A tabua is a polished

tooth A tooth ( : teeth) is a hard, calcified structure found in the jaws (or mouths) of many vertebrates and used to break down food. Some animals, particularly carnivores and omnivores, also use teeth to help with capturing or wounding prey, ...

of a

sperm whale The sperm whale or cachalot (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the genus ''Physeter'' and one of three extant species in the sperm whale famil ...

that is an important cultural item in

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consis ...

an society. They were traditionally given as gifts for

atonement Atonement (also atoning, to atone) is the concept of a person taking action to correct previous wrongdoing on their part, either through direct action to undo the consequences of that act, equivalent action to do good for others, or some other ...

or esteem (called ''sevusevu''), and were important in negotiations between rival chiefs. The dead men would be buried with their tabua, along with war clubs and even their strangled wives, to help them in the

afterlife The afterlife (also referred to as life after death) is a purported existence in which the essential part of an individual's identity or their stream of consciousness continues to live after the death of their physical body. The surviving es ...

. Originally they were very rare items, available only from

beached whale Cetacean stranding, commonly known as beaching, is a phenomenon in which whales and dolphins strand themselves on land, usually on a beach. Beached whales often die due to dehydration, collapsing under their own weight, or drowning when high ti ...

s and from trade from neighbouring

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

(where the practice may have originated), but when the market became known in the early 19th century thousands of teeth, and fake teeth made from

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals i ...

and

walrus The walrus (''Odobenus rosmarus'') is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous distribution about the North Pole in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in the fami ...

tusks entered the market. This trade led to the development of the

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an art of

scrimshaw Scrimshaw is scrollwork, engravings, and carvings done in bone or ivory. Typically it refers to the artwork created by whalers, engraved on the byproducts of whales, such as bones or cartilage. It is most commonly made out of the bones and teeth ...

. Today the tabua remains an important item in Fijian life. They are not sold but traded regularly as gifts in weddings, birthdays, and at funerals. The tabua is also increasingly used in advertising as a trusted

symbol A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise very different conc ...

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

, for example

Fiji Airways Fiji Airways (trading as and formerly known as Air Pacific) is the flag carrier airline of Fiji and operates international services from its hubs in Fiji to 13 countries and 26 cities including, Australia, New Zealand, Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, ...

has a Tabua Club (

frequent flyer A frequent-flyer program (American English) or frequent-flyer programme (British English) is a loyalty program offered by an airline. Many airlines have frequent-flyer programs designed to encourage airline customers enrolled in the program ...

) and a Tabua Class for

business class Business class is a travel class available on many commercial airlines and rail lines, known by brand names which vary, by airline or rail company. In the airline industry, it was originally intended as an intermediate level of service between ...

. They also feature on the Fijian 20 cent piece.

Exporting of tabua

As tabua are a cultural item and the tooth is sourced from an endangered species, the removal of tabua from Fiji is highly restricted at 225 exports per year. Permits from the

Ministry of iTaukei Affairs Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

are required as well as

CITES CITES (shorter name for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of intern ...

permits. Original CITES permits must be presented to border officials of the importing country or tabua may be seized. In 2007,

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

authorities returned 146 tabua to Fijian authorities that had been seized due to having been illegally exported without valid

permits.

References

*Arno A. (2005). "Cobo and tabua in Fiji: Two forms of cultural currency in an economy of sentiment". ''American Ethnologist'', 32(1): 46 – 6
Abstract
* {{cite web, last1=Clayton, first1=Mark, title=That Tabua, url=https://aeromuseums.org/that-tabua/, website=Australian Aeronautical Heritage

External links

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Fijian_culture.html" ;"title="Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
">Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa">Tabua in the collection of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Fijian culture">Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
">Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa">Tabua in the collection of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Fijian culture Whale products Bone products