Bilua Changes: Culture Contact and its Consequences, a Study of the Bilua of Vella Lavella in the British Solomon Islands

Abstract

Human geography along with history, anthropology, economics and other social sciences concerned with the changing inter-relationships between man and the environment, regardless of the level of generalisation used, have a responsibility to focus attention on areas of study that will enhance our understanding of the practical problems of our day. It was this point of view that led to the collection and interpretation of the material presented in this dissertation. The research was concerned with the general problems of rural development. The specific region studied was centred on the relatively prosperous villages of Uzamba and Maravari on the east coast of Vella Lavella in the British Solomon Islands Protectorate (B.S.I.P.) and was limited to the area in which the villagers had a traditional interest.