Social Structure, Space and Possession in Tongan Culture and Language: An ethnolinguistic study (Culture and Language Use)

✍ Scribed by Svenja Völkel

• Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company
• Year: 2010
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 290
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

This interdisciplinary study investigates the relationship between culture, language and cognition based on the aspects of social structure, space and possession in Tonga, Polynesia. Grounded on extensive field research, Völkel explores the subject from an anthropological as well as from a linguistic perspective. The book provides new insights into the language of respect, an honorific system which is deeply anchored in the societal hierarchy, spatial descriptions that are determined by socio-cultural and geocentric parameters, kinship terminology and possessive categories that perfectly express the system of social status inequalities among relatives. These examples impressively show that language is deeply anchored in its cultural context. Moreover, the linguistic structures reflect the underlying cognitive frame of its speakers. Just as several cultural practices (sitting order, access to land and gift exchange processes) the linguistic means are not only expressions of stratified social networks but also tools to maintain or negotiate the underlying socio-cultural system.

✦ Table of Contents

Cover......Page 1
Social Structure, Space and Possession in Tongan Culture and Language......Page 2
Editorial page......Page 3
Title page......Page 4
Copyright page......Page 5
Table of contents......Page 6
List of maps, figures and tables......Page 10
Acknowledgements......Page 14
Symbols and abbreviations......Page 16
1.1. Ethnolinguistics......Page 18
1.2. Fieldwork and research methods......Page 20
1.3. The ethnographic setting......Page 23
1.3.1 Tonga......Page 24
1.3.2 The village of Niutoua......Page 32
1.4. The Tongan language......Page 37
Part I Anthropological issues......Page 42
2.1. Kin and the personal social status within the kin group......Page 44
2.1.1 Social units......Page 45
2.1.2 Kinship terminology......Page 47
2.1.3 Social status and corresponding behaviour within the kin group (kāinga)......Page 51
2.1.4 Kinship terminology and social status within the kāinga......Page 58
2.2.1 Classes or societal groups......Page 60
2.2.2 Ha‘a ranking......Page 66
2.2.3 Speech preludes......Page 68
2.3.1 Social status within the kāinga of the Tu‘i Tonga......Page 71
2.3.2 Situations of conflict......Page 73
3.1. Land tenure......Page 74
3.2. Local groups......Page 81
3.3. The geography of the islands and the use of land and sea......Page 83
3.4. Land shortage and migration......Page 84
3.5. The symbolic meaning of space......Page 85
3.5.1 Seating order in a kava circle......Page 86
3.5.2 Seating order and spatial symbols for special rank or status......Page 91
Possession and gift exchange......Page 94
4.1. The economy......Page 95
4.1.1 Agriculture, livestock and fishing......Page 96
4.1.2 Production and use of koloa......Page 99
4.2. Gift exchange......Page 102
4.2.1 Gift exchange and private events......Page 104
4.2.2 Gift exchange and civic events......Page 106
4.2.3 Gift exchange and church events......Page 108
4.3. Remittances and the role of money......Page 109
Conclusion......Page 114
Photo illustrations......Page 118
PART II. Linguistic issues......Page 120
Spatial descriptions......Page 122
6.1. Different frames of reference......Page 123
6.2. Peculiarities of spatial reference in the Oceanic language family......Page 129
6.3. Tongan spatial markers......Page 130
6.4.1 Spatial representation of Niutoua......Page 141
6.4.2 Non-linguistic perception of space......Page 143
6.4.3 Spatial descriptions......Page 146
6.4.3.1 Linguistic realisation of the frames of reference......Page 148
6.4.3.2 Linguistic use of the frames of reference......Page 155
6.4.4 Linguistic and non-linguistic coding of space......Page 161
6.5. Space as a social component......Page 164
6.6. Conclusion......Page 170
7.1. Terminology and definitions concerning linguistic possession......Page 172
7.2. Tongan possessive markers (morphosyntax)......Page 175
7.3. The semantics of A- and O-possession......Page 181
7.3.1 Theories explaining the difference between A- and O-possession......Page 182
7.3.2.1 Defining A and O in Tongan......Page 193
7.3.2.2 The use of A and O with Tongan kinship terms......Page 199
7.4. Conclusion......Page 210
The language of respect......Page 212
8.1. Social deixis: Honorifics......Page 213
8.2. Western Polynesian languages of respect......Page 215
8.3. The Tongan language of respect (compared to Samoan)......Page 217
8.3.1 Defining lexical levels in Tongan......Page 220
8.3.2 The Tongan vocabulary of respect (semantic forms)......Page 230
8.3.3 The use of Tongan respect forms (context)......Page 240
8.3.3.1 The use of the language of respect at a village level (Niutoua)......Page 246
8.3.3.2 The use of the language of respect within the royal family......Page 249
8.4. Conclusion......Page 254
Conclusions......Page 256
References......Page 262
QUESTIONS:......Page 270
EXERCISES:......Page 272
Lists of A- and O-possessed -semantic categories and single items in different Polynesian languages......Page 274
List of A- and O-possessed semantic categories and single concrete nouns in Tongan according to Churchward (cf. 1953: 81-87)......Page 278
Lexical items which can be A- as well as O-possessed......Page 282
Glossary of Tongan terms......Page 284
Index......Page 288
The series Culture and Language Use......Page 290