kula

kula

trade
      exchange system among the people of the Trobriand Islands of southeast Melanesia, in which permanent contractual partners trade traditional valuables following an established ceremonial pattern and trade route. In this system, described by the Polish-born British anthropologist Bronisław Malinowski (Malinowski, Bronisław), only two kinds of articles, traveling in opposite directions around a rough geographic ring several hundred miles in circumference, were exchanged. These were red shell necklaces and white shell bracelets, which were not producers' capital, being neither consumable nor media of exchange outside the ceremonial system. Kula objects, which sometimes had names and histories attached, were not owned in order to be used but rather to acquire prestige and rank.

      Every detail of the transaction was regulated by traditional rules and conventions, and some acts were accompanied by rituals and ceremonies. A limited number of men could take part in the kula, each man keeping an article for a relatively short period before passing it on to one of his partners from whom he received the opposite item in exchange. The partnerships between men, involving mutual duties and obligations, were permanent and lifelong. Thus the network of relationships around the kula served to link many tribes by providing allies and communication of material and nonmaterial cultural elements to distant areas.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Kula — may refer to:Geographic locations* Kula, Bulgaria, a town in Vidin Province * Kula, Ethiopia, a town in Ethiopia * Kula, Hawaii, a district of East Maui in Hawaii * Kula, Turkey, a town in Western Anatolia (Turkey) * Kula (Vojvodina), a town and… …   Wikipedia

  • KULA — Vaste opération de rapports intertribaux, incluant un système d’échange très développé, qui a fait l’objet de l’étude de Malinowski consignée dans son ouvrage célèbre, Les Argonautes du Pacifique occidental (Argonauts of the Western Pacific ,… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • kula — I {{/stl 13}}{{stl 8}}rz. ż IIa {{/stl 8}}{{stl 20}} {{/stl 20}}{{stl 12}}1. {{/stl 12}}{{stl 7}} bryła ograniczona powierzchnią zamkniętą, której wszystkie punkty znajdują się w jednakowej odległości od punktu stałego będącego środkiem tej bryły …   Langenscheidt Polski wyjaśnień

  • Kula — heißen die Orte Kula (Hawaii) Kula (Bulgarien) Kula (Serbien) Kula (Türkei) Kula ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Karel Kula (* 1963), tschechischer Fußballspieler und trainer Maria Regina Kula (* 1937), deutsche Biochemikerin Kula… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • kula — kúla ž DEFINICIJA 1. uzdignuta čvrsta građevina, dio građevine ili zidina, služi za kakvu javnu svrhu, ob. obranu [stražarska kula; kula babilonska; kula od bjelokosti]; toranj 2. razg. šah figura koja se kreće neograničeno vodoravno i okomito;… …   Hrvatski jezični portal

  • Kula — es una palabra que puede referirse a: Kula, una ciudad de Voivodina; Kula, una práctica de intercambio documentada por Bronislaw Malinowski en las Islas Trobriand. Kula Diamond, personaje ficticio de la serie de videojuegos de lucha The King of… …   Wikipedia Español

  • kula — kulà sf. mušimas, pyla: Gauna kulą nu vyro Trk …   Dictionary of the Lithuanian Language

  • Kula [1] — Kula, Ölmaß in Marokko = 23, 2 Zollpfund …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Kula [2] — Kula, 1) Bezirk u. Marktflecken im Comitat Unter Bacs des ungarischen Verwaltungsgebietes Temesvar, Ackerbau, Wieswachs, Weinbau; 6700 Ew.; 2) Stadt im Liwa Kutahia des türkischen Ejalets Khudavendiguiar (Kleinasien), liegt an dem Rande der… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Kula [1] — Kula, Maß, s. Kulleh …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Kula [2] — Kula (serb.), burgartige Türme oder festgebaute Wohn und Blockhäuser, wie sie besonders auf der Balkanhalbinsel zu finden sind …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”