TY  - BOOK
AU  - Gunter Senft
AB  - The Trobriand Islanders' eschatological belief system explains what happens when someone dies. Bronislaw Malinowski described essentials of this eschatology in his articles "Baloma: the Spirits of the Dead in the Trobriand Islands" and "Myth in Primitive Psychology". There he also presented the Trobrianders' belief that a "baloma" can be reborn; he claimed that Trobrianders are unaware of the father's role as genitor. This volume presents a critical review of Malinowski's ethnography of Trobriand eschatology – finally settling the "virgin birth" controversy. It also documents the ritualized and highly poetic "wosi milamala" – the harvest festival songs. They are sung in an archaic variety of Kilivila called "biga baloma" – the baloma language. Malinowski briefly refers to these songs but does not mention that they codify many aspects of Trobriand eschatology. The songs are still sung at specific occasions; however, they are now moribund. With these songs Trobriand eschatology will vanish.
DO  - 10.1075/clu.5
ID  - OAPEN ID: 19909
KW  - Antropological linguistics
KW  - Austronesian languages
KW  - Linguistics
KW  - Anthropology
L1  - http://www.jbe-platform.com/content/books/9789027284693
LA  - English
LK  - https://directory.doabooks.org/handle/20.500.12854/61390
PB  - John Benjamins Publishing Company
PY  - 2011
SN  - 9789027284693
TI  - The Tuma Underworld of Love. Erotic and other narrative songs of the Trobriand Islanders and their spirits of the deadnull
ER  - 
