Angu
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Angu, also called Kukukuku (pronounced "cooker-cooker") by neighbouring tribes, are a small and previously violent tribe living mainly in the high, mountainous region of south-western Morobe, a province of Papua New Guinea. Even though they are a small race, often less than 5 foot, they were once feared for their violent raids on more peaceful villages living in lower valleys.[1]
Despite the high altitude and cold climate of their homeland, the Angu only wore limited clothing, including grass skirts, with a piece similar to a sporran, and cloaks made from beaten bark, called mals.[1]
They are also known to Westerners for practicing a sexual ritual involving preadolescent boys acting as courtesans for male tribal elders.[2]
An account of some of the first contact between the Angu and westerners is describe vividly by J. K. McCarthy in his book Patrol into Yesterday: My New Guinea Years.
[edit] References
- ^ a b Lightbody, Mark; Wheeler, Tony (1985). Papua New Guinea: a travel survival guide, 3, Lonely Planet, p. 89-90. ISBN 0-908086-59-8.
- ^ The Naked Face. Articles from the New Yorker. Gladwell.com (2002-08-05).
[edit] External links
- A New Venture into the Unknown, booklet produced by the Melanesian Mission on their proposed mission to the Kukukuku people of New Guinea, ca. 1937.
- "Kukukuku, the Angu people, Papua New Guinea" by Carolyn Leigh, Art-Pacific, August 19, 2002, retrieved December 28th, 2005
