Bougainville
A matrilineal island soon to become the worlds newest country.
This August 2025, we journeyed to the remote island of Bougainville in Papua New Guinea (PNG). Tourist infrastructure is practically non-existent, with the only visitors being development workers and missionaries helping the island recover from a decade of civil war.
The conflict – caused by the Australian and PNG run Panguna Copper Mine not respecting the local population – claimed more than 20,000 lives.
We head down to the small coastal town of Arawa in the South to meet the most traditional matrilineal cultures of Nasioi and Nagovisi.
Here, near the abandoned mine we find the people buzzing with the anticipation of independence, promised to them by PNG in 2027.
There is a general patriotic movement and a searching for Bougainville’s identity, something to unite the island and distinguish themselves from the mainland. Apart from being the darkest skinned people in the world, we also learn they are embracing their matrilineal roots again.
So… Now… Matriliny is taught in all junior schools with pride.
Girls and boys learn that mum is the boss, and dad works to make money for her.
The mum is the investor, and the father who has to move to his wife’s family home is pressured to increase her assets.
Girls also seem to be encouraged by the family to preform better academically than boys.
It is not just a general trend several teachers tell us, but a feeling of patriotism uniting the people.
Even for those students that leave Bougainville to study higher education on the mainland of PNG, there is a strong incentive to return after their studies. Not only to escape the dangers of Port Moresby, rated as one of the most violent capital cities in the world. but also to bring education back to the villages and their matrilineal families.
Tama Festival
We timed our visit to co-inside with the local Tama festival. Groups from all over Bougainville assemble, dressed in jungle materials, bodies painted, headdresses adorned, ready to transport you back to an ancient world of witchcraft ancestor spirits.
Other groups prepare traditional dishes of Tama – bananas, cassava or taro soaked in coconut cream then wrapped and roasted in banana leaves … Yum!
Facts
- Location: Autonomous Region of Bougainville (Papua New Guinea)
- Population: Around 250,000
- Religion: Mostly forms of Christianity and Protestant religions. Some indigenous animist beliefs in ancestors and spirits.
- Language: Pisin, English, and 25 other Austronesian and Papuan languages
- Civil War: The fighting ended with the signing of a peace treaty in 2001. A referendum was then held, with the vast majority voting for independence
Matriarchal feature:
- The eldest woman is the head of her clan.
- Land and clan name is passed down through the eldest daughter (matrilineal inheritance)
- After marriage, the man moves to his wife’s family home (matrilocal). From that moment on he works for her family.
- All children belong to the mother’s clan.
- Women are responsible for maintaining the family’s wealth, passing on traditions and organizing traditional events like, coming of age, marriages and funeral rights.
- Families actively celebrate daughters.
- Matriliny is becoming a unifying symbol of identity for the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, soon to become the newest country in the world in 2027.
