Journal article
Fished up or thrown down: The geography of Pacific Island origin myths
Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol.93(2), pp.350-364
2003
Abstract
Myths recalling how islands were "fished up" or "thrown down" by (demi) gods are widespread in the Pacific Islands. Fishing-up myths are more numerous and are concentrated in a heartland comprising parts of Samoa, Tonga, the southern Cook Islands, and the Society Islands of French Polynesia. Geological details in many fishing-up myths suggest these recall the activities of shallow submarine (jack-in-the-box) volcanoes, notably in Tonga, and that these myths diffused to places where such volcanoes do not exist. Other fishing-up myths - particularly those recalling rapid emergence and/or successive uplift events and tectonic instability during the process of fishing-up - are suggested as recalling coseismic-uplift events (uplift coincident with large earthquakes), which are comparatively common in islands along the convergent plate boundaries of the southwest Pacific (including parts of Tonga and New Zealand). Throwing-down myths are less common in the Pacific, being effectively confined to places (near) where volcanoes erupted within the period of human occupation. Throwing-down myths are interpreted as recalling volcanic eruptions. © 2003 by Association of American Geographers.
Details
- Title
- Fished up or thrown down: The geography of Pacific Island origin myths
- Authors
- Patrick Nunn (Author) - University of the South Pacific, Fiji
- Publication details
- Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol.93(2), pp.350-364
- Publisher
- Routledge
- Date published
- 2003
- DOI
- 10.1111/1467-8306.9302006
- ISSN
- 0004-5608
- Organisation Unit
- Indigenous and Transcultural Research Centre; Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research; School of Social Sciences - Legacy; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; School of Law and Society; Sustainability Research Cluster
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99451095202621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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