Melanesian
1
7.7
- adjective
- /ˌmɛləˈniːʒən/
- Some Melanesian big men grow even bigger after they die, if political size is measured by reputation.
- Melanesian societies
- Melanesian cargo
- traditional Melanesian
Examples
-
In this article, we reflect upon the continued significance of Melanesian ethnography to anthropology.
Academic text (1997) -
The paradoxical result was that the anti-colonial movement was spearheaded by Protestant Melanesian pastors demanding a revival of kastom.
Academic text (1993) -
In many Melanesian societies, such rights can also be exchanged or sold.
Academic text (1990) -
Distinctions within the Melanesian big man type have been proposed.
Academic text (1990) -
Early in her career she set off to do field work in the Melanesian Islands of Papua New Guinea, north of Australia.
-
But these large groups, by the nature of Melanesian alliances, were short-lived.
Academic text (1990) -
Beyond their religious significance, ancestors serve critical discursive and epistemological functions within Melanesian culture.
Academic text (1990) -
More than a few of the men, both blackbirds and indentured laborers, came from the Melanesian islands.
Academic text (2005) -
In Vanuatu, the fragmented, diverse, and decentralized nature of Melanesian society enabled the Condominium authorities to virtually bypass the chieftaincy altogether.
Academic text (1993) -
The Melanesian people have a rich cultural heritage that includes traditional music and dance.
Surface Forms
Morphology
Melanesian = Melanesia (transparent) = Melanesia + n
The suffix '-n' is a standard English suffix used to form adjectives from proper nouns.
Etymology
Melanesian comes from the Greek roots melas and nesos, meaning 'black' and 'island'. So Melanesian describes something from Melanesia, the group of islands in the southwestern Pacific named for the darker skin of many of its people.