Untitled - Stichting Papua Erfgoed

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rôle in this process to a so-called megalithic cultural current which, coming from
the Philippines, reached northern New Guinea via the Carolines or the Bismark
Archipelago somewhere about in the middle of the Mandated Territory, from
where it spread westward along the coast and the rivers. The principle
characteristics of this megalithic civilization were: disposal of the dead in a
prahu or on a platform, prahu-shaped roofs, the important position of the
prahu as clan symbol, decoration of the roofs with „horns", the marriage gift,
outrigger-prahu, stone culture (cf. Lake Sentani), the lizard or crocodile as
decorative motif, and slavery. This current is supposed to have superimposed
itself on a matrilineal society with: exchange marriage, totemism, a cannibalistic
initiation monster and burial of the dead. Later on, according to Vroklage, there
was yet another migration along the coast. He distinguishes, thus:
1) Oldest cultural layer (totemistic and matrilineal rwoclass system), arrived
from the west?
2) Megalithic current, from the east (as far as Netherlands New Guinea is
concerned at any rate).
3) Melanesian or Malayo-Polynesian current, from the east.
Apart from the question of whether or not Vroklage's currents can be
associated with the culture traits mentioned by him, I think it is correct to
recognize an east-west migration for large parts of New Guinea. Is it possible
that there was a migration along the whole coast, caused by Melanesian invasions,
with as a result a penetration of the Papuan element in eastern Indonesia,
where this element is recognizable in the racial type found on various islands?
It is a fact that not only in stories but also in reality all sorts of tribes know
of movements to the west (Humboldt Bay, Biak- Numfoor, MacCluer Gulf,
southern New Guinea), 1 ) although we also encounter many movements from
the mountains to the coast. Further investigation could shed more light on the
subject.
2. As for the social structure of the society in question, what is important
for us is not that the investigation showed that a number of groups had immigrated
from elsewhere and received the protection of the more powerful bay
clans, but the functioning — now principally as an ideal pattern — of a fourclan
marriage system, of which more will be said below.
The kinship terminology is for a large part classifcatory; the number of
primary terms is rather small. In many terms no distinction is made according
to sex, unless it is done by the addition of the terms moin (woman) or tant
(man). Actually only two generations are included in the nomenclature; for
older and younger generations only undifferentiated generation terms, some of
them reciprocal, are used. Levirate and sororate are known. Cross-cousin
marriage was — according to the ideal pattern — forbidden. Exchange marriage
occured frequently. In the presentday society, however, all sorts of traditional
institutions — including those mentioned — are in the process of disappearing;
the influence of western values on the old culture is leading to the structural
disintegration of the latter.
The appearance of matrilineal influences, which are important not structurally
1 ) P. Wirz: „The social meaning of the sept-house and the sept-boat in Dutch and
British New Guinea". T.B.G., 14, 1934; p. 140—148. See also C. Seligmann in
„Man", 17, 1917; No. 30.