The Idea of Tradition

Although Pacific Island nations have vernacular expressions which broadly encapsulate the idea of a unique body of cultural traditions, the word ‘tradition’ (together with ‘custom’) is most commonly used, especially by political elites. We shall therefore explore the idea of tradition initially in terms of its anglophone understanding. The Latin root of the English word ‘tradition’ denotes several possible meanings, but its general understanding in contemporary English usage is related to processes involving the passing on of knowledge and doctrine from one generation to the next. Although this understanding carries no necessary normative force, it is nonetheless open to conveying, at the same time, a strong commitment to the idea that what has been transmitted from the past to the present is worthy of respect, and enjoins a duty of observance on the present generation. Similarly, it has been suggested that a tradition of belief contains an inherently normative component which functions to elicit almost automatic affirmation of whatever state of affairs is apparently produced or endorsed by the tradition. This implies that whatever has been received from the past is to be valued in the present, as well as carried forward by the generation which follows. Krygier has elaborated these ideas in the context of three essential characteristics which he ascribes to tradition. First, the contents of a tradition are imbued with a certain ‘pastness’ – or at least its participants believe that the origins of the tradition lie deep in the past.