Palau

• Traditional Culture (1871)
  • 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.)	Parmentier 1991: 25; Dobbin 2011: 165-188
    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.)	Force 1960: 66-75
    (Low) contact with other societies (SCCS v 787)	Frequent, through trade, warfare, travel, etc. (e.g. yearly or most years)	Parmentier 1991: 25
    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.)	Force 1960: 66-75
    Distance to closest landmass inhabited by a different culture (km)	270	Calculator 2014; Gorenflo 1996
    Distance to nearest continent (km)	2012	Calculator 2014

  • Physical Environment
    Location

    Question	Response	Source
    Longitude of culture’s location (°)	134.6	2014; Parmentier 1991: 24
    Latitude of culture’s location (°)	7.4	2014; Parmentier 1991: 24

    Geographical Range of Culture

    Question	Response	Source
    Number of islands inhabited by culture	Four or more	Parmentier 1987: 25

    Features of Island with Largest Culture Population

    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)	2019
    Maximum elevation (meters)	217	2019
    Island Size (km²)	370	2019

  • Social Environment
    Social Environment

    Question	Response	Source
    Estimate of culture population size at relevant time focus	10000	Gorenflo 1996
    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.)	Parmentier 1987: 67
    Importance of Patrilateral descent (V.2)	Medium (Patrilateral descent plays an important role in determining social status and / or group membership, but is not the most important form of descent.)	Parmentier 1987: 67
    Polygamy (SCCS 861)	Limited polygyny (< 20% of married males)	Smith 1983: 145
    Marital residence (SCCS 69)	Patrilocal or virilocal - with husband's kin	Parmentier 1987: 87
    Estimated population of largest political community	100-999	Gorenflo 1996; Parmentier 1987: 55-106
    Political Authority	Supralocal (encompasses multiple local groups)	Parmentier 1987: 55-106

    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.)	Parmentier 1991: 27
    (No) internal warfare (between communities of the same society) (SCCS v 773)	Frequent, occurring at least yearly	Parmentier 1991: 26-27
    (No) external warfare (with other societies) (SCCS v 774)	Occasional, at least every generation	Parmentier 1987: 25-54

  • Subsistence and Economy
    Land-based means of subsistence

    Question	Response	Source
    Animal husbandry as a source of food	Absent	Force 1960: 28
    Land-based hunting performed by individuals	Medium	Force 1960: 28; Agency 1976: 22, 37-38
    Land-based gathering	Medium	Force 1960: 28
    Land-based hunting performed by one or more groups	Minor	Force 1960: 28; Agency 1976: 22, 37-38
    Agriculture / Horticulture	Principal (more important than any other source of food)	Parmentier 1987: 56-57

    Water-based means of subsistence

    Question	Response	Source
    Water-based gathering	Major	Force 1960: 28, 30
    Fishing and water-based hunting performed by one or more groups	Medium	Force 1960: 28, 30; Agency 1976: 19-22, 38
    Fishing and water-based hunting performed by individuals	Major	Force 1960: 28, 30; Agency 1976: 19-22, 38

    Commercial Activity

    Question	Response	Source
    Trade / wage labour as a source of food	Medium	Adams and Gibbons (eds.) 1997: 49

• Post Contact History (1871-2014)
  • 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.	Machiko 2002: 70
    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)	Machiko 2002: 68-70, 73-75, 87-93; Force 1960: 70-71
    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.)	Force 1960: 70-71; Shuster 2021; . 2014
    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.)	Force 1960: 70-71

    Syncretic Movements

    Question	Response	Source
    Syncretic religious movements	Present, and survived to the present day	Machiko 2002: 1; . 2014

  • 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.)	Gorenflo 1996: 83; Machiko 2002: 84; Force 1960: 73; . 2014
    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.)	Matsumoto 2010: 136; . 2014
    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.)	Force 1960: 73; Shuster 2021
    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.)	Force 1960: 70-75

    Economic Changes

    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.)	Shuster 2021; . 2014
    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.)	Johannes 1981: 4, 71

    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.)	Shuster 2021
    Air travel	Present and long-distance (At one time or another, most members of the culture had access to international air travel.)	Shuster 2021
    Sea port	Present (At one time or another during the post-contact period most members of the culture had access to a sea port.)	. 2014

    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.)	Force 1960: 70-72; Shuster 2021
    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.)	Force 1960: 70-75; Useem 1950: 142