The Pangia is one of the remotest Districts located in Southern Highlands Province. Geographically, it is situated in the Eastern part of but slightly towards the Gulf of Papua.
The Pangia District is consist of 50,000 -70,000 people including children. This small District is divided into three constituencies. They’re called West Pangia, South Panga and East Pangia. The inhabitants of West Pangia speaks both Kewabi and Wiru as they share bounders with Kewabi people, but the other two regions speak Wiru only.
The Wiru dialect is indeed an isolated language in Papua New Guinea. It has no social or cultural connection with other Districts such as Ialibu, Kagua and Erave that shares the bounder.
In the early days, the EBM-American base church, Catholic and Lutheran churches arrived in Pangia and from then on the society swiftly adopt Christian values and beliefs.
The church had significantly influenced the cultural and social way of Pangia people’s life yet many traditional cultures are intact. One of the cultures is called Maila dance performed only by the Pagians themselves.
What is Maila? The Maila simply means dance in the Wiru dialect. The Maila word is only spoken, Pangia.
The Maila Dance is performed when the other tribal group invite another tribal group to dance in their village. They set prizes for the contest. However, in most cases, the prizes are distributed evenly, a little bit politics- to establish new and strengthen existing social relationships with each other
Other times are at Pangia government station, especially during Papua New Guinea Independent Days, or school opening, or visit of an important person to the District.
The Maila Dance is performed by both females and males including kids. The following is how Maila Dance is prepared and the actual dance is performed.
How Maila Dance is arranged? The participating singing groups decorate themselves with bush materials, including a bird of paradise feathers; they lubricate their bodies with oil collected from below the ground. Their oiled bodies look shiny in performance. Around their waist, the Dancers wore bark of a tree, fastened with a locally made belt. The backs of their legs are covered with bush leaves, regarded as an important item for such an occasion. The front piece, covering the groin area and thighs, is a laptop, made from the locally prepared bark of a particular tree species. The knee area is decorated with ground pigments, typically white and red.
On the forearms, they wore special designs in a V shape object. All Chiefs wore the V-shaped objects and those further down the hierarchy wore circular finger smeared or painted markings.
A kina shell pendant painted in red yellow colours like a necklace hung down on each man’s chest. The face is decorated with selected local colours. Most often the colours of choice are red, white, black and yellow – a national colour of Papua New Guinea. The red and white pigments are taken from the earth, while the black is derived from a tree whose burnt wood gave a black carbon residue. This was ground down to a fine powder; oil is added so that it became an inky liquid, ready for use as intense black body paint. The facial features of a bird of paradise are inserted firmly on the men’s head cap (bilum).
This head cap is bedecked with selected bush leaves, sufficient to make the result look naturally beautiful. In the left hand is held bow and arrows; in the right hand a stone axe. The effect is spectacular. The women dress similarly but with the difference that they wore grass skirts. Some women wore a single kina shell on their chest while others wore several kina shells strung together. The kina shells worn by women is different from the men’s, although a few women wore the same kind of kina shell as the men. The head cap of women is different from men’s. The head cap is around, and many other different features of bird species are bedecked on it, instead of the bird of paradise.
The Pangia District is consist of 50,000 -70,000 people including children. This small District is divided into three constituencies. They’re called West Pangia, South Panga and East Pangia. The inhabitants of West Pangia speaks both Kewabi and Wiru as they share bounders with Kewabi people, but the other two regions speak Wiru only.
The Wiru dialect is indeed an isolated language in Papua New Guinea. It has no social or cultural connection with other Districts such as Ialibu, Kagua and Erave that shares the bounder.
In the early days, the EBM-American base church, Catholic and Lutheran churches arrived in Pangia and from then on the society swiftly adopt Christian values and beliefs.
The church had significantly influenced the cultural and social way of Pangia people’s life yet many traditional cultures are intact. One of the cultures is called Maila dance performed only by the Pagians themselves.
What is Maila? The Maila simply means dance in the Wiru dialect. The Maila word is only spoken, Pangia.
The Maila Dance is performed when the other tribal group invite another tribal group to dance in their village. They set prizes for the contest. However, in most cases, the prizes are distributed evenly, a little bit politics- to establish new and strengthen existing social relationships with each other
Other times are at Pangia government station, especially during Papua New Guinea Independent Days, or school opening, or visit of an important person to the District.
The Maila Dance is performed by both females and males including kids. The following is how Maila Dance is prepared and the actual dance is performed.
How Maila Dance is arranged? The participating singing groups decorate themselves with bush materials, including a bird of paradise feathers; they lubricate their bodies with oil collected from below the ground. Their oiled bodies look shiny in performance. Around their waist, the Dancers wore bark of a tree, fastened with a locally made belt. The backs of their legs are covered with bush leaves, regarded as an important item for such an occasion. The front piece, covering the groin area and thighs, is a laptop, made from the locally prepared bark of a particular tree species. The knee area is decorated with ground pigments, typically white and red.
On the forearms, they wore special designs in a V shape object. All Chiefs wore the V-shaped objects and those further down the hierarchy wore circular finger smeared or painted markings.
A kina shell pendant painted in red yellow colours like a necklace hung down on each man’s chest. The face is decorated with selected local colours. Most often the colours of choice are red, white, black and yellow – a national colour of Papua New Guinea. The red and white pigments are taken from the earth, while the black is derived from a tree whose burnt wood gave a black carbon residue. This was ground down to a fine powder; oil is added so that it became an inky liquid, ready for use as intense black body paint. The facial features of a bird of paradise are inserted firmly on the men’s head cap (bilum).
This head cap is bedecked with selected bush leaves, sufficient to make the result look naturally beautiful. In the left hand is held bow and arrows; in the right hand a stone axe. The effect is spectacular. The women dress similarly but with the difference that they wore grass skirts. Some women wore a single kina shell on their chest while others wore several kina shells strung together. The kina shells worn by women is different from the men’s, although a few women wore the same kind of kina shell as the men. The head cap of women is different from men’s. The head cap is around, and many other different features of bird species are bedecked on it, instead of the bird of paradise.
How Maila Dance is Perform?
After the costuming is perfectly prepared, the dance leaders who had been nominated during rehearsal is called to lead and direct the group.
Maybe five of the best dancers perform in the middle of the front row, and then the row extends to possibly ten or a dozen. Two leaders stand to right and left to direct the singsing group, a bit like stage prompts in a theatre. They march into the singsing performance arena, before a sea of spectators, amid the gaze of eyes of a human sea. After several songs and dance numbers, the two leaders handed over to other leaders, for their turn to lead the singsing group. The leader directing the whole group is important as the conductor of an orchestra.
The participating young laddies usually stand next to a man dancing together, a sign of proposal that she’s now confident of becoming a wife. The young men watch them performing, may suggest to their parents or parents likewise to their sons.
When people see dancers performing nicely, they’ll tie a ribbon (rope) around their hands, sometimes they’ll tie money that means you’re now obliged to remove that rope with a return of gifts in form of money, food, and any valuable gifts.
Normally the performances will go on for a few days, for example, Monday to Thursday. Friday would be the final day where a formal farewell is done with the distribution of rewards in form of money, food etc.
The gifts are now taken into their villages and shared among the dancers, and people who have supported them.
After the performance, the decorations items such as kina shells, bow and arrows, grass skirts, and head caps are removed and stored away for future use. The bush leaves are thrown away. They’ll at least rest for 2-3 days before they pick up with the old way of life.
Exchange of Gifts during the Maila Dance. During the Maila Dance, the tribal chief discusses significant social and cultural issues. The Maila Dance is like a social mechanism that mobilizes the community spirits in one form from small hamlets to station at one village. It’s like an official conference where a treaty is signed but in the practice of oral agreements. One such example is another tribal chief inviting another tribal chief to come for Maila Dance at their village or accepting pig killing feast. Some families may propose getting married. The Maila Dance brings the community together to share, discuss and establish new and strengthen old social relationships with other clans and tribes etc.
The Maila Dance brings together diverse communities for trade, open up the establishment of friendship with other tribes, heals much social difference amongst the tribal communities (etc.) in Pangia Southern Highlands Province.
The Maila Dance brings together diverse communities for trade, open up the establishment of friendship with other tribes, heals much social difference amongst the tribal communities (etc.) in Pangia Southern Highlands Province.
THIS IS REALLY HELPFUL AND USEFUL INFORMATION. THANKS, AND APPRECIATE THE EFFORT PUT IN TO COMPILE ALL THIS INFORMATION. IT'S REALLY HELPFUL TO US THE PRESENT-DAY GENERATION FOR SOME OF US DON'T EVEN KNOW OUR HERITAGE.
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