Decay characteristics of the eastern Lapita design system

Abstract

We examine the Lapita colonization of east Fiji from the frequency of pottery designs. The design frequency analysis suggests that east Fiji was settled by Lapita groups emanating from west Fiji and Tonga, and long-distance interaction with archipelagos to the west of Fiji was inconsequential during the terminal Lapita phase when east Fiji, Tonga and Samoa were colonized. The results have important implications for understanding Lapita colonization elsewhere, particularly the extent to which migrant communities interacted and expressed identity in the varied physical and social environments encountered during dispersal.