but not a major focus of supernatural practice (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 1-246, 33, 35 | |
| Nature god(s) | Absent (Source) |
| Keesing (1982) | |
| Ancestral spirits | Present, but not a major focus of supernatural practice (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 33, 35-37 | |
| Deified ancestor(s) | Present, and the principal focus of supernatural practice (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 30-39 | |
| God(s) | Absent (Source) |
| Keesing (1982) | |
Supernatural Punishment |
| Supernatural punishment for impiety | Present (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 31-33, 38-39, 68-73, 86-87, 93, 04, 225-227 | |
Afterlife and Creation |
| One's actions while living can affect the nature of one's afterlife | One factor in determining one's afterlife (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 104-110 | |
| The actions of others after one has died can affect the nature of one's afterlife | Absent (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 104-111 | |
| Myth of humanity’s creation | Present, and evolutionary (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 40-42 | |
| Primordial pair | Absent (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 42 | |
| Culture hero(es) | Absent (Source) |
| Keesing (1982) | |
General Features |
| Forces of nature are controlled by or imbued with the supernatural | Present (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 79-80 | |
Classes of Tapu |
| Social hierarchy tapu | Present (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 19-20, 146-147 | |
| Resource management tapu | Present (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 161 | |
| Kinship tapu | Present (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 18-19, 225-227 | |
Mana |
| Mana related to social influence or technical skill | Absent (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 46-49 | |
| Mana as a personal quality | Present (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 46 | |
| Mana as a spiritual or religious concept | Present (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 46-47 | |
| Mana and social status | Mana is associated with social status, but high social status is not necessary in order to be mana or have mana. (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 46-47 | |
| Mana linked to genealogy | Present, linked to both paternal and maternal lines (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 10, 46-49 | |
Practice
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General Supernatural Practices |
| Headhunting | Absent (Source) |
| Keesing (1982) | |
| Costly sacrifices and offerings | Present (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 128-142, 134-138 | |
| Largest religious community | Larger than a local community, smaller than the society (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 10, 76-79 | |
| Political and religious differentiation | No overlap (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 19, 87-91 | |
Rites |
| Tooth pulling | Absent from culture (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 30-39, 91-94 | |
| Scarification | Absent from culture (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 30-39, 53, 57, 91-94, 114, 124-126, 130-131, 149, 154-155 | |
| Piercing | Present in culture, but not as a rite or feature of a rite (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 30-39, 91-94, 154, 174, 203 | |
| Tattooing | Absent from culture (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 30-39, 53, 57, 91-94, 114, 124-126, 130-131, 149, 154-155 | |
| Genital cutting | Absent from culture (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 30-39, 91-94 | |
Social Environment
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| Population | 7500 (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 13 | |
| Population of largest political community | 99 or fewer (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 10, 17 | |
| Importance of Patrilateral descent | High (Source) |
| Keesing (1991), pp. 161 | |
| Importance of Matrilateral descent | Medium (Source) |
| Keesing (1991), pp. 161 | |
| Kinship system | Hawaiian (Source) |
| Keesing (1991), pp. 162 | |
| Polygamy | Monogamy preferred, but exceptional cases of polygyny (Source) |
| Keesing (1991), pp. 162 | |
| Marital residence | Patrilocal or virilocal - with husband's kin (Source) |
| Keesing (1991), pp. 161-162 | |
Conflict |
| (No) external warfare | Rare or never (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 13-20 | |
| Conflict within community | Endemic (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 18-19, 225-227 | |
| (No) internal warfare | Common, at least every five years (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 22 | |
Isolation
+
| Contact with other cultures | Frequent, through trade, warfare, travel, etc. (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 20 | |
| Distance to closest landmass inhabited by a different culture (km) | 0.0 (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 13 | |
| Distance to nearest continent | 1790.0 (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 13 Daft Logic Distance Calculator (2014) |
|
| Pre-Austronesian population | Present: Clear evidence of human occupation prior to Austronesian settlement (Source) |
| Bellwood (1995), pp. 109 | |
| Hindu / Buddhist influence on supernatural belief | No evidence of influence and not in region of known contact (Source) |
| Cribb (2000), pp. Map 2.21 | |
| Islamic influence on supernatural belief | No evidence of influence and not in region of known contact (Source) |
| Cribb (2000), pp. Map 2.23 | |
| Christian influence on supernatural belief | No evidence of influence but in a region where contact is likely (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 22 | |
Subsistence and Economy
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Land-based means of subsistence |
| Animal husbandry as a source of food | Medium (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 14, 9-82 | |
| Agriculture / Horticulture | Principal (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 13-14 | |
| Land-based hunting performed by individuals | Minor (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 14 | |
| Land-based gathering | Minor (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 13-14 | |
| Land-based hunting performed by one or more groups | Minor (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 14 | |
Water-based means of subsistence |
| Fishing and water-based hunting performed by one or more groups | Minor (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 14 | |
| Water-based gathering | Minor (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 14 | |
| Fishing and water-based hunting performed by individuals | Minor (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 14 | |
Commercial Activity |
| Trade / wage labour as a source of food | Minor (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 14 | |
Physical Environment
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Geographical Range of Culture |
| Number of islands inhabited by culture | One (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 13, 15 | |
Features of Island with Largest Culture Population |
| Island type (island with largest culture population or largest island if unknown) | Volcanic high island (Source) |
| 'Malaita' (2019) | |
| Island Size (km²) | 4200.0 (Source) |
| Moore (2007), pp. 214 | |
| Maximum elevation (meters) | 1438.0 (Source) |
| 'Malaita' (2019) | |
Location |
| Latitude | -9.0 (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 13, 15 Google Maps (2014) |
|
| Longitude | 160.9 (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 13, 15 Google Maps (2014) |
|
Post Contact History(1890-2014)Expand All +
Religious History
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Conversion |
| Role of social status in conversion process | Mixed / Neither (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 234 | |
| Use of force in conversion | Medium (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 23-24, 234 | |
| Adoption of a world religion | Present and major (Source) |
| McLaren et al (2009), pp. S125 Keesing (1967A), pp. 84-89 |
|
| Resident missionary involvement in conversion process | Present, and from non-Austronesian societies (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 232-233 | |
Syncretic Movements |
| Syncretic religious movements | Present, but did not survive to the present-day (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 24-26 McLaren et al (2009), pp. S125 |
|
Secular History
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Economic Changes |
| Changes in means of subsistence | Medium (Source) |
| Solomon Islands Government (2001A), pp. 20-22 Keesing (1982), pp. 24 |
|
| Exportation of goods to other cultures | Present and substantial (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 24 | |
Modern Infrastructure |
| Vehicles and roads | Present but rarely used (Source) |
| McLaren et al (2009), pp. S126 | |
| Air travel | Present, local only (Source) |
| Solomon Islands Government (2001A), pp. 18-19 | |
| Sea port | Absent (Source) |
| Solomon Islands Government (2001A), pp. 19 | |
Loss of Autonomy |
| Loss of political autonoomy | High (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 23-26, 28-29 | |
| Nature of loss of autonomy | Largely involuntary (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 23-24 | |
Demographic and Social Changes |
| Immigration | Absent (Source) |
| McLaren et al (2009), pp. S125 Keesing (1982), pp. 26-29 |
|
| Foreign government systems | Present, and of high importance (Source) |
| Keesing (1982), pp. 28-29 | |
Current Culture(2014)Expand All +
Belief
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Religious Demographics |
| Unofficial religious syncretism | Low (Source) |
| Akin (2004), pp. 303-304 | |
| Institutional religious syncretism | Low (Source) |
| Akin (2004), pp. 303-304 | |
| Dominant world religion | Christianity (Source) |
| McLaren et al (2009), pp. S125 | |
External Links
References
Akin, D. (2004). Ancestral Vigilance and the Corrective Conscience: Kastom as Culture in a Melanesian Society. Anthropological Theory, 4 (3), 299-324. DOI: 10.1177/1463499604045566
Bellwood, P. (1995). Austronesian Prehistory in Southeast Asia: Homeland, Expansion and Transformation. P. Bellwood, J.J. Fox, & D. Tryon (Eds.), The Austronesians: Historical and Comparative Perspectives (pp 113-114). Canberra, Australia: ANU Press.
Churchill, W. (1916). Sissano: Movements of Migration Within and Through Melanesia. Washington, D.C.: The Carnegie Institute of Washington.
Cribb, R. (2000). Historical atlas of Indonesia. Surrey, UK: Curzon Press.
Daft Logic Area Calculator. (2014). Retrieved from: http://www.daftlogic.com/projects-google-maps-area-calculator-tool.htm.
Daft Logic Distance Calculator. (2014). http://www.daftlogic.com/projects-google-maps-distance-calculator.htm.
Google Maps (2014). Retrieved from maps.google.com
Keesing, F. M. (1962A). The ethnohistory of northern Luzon. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press
Keesing, R. M. (1967A). Christians and Pagans in Kwaio, Malaita. The Journal of the Polynesian Society, 76 (1), 82-100. Retrieved from www.jstor.org/stable/20704444
Keesing, R. M. (1967B). Statistical Models and Decision Models of Social Structure: a Kwaio Case. Ethnology, 6 (1), 1-16. Retrieved from www.jstor.org/stable/3772734
Keesing, R. M. (1982). Kwaio Religion: The Living and the Dead in a Solomon Island Society. NY: Columbia University Press.
Keesing, R. M. (1985). Killers, big men, and priests on Malaita: Reflections on a Melanesian troika system. Ethnology, 24(4), 237-252.
Keesing, R. M. (1991). Malaita. Encyclopaedia of World Cultures (Volume II: Oceania) (160-163). New York, NY: G.K. Hall & Co.
Keesing, R.M. (1968). Chiefs in a Chiefless Society: The Ideology of Modern Kwaio Politics. Oceania, 38 (4), 276-280. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/40329737
Keesing, R.M. (1978). Politico-Religious Movements and Anticolonialism on Malaita: Maasina Rule in Historical Perspective. Oceania, 48 (4), 241-261. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/40330367.
Malaita (2019). Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/place/Malaita
McLaren, D., Asugeni, J., Asugeni, R., & Kekeubata, E. (2009). Incorporating Sociocultural Beliefs in Mental Health Services in Kwaio, Solomon Islands. Australasian Psychiatry, 17, S125-S127. DOI: 10.1080/10398560902948381
Moore, C. (2007). The Misappropriation of Malaitan Labour. The Journal of Pacific History, 42 (2), 211-232. DOI: 10.1080/00223340701461668
Solomon Islands Government (2001). Malaita Province Development Profile. Honiara, Solomon Islands: Ministry of Provincial Government and Rural Development.