Land diving
Encyclopedia
Land diving is a ritual performed by the men of the southern part of Pentecost Island
, Vanuatu
. The precursor to bungee jumping
, men jump off of wooden tower
s around 20 to 30 m (65.6 to 98.4 ft) high, with two tree vine
s wrapped around the ankles. Land diving is done without any safety equipment. The tradition has developed into a tourist attraction.
According to the Guinness World Records
, the g-force
experienced by those at their lowest point in the dive is the greatest experienced in the non-industrialized
world by humans.
of a woman who was dissatisfied with her husband, Tamalie (or some variation of the name). It is sometimes claimed that the woman was upset that her husband was too vigorous regarding his sexual wants, so she ran away into the forest
. Her husband followed her, so she climbed a banyan
tree. Tamalie climbed after her, and so she tied liana
s to her ankles and jumped and survived. Her husband jumped after her, but did not tie lianas to himself, which caused him to plummet and die. The men performed the original land diving so that they would not be tricked again.
The land diving ritual is associated with the annual yam
harvest
. It is performed annually in the months of April, May, or June. A good dive helps ensure a bountiful yam harvest.
The villagers believe land diving can enhance the health
and strength of the divers. A successful dive can remove the illness
es and physical problems associated with the wet season
. Furthermore, land diving is considered as an expression of masculinity
, as it demonstrates boldness that was associated with the bwahri or warrior. Nevertheless, the men who do not choose to dive or back out of diving are not humiliated as cowards
.
In the Sa
language, gol refers to both the tower and the land dive. The tower symbolically represents a body, with a head, shoulders, breasts, belly, genitals, and knees. The diving platforms represent the penises and the struts beneath representing the vaginas.
. Also, the lianas have the best elasticity
during this time. During the period of preparation for naghol, the men seclude themselves from the women and refrain from sex. Furthermore, women are not allowed to go near the tower or else Tamalie, who lives in the tower, may seek vengeance, leading to the death of a diver. Additionally, the men must not wear any lucky charms during the dive.
The construction of the tower typically takes between two and five weeks of labour. Around twenty to thirty men help construct it. The men cut trees to construct the body, clear a site for the tower, and remove rocks from the soil. The soil is tilled
to soften the ground. The wood is freshly cut, so that it can remain strong. The core of the tower is made from a lopped tree
, and a pole scaffolding
tied together with vines stabilize it. Several platforms come out about two meters from the front of the tower, supported by several strut
s. The lowest platform is around 10 meters, and the highest platform is near the top. During the jump, the platform supports snap, causing the platform to hinge downward and absorb some of the force from falling.
The vines are selected by a village elder and matched with each jumper’s weight without any mechanical calculations. The vines need to be supple, elastic, and full of sap
in order to be safe. The ends of the vines are shredded to allow the fibres to be looped around the ankles of the jumpers. If the vine is too long, the diver can hit the ground hard, but if the vine is too short, then the diver can collide with the tower.
Before diving, the men oftentimes bring closure to unsettled business and disputes in case they die. The night before the jump, divers sleep beneath the tower to ward off evil spirits
.
on themselves, and decorate their bodies. The males wear boar tusks around their necks. The men wear traditional penis sheaths
called nambas, and the women wear traditional grass dresses and are bare-breasted. Only the men are allowed to dive, but the dancing women provide mental support. Around 10 to 20 men in a village will jump.
The ritual begins with the least experienced jumpers on the lower platforms and ends with the most experienced jumpers on the upper platforms. The ideal jump is high with the jumper landing close to the ground. The goal is to brush the shoulders against the ground. The higher the jump, the more bountiful the harvest. Before diving, the jumper can give speeches, sing songs, and make pantomime
s.
The diver crosses his arms over his chest to help prevent injury to the arms. The head is tucked in so his shoulders can contact the ground. Therefore, the divers risk a number of injuries, such as a broken neck
or a concussion. During the dive, the jumper can reach speeds of around 45 mph (20.1 m/s). Right after a dive, other villagers rush in and take care of the diver.
For boys, land diving is a rite of passage
. After the boys are circumcised
at the age of around seven to eight, the boys can participate in the ritual. When a boy is ready to become a man, he land dives in the presence of his elders. His mother holds a favourite childhood item, for example, a piece of cloth. After completing the dive, the item is thrown away, demonstrating that the boy has become a man.
came to the area and persuaded the natives to stop land diving. In the 1970s, anti-colonialism
caused land diving to be seen in a new light as way to demonstrate their cultural identity
. After the independence from colonial powers in 1980, the ritual was revived by Christian locals from neighbouring areas. In 1995, the people of Pentecost Island, with the support of Vanuatu’s attorney-general
, declared that they would endeavor to get royalties from bungee jumping enterprises because they viewed the tradition as stolen.
. British and French troops attacked some villages based on the rumor of a developing cargo cult
. Several older men were arrested, though their sons offered to take their place. The men were let go in return for a land dive performance for the French resident commissioner. During the demonstration, the villagers sang a chant in Sa, incomprehensible to the resident commissioner, which noted the irony that the white resident commissioner thought he was strong, whereas it was the black men who were jumping from the towers.
villagers of the Melanesian Mission at Point Cross to do so. However, the vines were not elastic enough because it was the wrong season, the middle of the wet season. One diver had both lianas broken, broke his back from falling, and later died in a hospital. Until 2006, when a diver broke his spine after landing badly and subsequently died in hospital, this was the only fatality in memory.
to invite him to jump. Before the jump, he spent seven months with the villagers. His experiences were recounted in the December 1970 edition of National Geographic Magazine, Land Diving With the Pentecost Islanders.
for the villagers. The tourism aspect of land diving has come with some debate, such as maintaining the custom’s integrity while gaining attention. To prevent commercialization
of land diving, a tourism council that handles the tourists and presentation was formed by the chiefs. The tourism office works with tour companies and provides revenue by bringing in foreigners. A maximum of fifty tourists at a site are allowed up to eight times a year. The local control and government support maintain the ritual’s authenticity
, while encouraging promotion. In 1982, tourists paid 35 pounds
per person to watch the event. Though it was an annual event, naghol occurs weekly from April to June because of its profitability
. Some tourists want to try land diving themselves, but are often denied for fear of safety. In 2006, commercial filming
of the ritual was banned by the Vanuatu Cultural Centre
to protect the culture.
Pentecost Island
Pentecost Island is one of the 83 islands that make up the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu. It lies due north of capital Port Vila. Pentecost Island is known as Pentecôte in French and Pentikos in Bislama. The island was known in its native languages by names such as Vanu Aroaroa, although these...
, Vanuatu
Vanuatu
Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
. The precursor to bungee jumping
Bungee jumping
Bungee jumping is an activity that involves jumping from a tall structure while connected to a large elastic cord. The tall structure is usually a fixed object, such as a building, bridge or crane; but it is also possible to jump from a movable object, such as a hot-air-balloon or helicopter, that...
, men jump off of wooden tower
Tower
A tower is a tall structure, usually taller than it is wide, often by a significant margin. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires....
s around 20 to 30 m (65.6 to 98.4 ft) high, with two tree vine
Vine
A vine in the narrowest sense is the grapevine , but more generally it can refer to any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent, that is to say climbing, stems or runners...
s wrapped around the ankles. Land diving is done without any safety equipment. The tradition has developed into a tourist attraction.
According to the Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
, the g-force
G-force
The g-force associated with an object is its acceleration relative to free-fall. This acceleration experienced by an object is due to the vector sum of non-gravitational forces acting on an object free to move. The accelerations that are not produced by gravity are termed proper accelerations, and...
experienced by those at their lowest point in the dive is the greatest experienced in the non-industrialized
Industrialisation
Industrialization is the process of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial one...
world by humans.
Background
The origin of land diving is described in a legendLegend
A legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...
of a woman who was dissatisfied with her husband, Tamalie (or some variation of the name). It is sometimes claimed that the woman was upset that her husband was too vigorous regarding his sexual wants, so she ran away into the forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
. Her husband followed her, so she climbed a banyan
Banyan
A banyan is a fig that starts its life as an epiphyte when its seeds germinate in the cracks and crevices on a host tree...
tree. Tamalie climbed after her, and so she tied liana
Liana
A liana is any of various long-stemmed, woody vines that are rooted in the soil at ground level and use trees, as well as other means of vertical support, to climb up to the canopy to get access to well-lit areas of the forest. Lianas are especially characteristic of tropical moist deciduous...
s to her ankles and jumped and survived. Her husband jumped after her, but did not tie lianas to himself, which caused him to plummet and die. The men performed the original land diving so that they would not be tricked again.
The land diving ritual is associated with the annual yam
Yam (vegetable)
Yam is the common name for some species in the genus Dioscorea . These are perennial herbaceous vines cultivated for the consumption of their starchy tubers in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Oceania...
harvest
Harvest
Harvest is the process of gathering mature crops from the fields. Reaping is the cutting of grain or pulse for harvest, typically using a scythe, sickle, or reaper...
. It is performed annually in the months of April, May, or June. A good dive helps ensure a bountiful yam harvest.
The villagers believe land diving can enhance the health
Health
Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...
and strength of the divers. A successful dive can remove the illness
Illness
Illness is a state of poor health. Illness is sometimes considered another word for disease. Others maintain that fine distinctions exist...
es and physical problems associated with the wet season
Wet season
The the wet season, or rainy season, is the time of year, covering one or more months, when most of the average annual rainfall in a region occurs. The term green season is also sometimes used as a euphemism by tourist authorities. Areas with wet seasons are dispersed across portions of the...
. Furthermore, land diving is considered as an expression of masculinity
Masculinity
Masculinity is possessing qualities or characteristics considered typical of or appropriate to a man. The term can be used to describe any human, animal or object that has the quality of being masculine...
, as it demonstrates boldness that was associated with the bwahri or warrior. Nevertheless, the men who do not choose to dive or back out of diving are not humiliated as cowards
Cowardice
Cowardice is the perceived failure to demonstrate sufficient mental robustness and courage in the face of a challenge. Under many military codes of justice, cowardice in the face of combat is a crime punishable by death...
.
In the Sa
Saa language
Sa or Saa language is an Austronesian language spoken in southern Pentecost Island, Vanuatu. It had an estimated 2,500 speakers in the year 2000.- Dialects and range:Sa has numerous dialects, with no well-established names or boundaries...
language, gol refers to both the tower and the land dive. The tower symbolically represents a body, with a head, shoulders, breasts, belly, genitals, and knees. The diving platforms represent the penises and the struts beneath representing the vaginas.
Preparation
Technically, the time of yam harvest is significant because tower construction is best done during the dry seasonDry season
The dry season is a term commonly used when describing the weather in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which oscillates from the northern to the southern tropics over the course of the year...
. Also, the lianas have the best elasticity
Elasticity (physics)
In physics, elasticity is the physical property of a material that returns to its original shape after the stress that made it deform or distort is removed. The relative amount of deformation is called the strain....
during this time. During the period of preparation for naghol, the men seclude themselves from the women and refrain from sex. Furthermore, women are not allowed to go near the tower or else Tamalie, who lives in the tower, may seek vengeance, leading to the death of a diver. Additionally, the men must not wear any lucky charms during the dive.
The construction of the tower typically takes between two and five weeks of labour. Around twenty to thirty men help construct it. The men cut trees to construct the body, clear a site for the tower, and remove rocks from the soil. The soil is tilled
Tillage
Tillage is the agricultural preparation of the soil by mechanical agitation of various types, such as digging, stirring, and overturning. Examples of human-powered tilling methods using hand tools include shovelling, picking, mattock work, hoeing, and raking...
to soften the ground. The wood is freshly cut, so that it can remain strong. The core of the tower is made from a lopped tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
, and a pole scaffolding
Scaffolding
Scaffolding is a temporary structure used to support people and material in the construction or repair of buildings and other large structures. It is usually a modular system of metal pipes or tubes, although it can be from other materials...
tied together with vines stabilize it. Several platforms come out about two meters from the front of the tower, supported by several strut
Strut
A strut is a structural component designed to resist longitudinal compression. Struts provide outwards-facing support in their lengthwise direction, which can be used to keep two other components separate, performing the opposite function of a tie...
s. The lowest platform is around 10 meters, and the highest platform is near the top. During the jump, the platform supports snap, causing the platform to hinge downward and absorb some of the force from falling.
The vines are selected by a village elder and matched with each jumper’s weight without any mechanical calculations. The vines need to be supple, elastic, and full of sap
Plant sap
Sap is a fluid transported in xylem cells or phloem sieve tube elements of a plant. It transports water and nutrients throughout the plant....
in order to be safe. The ends of the vines are shredded to allow the fibres to be looped around the ankles of the jumpers. If the vine is too long, the diver can hit the ground hard, but if the vine is too short, then the diver can collide with the tower.
Before diving, the men oftentimes bring closure to unsettled business and disputes in case they die. The night before the jump, divers sleep beneath the tower to ward off evil spirits
Demon
call - 1347 531 7769 for more infoIn Ancient Near Eastern religions as well as in the Abrahamic traditions, including ancient and medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered an "unclean spirit" which may cause demonic possession, to be addressed with an act of exorcism...
.
Ritual
Though the majority of the islanders are Christian, they still adhere to the ancient beliefs. Before dawn on the day of the ceremony, the men undergo a ritual wash, anoint coconut oilCoconut oil
Coconut oil is an edible oil extracted from the kernel or meat of matured coconuts harvested from the coconut palm . Throughout the tropical world, it has provided the primary source of fat in the diets of millions of people for generations. It has various applications in food, medicine, and industry...
on themselves, and decorate their bodies. The males wear boar tusks around their necks. The men wear traditional penis sheaths
Namba (clothing)
A nambas is a traditional penis sheath from Vanuatu. Namba are wrapped around the penis of the wearer, sometimes as their only clothing. Two tribes on Malakula, the Big Nambas and the Smol Nambas, are named for the size of their nambas....
called nambas, and the women wear traditional grass dresses and are bare-breasted. Only the men are allowed to dive, but the dancing women provide mental support. Around 10 to 20 men in a village will jump.
The ritual begins with the least experienced jumpers on the lower platforms and ends with the most experienced jumpers on the upper platforms. The ideal jump is high with the jumper landing close to the ground. The goal is to brush the shoulders against the ground. The higher the jump, the more bountiful the harvest. Before diving, the jumper can give speeches, sing songs, and make pantomime
Pantomime
Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
s.
The diver crosses his arms over his chest to help prevent injury to the arms. The head is tucked in so his shoulders can contact the ground. Therefore, the divers risk a number of injuries, such as a broken neck
Cervical fracture
A cervical fracture is commonly called a broken neck. There are seven cervical vertebrae in the human neck, and the fracture of any can be catastrophic. The most common causes are traffic accidents or diving into shallow water...
or a concussion. During the dive, the jumper can reach speeds of around 45 mph (20.1 m/s). Right after a dive, other villagers rush in and take care of the diver.
For boys, land diving is a rite of passage
Rite of passage
A rite of passage is a ritual event that marks a person's progress from one status to another. It is a universal phenomenon which can show anthropologists what social hierarchies, values and beliefs are important in specific cultures....
. After the boys are circumcised
Circumcision
Male circumcision is the surgical removal of some or all of the foreskin from the penis. The word "circumcision" comes from Latin and ....
at the age of around seven to eight, the boys can participate in the ritual. When a boy is ready to become a man, he land dives in the presence of his elders. His mother holds a favourite childhood item, for example, a piece of cloth. After completing the dive, the item is thrown away, demonstrating that the boy has become a man.
Modern history
In the mid-nineteenth century, missionariesMissionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
came to the area and persuaded the natives to stop land diving. In the 1970s, anti-colonialism
Anti-imperialism
Anti-imperialism, strictly speaking, is a term that may be applied to a movement opposed to any form of colonialism or imperialism. Anti-imperialism includes opposition to wars of conquest, particularly of non-contiguous territory or people with a different language or culture; it also includes...
caused land diving to be seen in a new light as way to demonstrate their cultural identity
Cultural identity
Cultural identity is the identity of a group or culture, or of an individual as far as one is influenced by one's belonging to a group or culture. Cultural identity is similar to and has overlaps with, but is not synonymous with, identity politics....
. After the independence from colonial powers in 1980, the ritual was revived by Christian locals from neighbouring areas. In 1995, the people of Pentecost Island, with the support of Vanuatu’s attorney-general
Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...
, declared that they would endeavor to get royalties from bungee jumping enterprises because they viewed the tradition as stolen.
Notable dives
Dive for French resident commissioner
In 1952, a land dive was performed for a French resident commissionerResident Commissioner
Resident Commissioner is the title of several, quite different types of Commissioner in overseas possession or protectorate of the British Crown or of the United States.-British English:...
. British and French troops attacked some villages based on the rumor of a developing cargo cult
Cargo cult
A cargo cult is a religious practice that has appeared in many traditional pre-industrial tribal societies in the wake of interaction with technologically advanced cultures. The cults focus on obtaining the material wealth of the advanced culture through magic and religious rituals and practices...
. Several older men were arrested, though their sons offered to take their place. The men were let go in return for a land dive performance for the French resident commissioner. During the demonstration, the villagers sang a chant in Sa, incomprehensible to the resident commissioner, which noted the irony that the white resident commissioner thought he was strong, whereas it was the black men who were jumping from the towers.
Queen Elizabeth II incident
In 1974, Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain visited Vanuatu and observed the spectacle. The British colonial administration wanted the queen to have an interesting tour, and convinced the AnglicanAnglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
villagers of the Melanesian Mission at Point Cross to do so. However, the vines were not elastic enough because it was the wrong season, the middle of the wet season. One diver had both lianas broken, broke his back from falling, and later died in a hospital. Until 2006, when a diver broke his spine after landing badly and subsequently died in hospital, this was the only fatality in memory.
Kal Müller
Kal Müller, a journalist, is the first white man to land dive. Müller waited two years for the villagers of BunlapBunlap
Bunlap is a village in the south-east of Pentecost Island in the Pacific archipelago of Vanuatu. It is the most well-known of a number of local kastom villages whose people aspire to retain a traditional lifestyle with minimal Western influences....
to invite him to jump. Before the jump, he spent seven months with the villagers. His experiences were recounted in the December 1970 edition of National Geographic Magazine, Land Diving With the Pentecost Islanders.
Tourism
Land diving has become a tourist attractionTourist attraction
A tourist attraction is a place of interest where tourists visit, typically for its inherent or exhibited cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, or amusement opportunities....
for the villagers. The tourism aspect of land diving has come with some debate, such as maintaining the custom’s integrity while gaining attention. To prevent commercialization
Commercialization
Commercialization is the process or cycle of introducing a new product or production method into the market. The actual launch of a new product is the final stage of new product development, and the one where the most money will have to be spent for advertising, sales promotion, and other marketing...
of land diving, a tourism council that handles the tourists and presentation was formed by the chiefs. The tourism office works with tour companies and provides revenue by bringing in foreigners. A maximum of fifty tourists at a site are allowed up to eight times a year. The local control and government support maintain the ritual’s authenticity
Authentication
Authentication is the act of confirming the truth of an attribute of a datum or entity...
, while encouraging promotion. In 1982, tourists paid 35 pounds
Pound (currency)
The pound is a unit of currency in some nations. The term originated in England as the value of a pound of silver.The word pound is the English translation of the Latin word libra, which was the unit of account of the Roman Empire...
per person to watch the event. Though it was an annual event, naghol occurs weekly from April to June because of its profitability
Profit (economics)
In economics, the term profit has two related but distinct meanings. Normal profit represents the total opportunity costs of a venture to an entrepreneur or investor, whilst economic profit In economics, the term profit has two related but distinct meanings. Normal profit represents the total...
. Some tourists want to try land diving themselves, but are often denied for fear of safety. In 2006, commercial filming
Film industry
The film industry consists of the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking: i.e. film production companies, film studios, cinematography, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, post production, film festivals, distribution; and actors, film directors and other film crew...
of the ritual was banned by the Vanuatu Cultural Centre
Vanuatu Cultural Centre
The Vanuatu Cultural Centre , founded in 1959, is the national cultural centre of Vanuatu. It is located in Port Vila...
to protect the culture.