Food and Gender in Fiji: Ethnoarchaeological Explorations

Food and Gender in Fiji is an ethnoarchaeological investigation of the social relations surrounding foodways on the island of Nayau in Fiji. Writing from the perspective of an archaeologist, Jones answers questions raised by her archaeological research using original ethnographic data and material culture associated women and fishing, the intersection that forms the basis of the subsistence economy on Nayau. She focuses on food procurement on the reef, domestic activities surrounding foodways, and household spatial patterns to explore the meaning of food amongst the Lau Group of Fiji beyond the obvious nutritional and ecological spheres. Jones presents her findings alongside original archaeological data, demonstrating that it is possible to illuminate contemporary food-related social issues through historical homology and comparison with the lifeways of the Lauan people. Offering a comprehensive and rigorous example of ethnoarchaeology at work, this book has major implications for archaeological interpretations of foodways, gender, identity, and social organization in the Pacific Islands and beyond.