Fijians

• Traditional Culture (1840)
  • Isolation
    Isolation

    Question	Response	Source
    Pre-Austronesian population	Absent: No 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.)	Routledge 1991: 21-55
    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)	Thomson 1908: 21-55
    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)	244	Calculator 2014
    Distance to nearest continent (km)	2629	Calculator 2014

  • Physical Environment
    Location

    Question	Response	Source
    Longitude of culture’s location (°)	178	2014; McArthur 1967: 8
    Latitude of culture’s location (°)	-17.8	2014; McArthur 1967: 8

    Geographical Range of Culture

    Question	Response	Source
    Number of islands inhabited by culture	Four or more	Wilkes 1845: 337

    Features of Island with Largest Culture Population

    Question	Response	Source
    Island type (island with largest culture population or largest island if unknown)	Tectonic (an oceanic island formed by tectonic uplift, e.g. Macquarie Island)	Evenhuis (eds.) 2005
    Maximum elevation (meters)	1324	Levu 2008
    Island Size (km²)	10388	Ryan 2009: 8

  • Social Environment
    Social Environment

    Question	Response	Source
    Estimate of culture population size at relevant time focus	200000	McArthur 1967: 2-8
    Importance of Matrilateral descent (V.2)	Medium (Matrilateral descent plays an important role in determining social status and / or group membership, but is not the most important form of descent.)	Marck 2008
    Importance of Patrilateral descent (V.2)	High (Patrilateral descent plays an important role in determining social status and / or group membership, and is more important than any other form of descent.)	Marck 2008
    Polygamy (SCCS 861)	Full polygyny (20% or more of married males)	Wilkes 1845: 97
    Marital residence (SCCS 69)	Patrilocal or virilocal - with husband's kin	Routledge 1991: 23
    Kinship system (if applicable)	Iroquois	Routledge 1991: 23
    Estimated population of largest political community	10,000-99,999	Wilkes 1845: 64, 341
    Political Authority	Supralocal (encompasses multiple local groups)	Wilkes 1845: 64

    Conflict

    Question	Response	Source
    (No) conflict (social or political) within the local community (SCCS v 767)	High (Conflict is frequent and often violent, but is not a pervasive aspect of daily life.)	Williams 1858: 14; Hale 1846: 60-61
    (No) internal warfare (between communities of the same society) (SCCS v 773)	Frequent, occurring at least yearly	Waterhouse 1866: 14; Wilkes 1845: 64, 82
    (No) external warfare (with other societies) (SCCS v 774)	Occasional, at least every generation	Williams 1858: 43-59; Wilkes 1845: 82-86, 116, 181, 184

  • Subsistence and Economy
    Subsistence and Economy

    Question	Response	Source
    Metalworking	Absent	Williams 1858: 60-101

    Land-based means of subsistence

    Question	Response	Source
    Animal husbandry as a source of food	Minor	Quain 1948: 144; Wilkes 1845: 370
    Land-based hunting performed by individuals	Minor	Quain 1948: 144, 149-150; Wilkes 1845: 370
    Land-based gathering	Major	Williams 1858: 97-98; Wilkes 1845: 352
    Land-based hunting performed by one or more groups	Minor	Quain 1948: 149-150; Wilkes 1845: 370
    Agriculture / Horticulture	Principal (more important than any other source of food)	Wilkes 1845: 352, 355,

    Water-based means of subsistence

    Question	Response	Source
    Water-based gathering	Medium	Wilkes 1845: 370
    Fishing and water-based hunting performed by one or more groups	Medium	Williams 1858: 89-93; Wilkes 1845: 370
    Fishing and water-based hunting performed by individuals	Medium	Williams 1858: 89-93; Wilkes 1845: 370

    Commercial Activity

    Question	Response	Source
    Trade / wage labour as a source of food	Medium	Williams 1858: 93-94; Hale 1846: 62

• Post Contact History (1840-2014)
  • Religious History
    Conversion

    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?	Primarily a top-down process.	Routledge 1991: 22
    Use of force in conversion	Medium (e.g force was threatened or implied during the conversion process; some communities agreed to conversion but others were forced to convert)	Thornley 1979; Thomson 1908: 36-55
    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.)	Thornley 1979; Thomson 1908: 54
    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.)	Thornley 1979; Thomson 1908: 36-55

    Syncretic Movements

    Question	Response	Source
    Syncretic religious movements	Present, but did not survive to the present-day	Thomson 1908: 140-144; Foster and McDonald 2020

  • Secular History
    Demographic and Social Changes

    Question	Response	Source
    Replacement-level immigration	High (Replacement-level immigration occurred. At one time or another during the post-contact period the immigrant culture had a population size more than 100% of that of the indigenous population.)	Foster and McDonald 2020
    Language shift	Low (The indigenous language remained the sole or primary means of communication for most of the indigenous population for the duration of the post-contact period.)	Foster and McDonald 2020
    Foreign education systems	High (At one time or another during the post-contact period over 75% of children received some at least a basic non-indigenous education.)	Gounder et al. 2009: 140
    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.)	Routledge 1991: 22

    Economic Changes

    Question	Response	Source
    Changes in means of subsistence	High (No indigenous means of subsistence has remained major or principal.)	Reddy 2011: 192
    Exportation of goods to other cultures	Present and substantial (At one time or another during the post-contact period, exports were a primary focus of economic activity for over 10% of the population.)	Foster and McDonald 2020

    Modern Infrastructure

    Question	Response	Source
    Vehicles and roads	Present and widely used (At one time or another during the post-contact period, motor vehicles were used by a substantial proportion of the population.)	Foster and McDonald 2020
    Air travel	Present and long-distance (At one time or another, most members of the culture had access to international air travel.)	Foster and McDonald 2020
    Sea port	Present (At one time or another during the post-contact period most members of the culture had access to a sea port.)	Agency 2009: 174

    Loss of Autonomy

    Question	Response	Source
    Loss of autonomy during postcontact period	High (On at least one occasion during the post-contact period, the culture came under the political dominance of a foreign power, and this event resulted in considerable loss of autonomy.)	Routledge 1991: 22
    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.)	Routledge 1991: 22