| Papers [1-6] of 6 | Search results on "POLYNESIAN CULTURE": |
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Polynesian Seafaring Culture, 2002.
A paper discussing the history of Polynesian seafaring and how it is being re-integrated into current Hawaiian-Polynesian cultural practice.
2,866 words (approx. 11.5 pages), 11 sources, MLA, $ 85.95
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Abstract
This paper defines and discusses this unique culture of sailing the oceans and examines the history of this practice. It explores how the skills and heritage of these seafaring people, that laid dormant for generations, is experiencing a revival amid the Polynesians of today, giving them pride and purpose in the ancient arts and culture of their ancestors.
From the Paper
"The Pacific Ocean is the earth?s largest geographic feature, occupying more than one third the surface of the globe, an area greater than all the landmasses put together. The some 25,000 islands, roughly 1.6 million square kilometers, are scattered about a sea area of more than 88 million square kilometers, stretching 16,000 kilometers along the equator and 15,000 kilometers from the Bering Strait to the Antarctic Circle (Kiste 1991). More than one half of the world?s islands are found in the Pacific Ocean. These islands comprise an area known as Polynesia, which means ?many islands,? and is geographically the largest of the Pacific?s cultural areas, with distances between the island groups the greatest (Kiste 1991). An imaginary triangle from Hawaii in the north to the southeast at Easter Island then to New Zealand in the southwest defines Polynesia. The Pacific Ocean is so vast that even with some 25,000 islands dotting its waters, the majority of the area is empty. In fact, if Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan, had missed Guam in 1521, he would have believed that there was no human inhabitants in the entire region (Kiste 1991). Today, ?the combined exclusive economic zones of the countries in the region is approximately 30 million square kilometers, an area almost the size of Africa or three times the size of the continental United States? (Zurick 1995)."
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Polynesian Culture, 2005.
A discussion of the historical and cultural development of the Maori ta moko.
1,684 words (approx. 6.7 pages), 4 sources, MLA, $ 54.95
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Abstract
The paper examines some of the basic cultural forces that drove the original ta moko designs. The writer further discusses its recent resurgence among modern Maori. It explains the highly ritualized process of traditional ta moko incisions. The paper suggests that the use of ta moko among the Maori can be explained in terms of a need to establish a strong cultural marker.
From the Paper
"The Maori Ta Moko: Historical and Cultural Development
Few cultural practices possess the immediate recognition and visual authority of the Maori ta moko. The ta moko is the unique and elaborate body tattoos that Maori traditionally receive. Both men and women receive the tattoos, notably on their faces where the intricate patterns can be quite striking and even intimidating."
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Indonesia, 2004.
Provides an insight into the contemporary culture of Indonesia.
914 words (approx. 3.7 pages), 5 sources, MLA, $ 32.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses how Indonesian culture is an amalgam of the traditions of many civilizations and religions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Southeast Asian, Polynesian, Chinese, Arabic, and Dutch. It looks at how, since the country achieved its independence from the Dutch colonialist rule in 1945, the Indonesian culture has been influenced by the political and economic conditions prevailing in the country. It also examines some notable Indonesian customs, as well as the psychographics of the Indonesian people.
From the Paper
"Although most Indonesians are Muslim, there are various ethnic divisions that make the country a multi-cultural country. For example 45% of the population is Javanese, while 14% are Sudanese 14%, 7% Madurese, and 8% ?coastal Malays.?(Forbes, 2003) There is also a marked rural/ urban division, with the urbanized middle class influenced by the Western culture but also bitter at the perceived ?betrayal? by institutions such as the IMF (perceived to be controlled by the US) at not having helped the country out of its predicament at the time of a major economic crisis in 1997. The attitude is a reflection of the ?collectivism? of the Indonesian people."
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The Chumash: Seafarers of Southern California, 2007.
A study of the Chumash, a seafaring Native American tribe of Southern California and their possible connection with ancient Polynesian seafarers.
1,760 words (approx. 7.0 pages), 10 sources, APA, $ 56.95
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Abstract
This paper examines the Native American tribe of Southern California, the Chumash, one of the few New World peoples who regularly navigated the ocean. The paper points out that they built plank canoes, unlike most other North American native tribes whose canoes were of an unsophisticated hollowed-out tree trunk design. Only Polynesian seafarers from the distant South Pacific were thought to use similar plank boats to explore and colonize the various islands of the Pacific over a thousand or more years ago. The paper draws a possible connection between the two peoples according to both linguistic and archaeological evidence. From a purely linguistic standpoint, the Chumash word for plank canoe, "tomolo", may be derived from the Polynesian word "tumu-raa'au", referring to the wooden plank boats used by Polynesian explorers. The paper concludes that these findings regarding the Chumash wood plank canoe may open the door to seeing Native American culture in a whole new light, and even call into question old orthodoxies about migration patterns.
From the Paper
"Due to the vast size of the area that eventually became known as California, there were at one time or another dozens of small Native American tribes who inhabited the region, differing widely in language, culture and lifestyle, due to the great variety of environmental conditions they found themselves in (desert, mountain, seacoast, etc.) The Chumash are a Native American tribe who historically made their home along the southern coastal regions of California, stretching roughly from the vicinity of what is now Santa Barbara in the north down to Ventura in the south, but (to a lesser degree) even extending as far south as what is now Malibu ("Chumash.") They also lived on the three largest of the Channel Islands: Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel. The Channel Islands, located about 20 miles off the coast near present day Santa Barbara, are the largest offshore islands on the West Coast of North America ("Channel Islands.") This offshore presence was unique to the Chumash among California Indian tribes and will have a central place in the subsequent examination of their seafaring abilities and possible trans-Pacific origins."
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Tahitian Tattoos, 2006.
A discussion regarding the history of tattoos.
1,868 words (approx. 7.5 pages), 4 sources, MLA, $ 59.95
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Abstract
This paper reviews and discusses the origin of tattoos. According to the paper, the history of tattoos dates back some five thousand years. The paper reports that the earliest inhabitants of Tahiti were Polynesians and it is believed that it was these Polynesians that brought the art of tattooing to the Islands. According to the paper, this art form was used to express personality and family identity.
From the Paper
"The earliest inhabitants of Tahiti were Polynesians who came there from Asia centuries ago. The first European to the island was British sea captain Samuel Wallis in 1767, who claimed it for Britain, followed a year later by French navigator Louis Antoine de Bougainville, who claimed it for France (Tahiti 1996). It became a French protectorate in 1842, a French colony in 1880, and in 1946, France declared Tahiti and the other islands of French Polynesia to be French overseas territory. Today it remains under French rule (Tahiti 1996)."
"No one knows for certain, but it is most likely that the art of Polynesian tattooing was brought to the islands by the migrant population from Asia. Because there was no written language in Polynesian culture, this art form was sued to express personality and family identity (History 2006). Tattoos were used to indicate an individual's status in society, such as sexual maturity, genealogy and rank within society, thus the majority of all ancient Polynesians were tattooed (History 2006). "
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Environmental Economics, 2007.
An analysis of the concepts raised by Jared Diamond in his article, "Easter's End."
1,561 words (approx. 6.2 pages), 3 sources, APA, $ 51.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses Jared Diamond's article relating the decline and fall of the Easter Island Polynesians, "Easter's End." The paper examines Diamond's use of the Easter Island example as a moral illustration for contemporary society and what will happen if it persists in its unmitigated consumptive habits. It discusses the points that Diamond makes and the lessons that he attempts to teach his readers.
Table of Contents:
Abstract
Overview
Point and Hypothesis
Hypothesis and Theory
Evidence
Validity of Assumptions
Policy Recommendations
Conclusions
From the Paper
"This is a different perspective then. Where Diamond is accusatory of the state and its economic model as being implicitly responsible for the environmental destruction of Easter Island, other researchers view the state and the political apparatus as an integral part of the solution. That is, where human kind and human nature deserve at least as much of the responsibility for the environmental destruction as the economic model. The primary recommendation is that economic policies founded in the principles of sustainable development should aligned with the political apparatus which governs the broader society."
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