Canoe of Gogodala. Papua New Guinea.

[Anatol]

Gogodala is the name of an ethnic/language group from the Middle Fly District of the Western Province of Papua New Guinea, one of about a thousand different cultures that make up Papua New Guinea, each with its own languages and lifestyles. Canoes are a very important part of the Gogodala culture. "The Gogodala use of dugout canoes for everyday activities such as fishing, collecting firewood, carrying house posts, transporting sago and garden produce, people also characterize themselves as metaphorically 'being inside', or standing inside, their clan canoe." (Wilde 2004) Because they are located along a river, canoes are an important means of both transport and hunting. The fact that the tribe is located along a source of water means that they are able to get along easily as well as fish for a source of food. The network of rivers and water channels provide an excellent way of getting around and in fact the origins of the Gogodala are that their ancestors traveled to the area in large canoes. The Gogodala are able to trace their lineage back to these original clans and even more specifically, they trace their lineage back to the canoes that they used to travel there. In the old days, Gogodala warriors of the Balimo area of Western Province used canoe racing to settle conflicts - arguements over land, women and sago. The rivalry was often fierce. The race draws strong young men from nearby villages to enter the race where between 40 and 60 men line up a mono-hulled brightly coloured canoe measuring over 30 metres and paddel standing up. The canoe racing is a warrior's war game played on water with paddle-power instead of spears, clubs and bows and arrows. The annual Gogodala canoe festival take place in Balimo, Western province. The festival will showcase Gogodala war canoes, the 40m craft renowned for their decorations and artworks depicting animal figures representing various clans. Often bow of canoe depicting crocodile as the crocodile as a source of income, meat and has been part of the people since time immemorial. The war canoes of Gogodala play important roles for the many communities located near the sea and waterways, according to the organisers, the loss of canoes from the lifestyles of Papua New Guineans will be a loss of an important cultural identity.
Papua New Guinea 2009;K10;SG?
Sources: Wikipedia.org/wiki/Gogodala_people. http://tourism.pngpeles.com/index.php/s ... new-guinea

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see also: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=15253&p=20791#p20791