Pulotu
Database of Austronesian Religions
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Austronesian population | Present: Clear evidence of human occupation prior to Austronesian settlement | Bellwood 1995: 109 |
| Christian influence on supernatural belief | No evidence of influence but in a region where contact is likely (No evidence of Christian influence on supernatural belief, but culture is known to have had (or is likely to have had) contact with Christian societies at or prior to the time focus in question.) | Young 1991: 49; Bromilow 1929: 87 |
| Hindu / Buddhist influence on supernatural belief | No evidence of influence and not in region of known contact (No evidence of Hindu / Buddhist influence on supernatural belief, and culture is unlikely to have had contact with Hindu or Buddhist societies at or prior to to the time focus in question.) | Cribb 2000: Map 2.21 |
| (Low) contact with other societies (SCCS v 787) | Frequent, through trade, warfare, travel, etc. (e.g. yearly or most years) | Young 1991: 49 |
| Islamic influence on supernatural belief | No evidence of influence and not in region of known contact (No evidence of Islamic influence on supernatural belief, and culture is unlikely to have had contact with Islamic societies at or prior to the time focus in question.) | Cribb 2000: Map 2.23 |
| Distance to closest landmass inhabited by a different culture (km) | 0 | Asher (eds.) 2007: Map 31 |
| Distance to nearest continent (km) | 824 | Calculator 2014; Asher (eds.) 2007: Map 31 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Longitude of culture’s location (°) | 150.8 | 2014; Asher (eds.) 2007: Map 31 |
| Latitude of culture’s location (°) | -9.6 | 2014; Asher (eds.) 2007: Map 31 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Number of islands inhabited by culture | Four or more | Young 1991 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Island type (island with largest culture population or largest island if unknown) | Volcanic high island (an oceanic island of volcanic origin, e.g. Hawaii) | |
| Maximum elevation (meters) | 2072 | Clark 2008: 64 |
| Island Size (km²) | 1437 | Clark 2008: 64 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Estimate of culture population size at relevant time focus | 15000 | Fortune 1932: 30; Elkins 1953: 56 |
| Importance of Matrilateral descent (V.2) | High (Matrilateral descent plays an important role in determining social status and / or group membership, and is more important than any other form of descent.) | Young 1991: 50, 51 |
| Importance of Patrilateral descent (V.2) | Low (Patrilateral descent plays little or no role in determining social status and / or group membership.) | Young 1991: 50, 51 |
| Polygamy (SCCS 861) | Limited polygyny (< 20% of married males) | Young 1991: 51 |
| Marital residence (SCCS 69) | Ambilocal - with either wife's or husband's kin | Young 1991: 51 |
| Kinship system (if applicable) | Iroquois | Young 1991: 50 |
| Estimated population of largest political community | 100-999 | Fortune 1932: 30 |
| Political Authority | Absent, or restricted to a group no larger than the household | Fortune 1932: 30, 83-85 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| (No) conflict (social or political) within the local community (SCCS v 767) | Low (Conflict seldom occurs, and is almost never violent.) | Fortune 1932: 43 |
| (No) internal warfare (between communities of the same society) (SCCS v 773) | Frequent, occurring at least yearly | Fortune 1932: 30; Bromilow 1929: 30 |
| (No) external warfare (with other societies) (SCCS v 774) | Frequent, occurring at least yearly | Bromilow 1929: 61, 226 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Metalworking | Absent | Bellwood et al. 1975 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Animal husbandry as a source of food | Medium | Young 1991: 50 |
| Land-based hunting performed by individuals | Minor | Fortune 1932: 70; Young 1991: 50 |
| Land-based gathering | Medium | Fortune 1932: 70 |
| Land-based hunting performed by one or more groups | Minor | Fortune 1932: 70; Young 1991: 50 |
| Agriculture / Horticulture | Principal (more important than any other source of food) | Fortune 1932: 69-70; Young 1991: 50 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Water-based gathering | Medium | Fortune 1932: 69-70; Young 1991: 50; Bromilow 1929: 210 |
| Fishing and water-based hunting performed by one or more groups | Medium | Fortune 1932: 69-70; Young 1991: 50 |
| Fishing and water-based hunting performed by individuals | Medium | Fortune 1932: 69-70; Young 1991: 50 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Trade / wage labour as a source of food | Medium | Fortune 1932: 69-70; Young 1991: 50 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Was a foreign religion adopted through a top-down (those high in the social hierarchy converted first, followed by the general population) or a bottom-up (the general population converted first, followed by those high in the social hierarchy) process? | Mixed / Neither (e.g. Both high-status individuals and the general population converted at the same time, or the religion was adopted through a mixture of top-down and bottom-up processes.) | Young 1991: 51; Bromilow 1929: 60-170, 206-230, 244-265, 116, 124 |
| Use of force in conversion | Low (most communities adopted the new religion either voluntarily or due to pressure from other communities of the same culture) | Young 1991: 59-50, 51; Bromilow 1929: 95-170, 206-230, 244-265, |
| Adoption of a world religion | Present and predominant (At one time or another during the post-contact period, at least 75% of the indigenous population practiced a world religion.) | Young 1991: 51 |
| Resident missionary involvement in conversion process | Present, and from non-Austronesian societies (Resident foreign missionaries, at least one of whom was from a non-Austronesian society, played an important role in the conversion process.) | Young 1991: 49-50 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Syncretic religious movements | Absent | Young 1991: 49-50, 51; Bromilow 1929: 95-170, 206-230, 244-265, |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Replacement-level immigration | Absent (Replacement-level immigration did not occur – an immigrant culture was never present in the area, or was present but had a population size less than 10% of that of the indigenous culture.) | Young 1983: 9 |
| Language shift | Medium (The indigenous language remained an important means of communication for the duration of the post-contact period, but at one time or another the indigenous population used a non-indigenous language to roughly the same extent.) | Eberhard et al. (eds.) 2020 |
| Foreign education systems | Medium (At one time or another during the post-contact period over 25% of indigenous children received at least a basic non-indigenous education, but this figure never exceeded 75%.) | of Papua New Guinea 2010: 4, 33 |
| Foreign government systems | Present, and of high importance (At one time or another during the post-contact period the culture was subject to a foreign government system that controlled most important decisions.) | Young 1983: 9; Young 1991: 51 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Changes in means of subsistence | Medium (Principal and major means of subsistence have changed from their indigenous states (e.g. through gain or loss of major and / or principal means of subsistence), but at least one of the major or principal means of subsistance has persisted.) | of Papua New Guinea 2010: 33 |
| Exportation of goods to other cultures | Present but minor (At one time or another exports were part of the local economy, but were never a primary focus of economic activity for more than 10% of the population .) | Young 1983: 9; of Papua New Guinea 2010: 33 |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Vehicles and roads | Present but rarely used (At no time during the post-contact period were motor vehicles used by a substantial portion of the population, but at one time or another most members of population had access to roads suitable for motor vehicles.) | of Papua New Guinea 2010: 33 |
| Air travel | Absent (At no time during the post-contact period did most members of the culture have access to an airport or airstrip.) | of Papua New Guinea 2010: 33 |
| Sea port | Present (At one time or another during the post-contact period most members of the culture had access to a sea port.) |
| Question | Response | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Loss of autonomy during postcontact period | Medium (The culture maintained some political autonomy throughout the post-contact period, but on at least one occasion during the post-contact period the culture entered into a political relationship with a foreign power that involved some loss of autonomy.) | Young 1983: 4; Young 1991: 51 |
| Nature of loss of autonomy – voluntary vs. forced | Largely voluntary (Autonomy was ceded either voluntarily or as a result of pressure from other members of the same culture, without the threat of external force being necessary.) | Young 1983: 4-5; Young 1991: 49-50 |