Question

What role does moka play in Kawelka society?

Answer 1

What function does a Moka serve in Kawelka society?

05.10.2012

History of Anthropology

Reflective essay by Michael Moshchenko

"Ongka's Big Moka" & "Kula trade"

It is hard to imagine a tribe or a country without any trade or exchange systems. Many years ago, when people did not have a stable system for trade it was hard to live and develop. So people developed a trading system or some sort of exchange of goods. Every country has its own way of trading that has been developed from a simple one. For example the Trobriand Islanders of the east coast of New Guinea have developed a sort of trade system that helps people of every island to be united and friendly to each other. The unification is not the only outcome of this trading system. For example in the Kawelka tribe of Papua New Guinea, big Moka is a very organized system to show the superiority of one tribe to others. Although people of those systems know the importance of it by what they observe, system by itself develops into something big, beyond their understanding. These two systems are very different but also very similar to each other because of their outcomes and core ideas. It is easier to find the differences by first covering each one of these two systems and finding their greater idea in the societies where they appeared