Where the Waves Fall: South Sea Islands History from First Settlement to Colonial Rule - Softcover

Howe, K. R.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0868613436 ISBN 13: 9780868613437

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, 1985

Synopsis

Historians' views of the history of the Pacific islands have changed considerably in recent years, with the Islanders themselves brought into the centre of the picture and the influence of the European explorers and colonisers interpreted not as they reflected imperial concerns but as they affected the lives of the islands' inhabitants. Where the Waves Fall makes use of this approach to give a unique account of human settlement and cultural interchange in the Pacific islands. It follows the fortunes of the seafarers who discovered island after island in the world's largest ocean, traces the development of their civilisations and examines in depth the interaction between them and the newcomers European explorers, traders, beachcombers, missionaries, merchants who from the sixteenth century came in an increasing series of waves 'upon the coral ringed shores of the South Seas'. The book's framework often en¬ables the author to throw new light on hitherto isolated events. Novel suggestions are advanced as to why some islands became `kingdoms' in the earlier years of European contact and why others did not, and of how and why missionaries were accepted on some islands but not on others. Nor does Dr Howe shrink from pro-vocative and at times controversial arguments concerning the ambitions and strategies of island leaders and indeed the overall nature and extent of the initiatives taken by the Islanders.

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
• Publication date: 1985
• ISBN 10: 0868613436
• ISBN 13: 9780868613437
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 442