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Category:

Fishing(1)

Topic:

Women's fishing

Consultant:

Margaret Gibson

Hagota ho'i
Fishing around a circle of stones built up on the sea floor. A net is put around the stones which have been put together to make a place for the fish to hide. Then each woman throws in a poisonous root = fuha to stun the fish and then the rocks are taken off, and the fish caught by hand within the net. The ho'i is about four or five feet in diameter.

The poison is not always used. The circle is surrounded with a net and the stones are removed one by one and the fish caught.

Sua'tutu'u
Net-fishing for the small black fish tutu'u. A net is set up at the reef end of a sandy strip which forms sort of a run for the fish. A woman stands on each side, and they must catch the fish. The other women stand at the short end of the sandy strip and slap the water with their hands or throw small stones to chase the fish towards the net.

A variation of this type is for the women who are not at the net, to move forward driving the fish into the net. As they move up, the women at the net bring the ends around so that the fish are enclosed. The net is set straight across. The women drive the fish by turning up the stones as they walk toward the net.

Faufaga
Fish traps. These are set in a stone ring and are also weighted down with stones. The bait is mixed waste food set in coconut shells. Stakes are set up at the traps to mark them for the women returning to dive down as the tide goes out and inspect the catch, and remove the traps.

Koukou he'e
Looking for he'e. The small octopus are sought in the holes in the coral into which they withdraw. The women put their hands down to let the octopus bite at them and then they are caught and speared with the sharp iron rod they carry.

Furamasa
This is fishing at high tide before sun set. The fish are driven into a net placed at the end of a sandy strip. Opposite the net many women slap the water and throw stones at fish coming across the "lane". Two women at the ends of the net dive and catch the fish with their hands. The fishing is also done before sunrise and is called then = na.

Sua'aki
The name of line fishing usually done on moonlight nights to catch uru. Both men and women do line fishing.

Jaujau
This is beating the water with the short dead outer coverings that drop from the palm leaves. The fish are driven into the net by scaring them. The drivers close in in a circle. This type of fishing is usually done when the family of a dead person is taken for a "bath" after the five day tabu on using the sea.

Kiri
This is the name of casting for small fish from the shore. The net is thrown so that it falls in a circle in the water with the opening toward the beach. Often two [persons] fish together, and the second person runs into the water and puts down all the edges close to the sand so that the fish cannot escape.

Ähe
The pink crabs are found particularly on the islands off Noatau.

Laekaji
This is driving the fish into a small V shaped net. This is usually done near low tide in the morning. The women drive in the fish by turning over stones and closing in on the net.

Category:

Fishing(2)

Topic:

Women's fishing

Consultant:

Isaac

Women's Fishing
This is done towards low tide. The vao hapa are 2 nets tied together to set in a V and with a long pocket at the top. 3 or 4 women stand with this before an opening in the reef. They vary these reef openings from day to day going to those they know the fish frequent. When the net is set they signal the other women to start driving towards them. During the day several ways of fishing may be followed. The women carry their small iron rods for poking into holes and under rocks, after scaring the fish in by beating the water with their kukuluga.

kukuluga = lavalava

Category:

Fishing(3)

Topic:

Hook & line

Consultant:

Varomua

This fishing was used for catching schnapper in the deep water by submerged reefs. Off Haua and off Losa are two good places. Rona.

Sharks = i'oro are also caught with hook and line. They are clubbed when brought to the side of the canoe. There is no singing practiced in order to attract sharks, and no fishing from logs as in Niuafo'ou.

Hooks were often made from the vertebrae of fish, but not from tortoise shell as stated by others.

Category:

Fishing(4)

Topic:

Squid fishing

Consultant:

C. Jacobsen

The squid or he'e is caught by the women. They poke about in the holes in the reef in which they know the squid are likely to enter with long thin sticks. Today the iron rods from a bed are the choicest instruments. The squid will take hold and try to pull the rods in if he is there. The woman will continue to poke him until he comes out. She must be very quick to catch him, and take his head or body and turn it inside out, or else the squid will crawl up her arm and onto her back and bite. The squid is powerless when his head is turned inside out. The two sacks inside the squid which contain the ink which it ejects.

Kaukau is to catch squid or he'e. Kau means to wade.

Category:

Fishing(5)

Topic:

Turtle fishing

Consultant:

Aisake

A net 15-20' deep and a very long net set inside and parallel to the reef at high tide. Men in pairs are watching from each end of each section. They hold on to the net's float with one hand and can thus sense turtles hitting the net. When a turtle hits the net he climbs up and a man dives below him, helping him up and when the turtle's head comes up above the water a man flips him over his head on his back, and he is thus rendered helpless.

Canoes come out from the shore rapping sides to scare out turtles. If a man stays on inside of the net, he is never hurt by sharks etc. When tipping over a turtle, one must say "Ka kau urof" (or an accident will happen). It is safe then to touch the turtle.

The description given by Isaac (school teacher at Oinafa) is of turtle fishing that he has participated in, at Salvaka. This is the only place where the knowledge and ritual has been retained. Other villages are frightened to fish for turtle with nets as they do not know the ritual.

The net is divided off into sections, a man at each end facing in 8-10 pairs of men to the net. The net is made of breadfruit cord.

Category:

Fishing(6)

Topic:

Turtle fishing

Consultant:

Semesi

The vao hoi were hung before the outlets at high tide and when the tide turned, the canoes started out from shore and scared the turtles into the nets by drumming against the side of the canoes. The nets were made of breadfruit cord, and from the breadfruit tree called ul'pulu. The driving was called hua'aki.

Turtles are also caught by taking canoes out on the high tide at night and searching for them with torches. The turtles are speared from the canoes as they come to the light.

Category:

Fishing(7)

Topic:

Spider web fishing

Consultant:

Margaret Gibson

Fui jiajia = Spider web fishing.
Mata ao = the spider web.

The spider web which is sticky is caught up from the corner of the house by twisting it on the end of a stick. The web is made into a ball and colored with charcoal so that it will show up black. Charcoal of the hefau is used, called mahala. This ball is then tied on the end of the fish line.

The fishing is done with a long bamboo pole 16-18' and with a line that is more than this in length.

The fish are only caught in a few places in Rotuma, one of them being off the reef or off the island Afgaha of Noatau. The pole is held so that the ball of black web is held just over the water, and allowed to blow back and forth in the wind. The jiajia or ji'jia, is a small long fish with a very long and thin mouth with very fine teeth. It jumps out of the water to bite at the web and is caught by its teeth in the mesh.

jija = garfish

Category:

Fishing(8)

Topic:

Shellfish

Consultant:

C. Jacobson

Cat's eye = jor alili. These are found on the outside of the reef. When the tide is going out the women will run down after a big breaker has gone into the wash and snatch up all the cat's eyes they can and to dash back before the next wave. This running back and forth gives the name.

These jor alili are counted in pairs. 10 pair of them or twenty is counted as poaghe = ten. Poahe sanghul = 100 (pairs).

jor alili = to gather shellfish

Category:

Fishing(9)

Topic:

Chiefly fishing

Consultant:

Urakmata

The seu is a fishing party of eleven canoes which are accompanied usually by a chief, and for whom the fishing is done. The fleet of canoes go out in two lines of five in files, and the eleventh canoe travels between the two lines opposite the last two in the files.

There is a tautei standing in the bow of the first canoe in each file. He wears an eyeshade (isau) made of coconut leaves, and a tit or vehnau which is a grass skirt made of hau. These fishing captains, who have a permanent position in the village by election, direct the proceedings and watch for schools of fish.

When the fish have been sighted, the files separate to a greater distance to surround the school. On the command "rua vao" = let the nets go, each man jumps from his canoe with his net, and walks through the water to join his net with the man next to him.

A complete net is thus formed on each side of the school, and these are joined together, at one end with the net of the center or eleventh canoe and at the other between the two canoes of the tautae.

There are more than two men in a canoe. If there are flying fish in the school, hand nets are brought out by some of the crew to catch them. These nets are vau seu. The long nets are vau hapa.

Each movement is carried out only at the tautei's orders.

The seu is carried out inside the reef in shallow water so that the fish, when completely enclosed with the nets, are taken out by hand into the canoe.

Tabus associated with seu

No one was allowed to approach the fishermen going out on a seu. If any man came down the beach while they were launching their canoes and making preparations, he was killed.

The tautei had to wear the vehnau titi and the isao during all the operations.

The houses of the tautei were shut and no one was allowed to enter them, while the seu was in progress.

The nets were prepared and brought by the fishermen and no tabus were placed on them. It was a bad sign for any man to fall out of his canoe and if anyone did so, he had to give a feast to all of the party.

Category:

Fishing(10)

Topic:

Fish run

Consultant:

Nataniela

Faga
A fishing run and surrounding was built up of stones. The run was two tapering lines of stones which enter at the narrow end into a circular wall. Nets are set up over this wall and at the narrow end of the run, and then the fish are driven down the run. The nets are closed in and the fish trapped.

A sketch accompanies this note

Category:

Fishing(11)

Topic:

Fish drives

Consultant:

C. Jacobsen

Fish drives in Rotuma are held where the reef lies at a great distance from the beach, and where there is one good opening. There are two such places in Rotuma that are used for drives, and a third which is a long pool inside the north Motusa harbor. But this last one does not prove profitable.

The purpose of the drive is to force the fish which have come inside the reef during high tide out the opening before which is placed a sack net.

At low tide two lines of stones about two feet high are built up in "V" shape from the reef opening, which is the point of the "V". Space enough is left for the sack net, and the back net to be set up. Along the line of stones are set up poles about six feet in height from which to hang the nets.

While the tide is flooding these nets are arranged. The stones weight them down and keep fish escaping underneath them.

In the drive at the Noa'tau reef, Faguta, Noa'tau and Oinafa districts take part. Inside the Feavoi-Motusa reef, Itu'ti'u, Itu'muta, and Malhaha districts drive. At Noa'tau, Faguta drives from the south north, and the other two districts from the north south, but closing together and drive out to the reef opening. Noa'tau is between these two visiting districts.

Each man brings his own nets and these are joined together to make a long sweep net. The lines begin at the outer ends of the stone walls and nets, the outer extremity of the people moving in on the pivot at the stone wall end. These lines join together in a great crescent, forcing the fish into the "V" and towards the opening. Often people follow behind the main line with individual nets to catch the fish that break through.

Before the opening in the reef the sack net is set up. This is a large net which has been folded over so that the two sides could be sewn together and the further end tied up, so that it makes a long conical net like an old-fashioned stocking cap in shape. At the mouth of the net two men stand to keep the net open and control the entrance of the fish.

Near them on the end of one of the stone walls is a third man with a flag. He signals to the closing line of people by dropping his flag when the net becomes full. The line stops and the fish are not forced into the net. The two men stop the opening of the net by jumping in front of it. A fourth man half way down the net places a stick under it and across it and lifts it up so that no fish can go out of the mouth of the net. Two men at the end put the tied end of the net in a boat anchored there, and empty the fish into it, tie up the net again and drop it into the water. The forward men go back to their orignal positions beside the net's mouth, and the captain on the wall raises his flag to bring the line in again.

The sack net opening is well inside the line of the stones, but from them and encircling the sack net is another which catches any fish that slip by. Between the ends of this net and the mouth of the sack net, stand the two forward men.

The drive is started at flood tide or just after when the fish are going out with the tide.

The opening of the passage in the reef is behind the end of the sack net.

Category:

Fishing(12)

Topic:

Fish drives

Consultant:

Urakmata

Ra'ra'o
Ra'ra'o means to wound. The drive received its name from the fact that in this large drive someone was always hurt by a bite or some accident.

This drive was described more definitely by C. Jacobsen. Urakmata adds that the net used in the entrance or end of the "V" is one specially prepared for this drive. It has a purse or sack in the center of it. The net is called reke, from its sack which is the reke. The floats of wood are called hufa, and the shell sinkers tuture. The driving is called hua or hua'aki.

Tabus
The houses of the reke vao (in Noa'tau the house of the tautei) are closed during the fishing and no work can go on in it.

Fä'ji
fä' means to scoop out and ji means to flow. This method of fishing is to drive the fish when the tide is going out towards the reef, by a long string of people who beat the water and frighten the fish. Others stand on the reef by the various channels (jaliga) where the fish run out and scoop up the driven fish.

ji is also used to speak of the flow of waters in the channels or the channels.

This drive takes place when the outer reef is above water and the fish are forced into the channels. The only net that is used is the one for scooping up the fish. The people drive from the shallow points that are draining into the channels where the nets are.

Category:

Fishing(13)

Topic

Fish traps

Consultant:

Uafta

Ho'i
These are piles of stones built up inside the reef. They are left there 3-4 weeks, sometimes rotted cheeses (tahroro) are put in as bait. Small fish will hide in here, and then the natives surround the ho'i with a net and throw the stones out, leaving the fish to run into the net.

Tahroro is a special condiment used extensively by Rotumans in cooking. It is made from the flesh of young coconuts fermented in salt water.

Category:

Fishing(14)

Topic:

Fish traps

Consultant:

Mary Kennedy

There are three traps in Rotuma and they are all made in the same technique and shape. The first is made of the vine fuha, which is thin and flexible but does not last long in the salt water. The trap is made of the green vine. It is called figati.

The second trap fag fea, is made of a dried vine and is the usual fish trap used. It is 2 1/2 - 3' in diameter.

The third trap is made of the rough heavy vine used as a binding in houses. It is large enough to hold a man, and is black in color, hence it's name fag kele.

The vines from which these last two traps are made are also called fagfea and fagkele?

Technique of weaving
The trap is started at the mouth. The weft or spiral piece is one very long piece of vine which is bent double, one end being left much longer than the other. Many other pieces are cut into short lengths-- about 2'. One is set in the loop of the long piece already doubled and this is twisted over once to hold it there.

Then a second piece is put between the two pieces of the loop, but the half twist is between it and the first piece of woof. Then the first piece of woof B is bent down so that the upper half lies parallel with C, the second woof. The first piece, the weft A, is given a half twist again so that the end of B and C are enclosed together. D is then inserted and C brought down to give a double woof and the weft is twisted again. This is continued until the weft is long enough to bring around end to end and make the mouth of the net.

The lower end of B has been left as a single warp piece. The doubled over piece that is the upper end of the first warp piece inserted is left.

When the two ends are brought together these two single woof or warp strands make one double one and they are enclosed in a twist of A. The end of the mouth of the trap is now made and one round of the weft. "A" is carried on down the neck by twisting it about each parallel pair of warp strands. The weft A is carried around three times and then again but this time twisting about each single warp strand. This makes the weft go out, in a larger circle and creates the shoulders of the globular trap.

This process is carried on and on the weft being moved out and away from the shoulder each time and the[n] shaped to make the profile of the trap. When the bottom half is made the single warp pieces are caught again in pairs and twisted by weft, then in 3's and 4's to bring the basket in to center of the bottom.

Finally the warp pieces of four strands each are woven in checkerboard fashion to make the flat bottom and close it up. The loose ends are woven up the sides to make them hold and not unravel.

The food bait is put in coconut shells which are attached by running a strand through the eyes of the shell and weaving the strand into the side of the basket.

faga = fish trip

fag kele = black fish trap

Macgregor includes a drawing of the beginning of weaving a trap.

A drawing of the weaving is included in Macgregor's notes.

Category:

Fishing(15)

Topic:

Fish traps

Consultant:

Urakmata

The fishtrap (faga) is laid inside a stone circle built on the bottom of the sea inside the reef. Stones are put in the trap to weight it down and also scraps of waste food pressed into a cake and set inside a half of coconut shell. The bait usually used is called fufu'i. Coconut is also used.

In catching crayfish (ura) the bait of sea eggs = väeeväe is used. Also fimaro. Väeväe is the black egg with long spikes. The fimaro = the sea egg white, with short needles.

These traps are of two types, one is the circular large doughnut shape with the entrance in the center

Category:

Fishing(16)

Topic:

Nets

Consultant:

Paulo

A small flat net strung on a supple wand which is bent back so that both ends are held in the hand or tied together. These are used in night fishing with a torch. The net is struck down on the fish which jumps up into it.

Category:

Fishing(17)

Topic:

Nets

Consultant:

Urakmata

When a vao hapa or large communal fishing net was finished, it is taken to the sea and dipped and used for a short while. Then the men return and hold a koua, the "hoiag vao" = the name of the feast which means "dip the net in the water". This feast was to obtain a good spirit for the net. It was thought that the net would be useless without this ceremony.

Later there followed a second feast for the net the fu'fu'ia, which was preceded by a cleaning of the net by soaking.

When they went fishing, the pocket of the net or the reke, was under the charge of the tautei. This reke is also kept in the tautei's house. His house was closed while the net was in use, otherwise he would be cut during the fishing.

Category:

Fishing(18)

Topic:

Nets

Consultant:

Nataniela

Gou täla usia fua. Vao hap teis tala tukua ololum.
Ololum la po ta te.

Words spoken at net wetting, or making.

Category:

Fishing(19)

Topic:

Net making

Consultant:

Niua

When a net was finished there was kava and a feast, and then the net was wetted = hoia vao. There was an announcement made of this and it was performed at ebb tide, by having a small ceremonial fishing with the net. The people participating returned and had another feast, and the net was cleaned = fu'fu'ia vao.

This was only done for the vao hapa = the great community net for the large drives. This net was made of the ul pulu, a kind of breadfruit.

Category:

Fishing(20)

Topic:

Fishing tackle

Consultant:

Varomua & Semesi

Fishing line was made of armea, niu and ulu. The breadfruit strand was called alolu. The bark was peeled off and softened by rubbing with the handle of a fan or a piece of coconut shell. This was washed and dried on the sand and shredded. The small strands were twisted together on the leg and these were again twisted into cord made of double strands.

Category:

Fishing(21)

Topic:

Fish hooks

Consultant:

Varomua

Fishhooks were made of a hardwood = aeiva that grows on the bottom of the sea, outside the li'u. The men dove for it and brought up branches which have long hooked twigs. These are very hard, and make excellent hooks = avi.

The branches are also used to hang up coconuts used to hold water = halava. These branches are called fi.

The name fi is also used for the chief's kokona.

perhaps branches of coral
li'u = deep sea

kokona = food shelf suspended from rafters

Category:

Fishing(22)

Topic:

Fish hooks

Consultant:

C. Jacobson

Fish hooks were made of turtle shell and wood (teer Toga).

Hook fishing used in catching rona. When they get hooks ready and hunt out of the house, it would be shut up and there was to be no noise. Cause --> so line would not get tangled, so baits should fall off.

Category:

Fishing(23)

Topic:

Taboos

Consultant:

Semesi

The kainaga must all be gathered together when Sosoaki the god of Malhaha fishing speaks to his family about the net fishing of the next day. He speaks through one or another member of the family.

There is a tabu on all noise, opening of the men's houses, or making fires in their kitchens while they are out fishing. This tabu on closing the house is still in effect today among some people.

Category:

Fishing(24)

Topic:

Taboos

Consultant:

Niua

Afupugas - a tabu month. No noise was permitted during this month. Like when cutting big trees.

Siu = If anyone outside surround of siu, he would be killed. Canoes used are tafaga. Anyone watching siu must sit on shore, not stand. Fishermen's houses shut during siu. All fishermen must sleep by themselves the night before. If anyone has had sexual intercourse, fish will jump over the net where he is. Tabu on noise during siu.

Siu may last 2-3 days going around the island.

2 lines parallel to shore. Tautei carried sticks which they threw in the center when they saw a school between them. Last siu consisted of 21 canoes. 2-3 days sometimes, going around the island.

Category:

Fishing(25)

Topic:

Taboos

Consultant:

C. Jacobsen

When they were going on a fishing trip, the houses of the fishermen were all tightly shut. No one was allowed to make noise in the house. No one could mention the name of the person gone fishing. These were observed to bring success.

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