Rapa Nui

• Traditional Culture (1862)
  • 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.)	Hays 1991: 53; Metraux 1971: 314
    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)	Occasional but not often (e.g. once in a generation)	Hays 1991: 53, 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)	2076.3	Calculator 2014; Island 2021
    Distance to nearest continent (km)	3515	Calculator 2014

  • Physical Environment
    Location

    Question	Response	Source
    Longitude of culture’s location (°)	-109.4	2014; Metraux 1971: 8
    Latitude of culture’s location (°)	-27.1	2014; Metraux 1971: 8

    Geographical Range of Culture

    Question	Response	Source
    Number of islands inhabited by culture	One	Metraux 1971: 8

    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)	Metraux 1971: 7
    Maximum elevation (meters)	600	Heyerdahl and Caviedes 2020
    Island Size (km²)	165	Metraux 1971: 7; Boersema 2015: 28

  • Social Environment
    Social Environment

    Question	Response	Source
    Estimate of culture population size at relevant time focus	4000	Metraux 1971: 20; Boersema 2015: 113-114
    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.)	Metraux 1971: 120
    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.)	Metraux 1971: 120
    Polygamy (SCCS 861)	Limited polygyny (< 20% of married males)	Hays 1991: 54
    Marital residence (SCCS 69)	Neolocal - separate from kin	Hays 1991: 54
    Kinship system (if applicable)	Hawaiian	Hays 1991: 54
    Estimated population of largest political community	1,000-9,999	Kirch 1984: 277; Metraux 1971: 20-21

    Conflict

    Question	Response	Source
    (No) conflict (social or political) within the local community (SCCS v 767)	Endemic (Conflict is frequent, is often violent, and is a pervasive aspect of daily life, e.g. feuding).	Metraux 1971: 145-147
    (No) internal warfare (between communities of the same society) (SCCS v 773)	Common, at least every five years	Metraux 1971: 149
    (No) external warfare (with other societies) (SCCS v 774)	Occasional, at least every generation	Metraux 1971: 36-49, 55-93

  • Subsistence and Economy
    Subsistence and Economy

    Question	Response	Source
    Metalworking	Absent	Metraux 1971: 165-172

    Land-based means of subsistence

    Question	Response	Source
    Animal husbandry as a source of food	Medium	Metraux 1971: 19, 38-39
    Land-based hunting performed by individuals	Medium	Kirch 1984: 271; Metraux 1971: 19
    Land-based gathering	Medium	Kirch 1984: 271; Hays 1991: 53-54; Metraux 1971: 18, 331, 332
    Land-based hunting performed by one or more groups	Absent	Kirch 1984: 271; Metraux 1971: 18-19
    Agriculture / Horticulture	Principal (more important than any other source of food)	Hays 1991: 53-54; Metraux 1971: 14

    Water-based means of subsistence

    Question	Response	Source
    Water-based gathering	Medium	Kirch 1984: 265; Metraux 1971: 191-192
    Fishing and water-based hunting performed by one or more groups	Medium	Kirch 1984: 265, 261; Hays 1991: 54; Metraux 1971: 172-192
    Fishing and water-based hunting performed by individuals	Medium	Kirch 1984: 265, 261; Hays 1991: 54; Metraux 1971: 172-192

    Commercial Activity

    Question	Response	Source
    Trade / wage labour as a source of food	Medium	Hays 1991: 54; Metraux 1971: 136-137

• Post Contact History (1862-2014)
  • 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 bottom-up process, although those in power showed little or no reluctance.	Metraux 1971: 44
    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)	Metraux 1971: 44
    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.)	Hays 1991: 55
    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.)	Metraux 1971: 44

  • Secular History
    Demographic and Social Changes

    Question	Response	Source
    Replacement-level immigration	Medium (Replacement-level immigration occurred. The immigrant culture had a population size more than 50% of that of the indigenous population at one time or another, but this figure never exceeded 100%.)	Makihara 2005: 728; Hays 1991: 53
    Language shift	High (At one time or another during the post-contact period, a foreign language became the sole or primary means of communication for most of the indigenous population.)	Makihara 2005: 727-728
    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.)	Delsing 2009: 325-334
    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.)	Heyerdahl and Caviedes 2020: 54

    Economic Changes

    Question	Response	Source
    Changes in means of subsistence	High (No indigenous means of subsistence has remained major or principal.)	Hays 1991: 54; Metraux 1971: 47-48
    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 .)	Delsing 2009: 66, 101-133

    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.)	Delsing 2009: 7
    Air travel	Present and long-distance (At one time or another, most members of the culture had access to international air travel.)	Heyerdahl and Caviedes 2020
    Sea port	Absent (At no time during the post-contact period did most members of the culture have access to a sea port.)	Delsing 2009: 15; Heyerdahl and Caviedes 2020

    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.)	Hays 1991: 53, 54
    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.)	Delsing 2009: 78-90