"We used to eat people": Revelations of a Fiji Islands Traditional VillageLiving in a reed hut on Taveuni--the "garden isle" of Fiji--the author studied the native language and carefully observed their traditions until he was accepted as a (somewhat unusual) member of the village. Despite five cyclones the summer of 1985, daily life was idyllic. Cannibalism has been abandoned, reluctantly, at the behest of the new Christian God. But the old religion survived beneath the facade and priests danced naked on the beach beneath the full moon. The village pulsated with factions and feuds, resolved by the stern but benevolent chief, whose word was law. Legends told of a princess born as a bird, who was killed and thus became a comely maiden--but the murderer had to be cooked and eaten. |
Contents
| 1 | |
| 3 | |
2 This is paradise | 22 |
3 Our Village | 42 |
4 No cyclone today | 66 |
5 Do you want to live or do you want to die? | 91 |
6 Becoming a Part of the Village | 110 |
Other editions - View all
"We used to eat people": Revelations of a Fiji Islands Traditional Village R.M.W. Dixon Limited preview - 2017 |
Common terms and phrases
afternoon asked Australia Basaa beach Big Uncle Bogi breakfast brought Ca'audrove called Canberra ceremony Charlotte chief church Churchward coconut cooked couple cross-legged cyclone dialect dollars Elia Waqa English ere'ere Falaavia Father Hendricks Felise Fiji Fijian name finished fish front door gasau glottal stop grammar Indian Inoke Iowani island isulu Ito'ato'a Kaba's Koleta Labasa ladies language Levu linguistic looked Maarawa main road Maritina Mataqali meal morning Nana Maa night o'clock Orovou Paul Geraghty priest Prince of Boumaa Princess of Waini'eli Qamea Qito returned roof Roopate Rotuma seemed Sepo Sepo's Sepo's house side door Siriloo sitting someone Somosomo Standard Fijian stay story Suliano Suva tabua taro Taveuni there'd thing told Tonga Tui Nasau Vanua Vanua Levu verb village Viti Levu Waibula Waitabu Waiyevo walk wall washing week women word yaqona youths