The Clans That Came From One Canoe

Aline Vachiéry · Endorsed in supplied archive

In Paicî country, every clan recites its arrival. But once every ten years, at the yam festival, the clans recite together — because, the elders say, all of them stepped from one canoe, and the sea remembers the order in which they stepped.

Cultural context

Kanak clans of New Caledonia trace ancestry through foundational arrivals and recitations. The yam festival (fête de l'igname) marks the New Year in the Kanak calendar. The houp tree is used in traditional Kanak architecture, notably the great case (grande case) of the Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre, whose spire is a houp trunk.

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