Ancestral land marked by sacred stone

Esta Ambong clears the brush to "wake up" her family's land. Some Mewun believed that children who spent a large amount of time elsewhere were in danger of losing their invisible souls. Children themselves were taught to call out aloud to this second self when leaving a strange territory so that it would return to the physical self and let it depart unified, e.g. "Jonsin, yumi go nao." Soul loss was able to make children sick so this protective measure was often taken.

• Summer 1981

• Larcom, Joan

• Skinner-Jones, Ann

• Land and Custom Sustained and Revived

• Melanesia
• Oceania
• Pacific Islands
• South West Bay (Malakula, Vanuatu)
• Wintua (Malekula, Vanuatu)

• Ambong, Esta

• Ancestor worship
• Portraits

• image

• No linguistic content; Not applicable

• Skinner-Jones, Ann

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2021-11-16