Ethnographical groups in the Pacific

Feather helmet - Hawaii

Local arrangement breaks up the wide district into geographical groups distinguished by ethnographic characteristics: Melanesia is contiguous to New Guinea; north of it, separated by a band poor in islands, we find Micronesia over against the Moluccas and Philippines to the eastward. Polynesia joins on in the form of a great triangular space outflanking the eastern side of the two districts already named both to south and to north, and is divided by a tract of sea with few islands into a western group of Tonga, Samoa, and Tokelau with Fiji, and a more extended eastern group reaching from Hawaii to New Zealand.¹

In view of the many internal differences in the populations, and considering the distinction, great but difficult, of accurate demarcation between Polynesians and Melanesians, there is little purpose in dividing off smaller groups by physical characteristics. These can at most be suggested. It is just possible that a sharper racial distinction between west and east Polynesians may be emphasised. According to Finsch, among all the Polynesians the Hawaiians have the greatest similarity with the Samoans. The Maoris are next most closely connected; this nearer relationship is confirmed by the language. This seems to be a similar phenomenon to that of the deepening of the lighter skin tint of the Malays into a darker as we go eastward.

(1) God of dances in the form of a double paddle, Easter Island; (2) toothed club from Tutuila; (3) ancient club from Tonga; (4, 5) short clubs from Easter Island.
(Berlin Museum of Ethnology.)

Confining ourselves to tangible objects, we will now make an attempt to divide the area of Polynesian culture into smaller districts. In this, as might be expected, the large influential groups of Samoa and Tonga show an affinity with the neighbouring Fiji. This strikes us most clearly in our ethnographical museums by the abundance and variety of the wonderfully carved clubs. Tonga shows linguistic peculiarities, shares with Fiji in respect of bows and pottery, and builds its vessels differently from Samoa.

In the Harvey Islands to the eastward, the art of carving has been absorbed in the preparation of hatchets with pretty handles rich in symbolic forms. The Society Isles show agreement with Hawaii in their feather work and axes. In the Marquesas, oars as well as axes and dancing stilts are carved with conventional ornaments, each of which has its name and its significance, reminding us somewhat of the Easter Islanders' writing. The Hawaii or Sandwich Islands are distinguished by fine feather masks and helmets, and have weapons with wooden handles, set with sharks' teeth like knives. These, however, find their richest development in the Gilbert or Kingsmill Island.

New Zealand, which has the most peculiar climate of any region inhabited by Polynesians, is the culminating point and the horn of plenty in regard to art development in Oceania. Its favourite manufacture is small hand clubs, called mere, made like many ornamental objects from jade. Also richly carved sticks, objects in greenstone, symbols of rank in the shape of oars, ships, pillars for houses. But on the whole it preserves agreement with the rest of Polynesia. One might conclude that its settlement did not take place till late, but that from the remoteness of these islands a tranquil development resulted with the maintenance of many old notions of form. If the Maori dialect is in many respects richer and more primitive than other Polynesian dialects, this may be ascribed to the more plentiful contact of the tribes over wider spaces.

The most unique existence is that of Easter Island. It represents among the islands what the naturalist would call a "sport" No part of the earth shows the power of isolation with more impressive clearness than this little spot of some 50 square miles. The most trustworthy descriptions draw attention to the departure of the Easter Islanders from the pure Polynesian type. Darker coloured skin and small eyes point perhaps to an admixture of Melanesian blood. In a population which by the highest estimate reached 3000, and before the days of small-pox and kidnapping were reckoned by the first French missionary at not more than 1500, even small admixtures would be of importance. But these peculiarities, not very significant under any circumstances, disappear when we look at the special ethno-graphical points, positive as well as negative. Above all other Polynesians the Easter Islanders possess the art of pottery; also an obsolete writing, the power of executing human figures in wood-carving, and of making gigantic stone images; they also build stone huts. But on the other hand they have not the more artistic forms of axe, bow, and spear.

¹ [Translator's note: I leave this as in the original, though it appears from the map that a line drawn from Hawaii to New Zealand passes through the Tonga group.]