Argonauts of the Western Pacific: An Account of Native Enterprise and Adventure in the Archipelagoes of Melanesian New Guinea (1922)

Spirits of the dead.

The taboos of the magic bundle (lilava). The term for general taboos about the Kula.

A black sorcerer, always male. There is usually one in each village.

Circular boar tusks sometimes traded in the Kula. At the time of writing, the practice was becoming less common.

Tip or end. Refers to final part or conclusion of a spell.

An approach to the study of culture that aims to determine the functions of various aspects of society. Functionalists use the analogy of society as an organism, comparing aspects of a society to the bodily systems and parts of an organism. Just as the body parts must work together to maintain the body, so must parts of a society work together to maintain the society. Functionalism assumes that cultural practices, myths, and traditions all serve a purpose and work together to form a cohesive, self-reinforcing whole. A main tenet of functionalism is that culture exists for human needs, whether biological, psychological, or social.

Functionalism was a reaction to historicism, which attempted to reconstruct a society’s history to understand it. Instead, functionalism takes a synchronic (non-historical) approach, looking at the “here and now.” Malinowski was a pioneer of functionalism, which reached extreme popularity in the 1920s and ’30s. His work established rigorous fieldwork as the cornerstone of functionalist research.

The kayga’u of the “above,” include spells recited over ginger root before departure to protect from mulukwausi.

The kayga’u of the “below” that protects against “evil agencies” like poisonous fish, sharks, and crabs that “await the drowning man from below” (189).

A mortuary taboo that prohibits the harvesting and scaling of palm and coconut trees.

The presentation of new canoe to friends and relatives of the toliwaga.

“Bigger and more seaworthy canoes” used for fishing (86).

Gifts, often axeblades, used with pokala to solicit Kula gifts.

The magic of the mist, which produces a mist that blinds the vision of “evil agencies” (189).

“Small, light, handy canoes” used for coastal transport (86).

Fairy tales told for fun and not held to be true.

Minor Kula expeditions that are held more frequently.

A body of “old talk” or tradition held to be true.

A ceremonial bundle of trade goods intended to make the trade partner be generous in the Kula.

“Myths, narratives, deeply believed” by the natives (230), which are held in great esteem and greatly influence their conduct.

Large canoes used to conduct the Kula and for longer journeys.

Also called yopa. Refers to “magical performance,” or the “spell, force, or virtue of magic” (330). Also used as an adjective to describe anything magical.

A flying witch in her nonhuman form.

The partners of one’s Kula partners.

White shell bracelets (also called armshells) traded in the Kula. One of the two Kula valuables.

A ceremony in which a toliwaga pays his crew in food upon returning from a Kula expedition.

The Kula magic. A series of rites and spells intended to make one’s Kula partner willing to give Kula gifts.

Offerings given to win the favor of a Kula partner and receive a gift. Usually consists of pigs or other foods.

The idea that “savage” peoples act in a self-interested, rational way to maximize their own economic or political condition with the least amount of effort. Malinowski sought to disprove this idea through the examples of the Kula and garden work in the Trobriands. Through his fieldwork he observed that the Trobrianders worked harder in the garden than was necessary to fulfill their caloric needs and were creating surplus. He discovered that garden work was actually a way of attaining social status and did not fulfill a purely utilitarian aim. In the Kula the trade in objects with utilitarian value is secondary to trade in Kula valuables, which hold only social significance.

Gifts of food given in payment for communal labor.

Ceremonial distribution of food for toliwaga to repay the builders of a canoe.

Red shell necklaces made from spondylus shells. One of two kinds of Kula valuables.

A farewell gift (not vaygu’a) in the Kula.

Competitive display of yield in Kula valuables.

Surface, skin body, or trunk. Refers to the main part of a spell.

The trial run of canoes, where all new canoes are launched together.

Anthropomorphic but non-human beings that “cause all epidemic disease,” including dysentery (59).

Wood sprites who steal crops and “inflict slight ailments” (59).

A prefix used to signify ownership or control.

The leader of a canoe going on a Kula expedition.

The owner of a canoe. A man of some rank who gets the “lion’s share” (91) of economic benefits of using the canoe, including Kula valuables and traded goods.

Meaning “initial part”; refers to the beginning of a spell. More figuratively, cause or beginning.

Members of a canoe’s crew who also perform some magical rites and participate the Kula.

Large, competitive Kula expedition held every two to three years.

General term for Kula valuables, including soulava and mwali.

The opening gift in the Kula.

General term for a boat.

Lashing creeper. A vine that is used to assemble boats. Includes much associated magic.

Also called vina vina. Songs “chanted during play” (230).

A return gift in the Kula.