Marovo

The coastal people of Marovo Lagoon, who speak a language of the same name.

Show Map of Location

Traditional Culture(1885-1910)Expand All +
Belief +

Supernatural Beings

Nature Spirits Present, and a major focus of supernatural practice (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 99, 101
Nature god(s) Present, and a major focus of supernatural practice (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 79-130
Ancestral spirits Present, and a major focus of supernatural practice (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 87, 89-91
Deified ancestor(s) Present, and a major focus of supernatural practice (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 87
God(s) Present, and the principal focus of supernatural practice (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 79-130

Afterlife and Creation

Primordial pair Absent (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 81
Culture hero(es) Present, but not a major focus of supernatural practice (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 35, 79-130
Somerville (1897), pp. 383-393

Classes of Tapu

Resource management tapu Present (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 268-269

Mana

Mana as a personal quality Present (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 89-91
Mana as a spiritual or religious concept Present (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 89-91
Mana related to social influence or technical skill Present (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 89-91
Practice +

General Supernatural Practices

Headhunting Present (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 89-91
Costly sacrifices and offerings Present (Source)
Somerville (1897), pp. 386
Size of largest ritual social group Larger than a household, no larger than the local community (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 86-88, 154-155
Political and religious differentiation Some overlap (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 86-88

Rites

Genital cutting Absent from culture (Source)
Somerville (1897), pp. 395
Tooth pulling Absent from culture (Source)
Somerville (1897)
Tattooing Absent from culture (Source)
Somerville (1897), pp. 365
Scarification Present in culture, but not as a rite or feature of a rite (Source)
Somerville (1897), pp. 365
Piercing Present in culture, but not as a rite or feature of a rite (Source)
Somerville (1897), pp. 362-363
Social Environment +
Population 5,000 (Source)
Bayliss-Smith et al (2003)
Hviding (1996), pp. 378-381
Population of largest political community 100-999 (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 132
Importance of Patrilateral descent High (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 147
Importance of Matrilateral descent Medium (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 147

Conflict

Conflict between communities of the culture Common, at least every five years (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 79-130
Conflict with other cultures Frequent, occurring at least yearly (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 79-130
Conflict within communities Endemic (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 86-87
Cultural Isolation +
Contact with other cultures Frequent, through trade, warfare, travel, etc. (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 89-115
Distance to closest landmass inhabited by a different culture (km) 0.0 (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 96
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. 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)
Hviding (1996), pp. 102-107
Subsistence and Economy +

Land-based means of subsistence

Animal husbandry as a source of food Minor (Source)
Somerville (1897), pp. 381
Land-based hunting performed by individuals Minor (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 97
Somerville (1897), pp. 381
Land-based gathering Medium (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 97, 214
Somerville (1897), pp. 381
Land-based hunting performed by one or more groups Minor (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 97
Somerville (1897), pp. 381
Agriculture / Horticulture Major (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 75, 97, 116-118

Water-based means of subsistence

Fishing and water-based hunting performed by one or more groups Major (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 97, 210-214
Hviding (1996), pp. 381
Fishing and water-based hunting performed by individuals Major (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 97, 210-224
Somerville (1897), pp. 381
Water-based gathering Major (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 63, 69, 97, 211, 214
Somerville (1897), pp. 381

Commercial Activity

Trade / wage labour as a source of food Major (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 97, 116-117
Metalworking Absent (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 103-104
Physical Environment +

Geographical Range of Culture

Number of islands inhabited by culture Four or more (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 36, 89

Features of Island with Largest Culture Population

Latitude -8.5 (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 36, 89
Longitude 158.0 (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 36, 89
Island Size (km²) 3365.0 (Source)
Clark & Bedford (2008), pp. 64
Maximum elevation (meters) 860.0 (Source)
Clark & Bedford (2008), pp. 64
Post Contact History(?)Expand All +
Religious History +

Conversion

Role of social status in conversion process Primarily a top-down process. (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 119-120
Use of force in conversion Low (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 118-124
Resident missionary involvement in conversion process Present, and from non-Austronesian societies (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 119-120
Adoption of a world religion Present and predominant (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 51

Syncretic Movements

Syncretic religious movements Present, and survived to the present day (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 51, 122-123
Secular History +

Demographic and Social Changes

Foreign government systems Present, and of high importance (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 10, 110-113
Immigration Medium (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 98-99, 381
Language shift Low (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 50-51
Foreign education systems High (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 46, 66

Modern Infrastructure

Vehicles and roads Absent (Source)
Google Maps (2014)

Loss of Autonomy

Nature of loss of autonomy Largely involuntary (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 107-113
Loss of political autonoomy High (Source)
Hviding (1996), pp. 107-113
External Links
References
Bayliss-Smith, T., Hviding, E., & Whitmore, T. (2003). Rainforest composition and histories of human disturbance in Solomon Islands. AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment, 32(5), 346-352.

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.

Clark, G.R. & Bedford, S. (2008). Friction Zones in Lapita Colonisation. In G.R. Clark, G.R, S. O'Connor & B.F. Leach, Islands of Inquiry: Colonisation, Seafaring and the Archaeology of Maritime Landscapes (pp 59-73). Canberra, Australia: ANU Press.

Cribb, R. (2000). Historical atlas of Indonesia. Surrey, UK: Curzon Press.

Daft Logic Distance Calculator. (2014). http://www.daftlogic.com/projects-google-maps-distance-calculator.htm.

Encyclopaedia Britannica (Solomon Islands). (2014). In Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/553556/Solomon-Islands

Google Maps (2014). Retrieved from maps.google.com

Hviding, E. (1996). Guardians of Marovo Lagoon: Practice, Place, and Politics in Maritime Melanesia. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai'i Press.

Somerville, B.T. (1897). Ethnographic notes in New Georgia, Solomon Islands. Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, 26, 357-412.

Walter, R. & Sheppard, P. (2000). Nusa Roviana: The Archaeology of a Melanesian Chiefdom. Journal of Field Archaeology, 27 (3), 295-318.