On Maewo, chief Jonah Toaganase told the Daily Post newspaper that his community was ready to look after more than 3,000 people until the four permanent settlements are established and gardens planted.
Vanuatu's Red Cross has pre-positioned some aid on Maewo and a New Zealand Air Force Hercules brought in more supplies last week.
Peter Crowe, in his evaluation of the 'Birth and Efflorescence of Song on Maewo' (Crowe 1984), describes these as follows: the one scientific and objective, based on observations and logical deductions and sometimes (recently, as a rule) supported by documents or their equivalent; the other, the body of myth and folklore and its relation to monuments or natural evidences like stones and rivers and, importantly to social life and the way it is ordered (Crowe 1984:11-12).
'Birth and Efflorescence of Song on Maewo: A study in Melanesian music.' Unpublished MS.
Participants in the early workshops included James Gwero (Ambae), Jeffrey Uli Boe (
Maewo), Eli Field (Banks), Richard Leona (Pentecost), Graeme Tor (Pentecost), the late Chief Willie Taso (Ambrym), Alben Reuben (Malakula), Longdal Nobel (Malakula), Aiar Rantes (Malakula), the late Aviu Koli (Epi), Michael Matoa (Efate), Sempet Naritantop (Erromango), Jerry Taki (Erromango), James Nobwat (Erromango) and Philip Tepahae (Aneityum).
In 1995 research was extended to the island of Malakula and in 1996 to Aneityum, Efate and
Maewo. The principal ANU researchers involved are Stuart Bedford, Meredith Wilson (see her contribution to this collection) and Matthew Spriggs.
Traditionally, however, like all Oceanic peoples, the people of Ambae were very much a seafaring people, using canoes not only for travel to other parts of the island and the nearby, visible islands of Maewo and Pentecost, but for much lengthier journeys to distant islands, for which they required considerable navigation skills.
For example my recent research into the closely related languages of the neighbouring island of Maewo reveals that the systems operating in the three languages spoken on this island are virtually identical to that used in Ambae.
He was travelling from the nearby island of
Maewo to Santo, taking yams to feed his pigs there.
For example, rows of cupules found in the caves of Malakula,
Maewo and Erromango are among the most dominant motif arrangements in the engraved rock-art.
