Technique et rituel : l'exemple du poteau central de la grande case des Kanaks (centre-nord de la Nouvelle-Calédonie)
Year: 1988
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT The information presented in this article was gathered in the course of more general research on techniques used in the construction of Big Round Houses in New Caledonia. Transporting the tree intended for the central pole in the framework appears to be one of the essential sequences of the operation because, in addition to technical difficulties inherent in the means available in traditional society, it has proved to be of considerable symbolic importance. On one hand the tree is the medium for representations relating to living persons, although it also serves as a gathering place for spirits ; and on the other hand the choice of itinerary for transporting the tree seems to be determined by varying sociopolitical requirements, the sense and coherence of which are bound up in ritual.
Author: Roger Boulay
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W2095476807