Exploring Prehistoric Violence in Tonga

Abstract

In prehistory, the Kingdom of Tonga in Polynesia was a powerful centralized chiefdom. However, little is known about society in the archipelago prior to the establishment of the chiefdom. It has been surmised that during its formation society was violent, but there is no archaeological evidence to support this. This research investigates if skeletal trauma in a collection of remains from the Kingdom of Tonga reflects deliberate violence representative of warfare through the macroscopic and radiographic examination of fractures and other traumatic lesions. Because of the history of warfare in the Tongan archipelago recorded ethnographically, it was expected that interpersonal violence would manifest itself as isolated ulnae fractures and cranial trauma. Results showed a significant difference (P = .05) between the number of ulnae fractured (n = 8/53) compared with the number of radii (n = 2/51). Radiographs revealed that ulnae fractures were indicative of direct force trauma, probably reflecting defensive ”parry” fractures. There were few instances of cranial trauma, not supporting the expectation that the population was engaging in warfare. Based on the skeletal pattern of trauma, it is suggested that these injuries could be attributed more to ritualized violence or sporting activities rather than warfare during the creation of the chiefdom.

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