Midi

Midi is one of the Kuanua words that had almost disappeared from the Kuanua vocabulary and was on the brink of extinction. The closest phrase that has some relationship to midi is nuk midimidi or nuk midamida. Nuk midimidi means feast in remembrance and honor of dead relatives.

Midi itself is a necklace made from a type of sea shell. From historical photographs it strongly appears that it is worn by males. Pur is the term that is still in use as the name for the necklace worn by people during ceremonies, including dances. Pur is made from tagete leaves and other natural fibres, while midi is made entirely from one type of sea shell except for the rope that is used to string the shells together. The general name for necklace is kurkurua.

This cultural piece (midi) is just beginning to be revived through study and research for a master’s thesis by Lisa Hilli. While doing her study she communicated with me and Gidoen Kakabin (New Guinea Island Historical Society) regarding her research and in one of her correspondences she wrote:

In a couple of weeks I will be for the first time publicly presenting some outcomes of my Masters research into Tolai Middi, through an exhibition in Brisbane, QLD. A key aim within my research is to repatriate back knowledge to the Tolai community, within PNG and Australia. This is an image of Pearson Vetuna, Tabunatip Clan, wearing the middi that I have made. Making this middi was a very special and profound experience and connected me to my cultural ancestry. I chose Uncle Pearson as he is a respected elder in the Tolai & PNG community here in Melbourne. I have gained A LOT from using this very special and unique group and thought it was time to give something back. Thank you Gideon for establishing this group - see facebook isn't such a bad thing is it? 

Photo by Lisa Hilli showing Pearson wearing a midi, 2015.

Tolai man wearing a midi c,1883
The photo is from R. Parkinson's records  that was recently shared by Gideon Kakabin in New Guinea Islands Historical Society's timeline on Facebook, 2016)

The time difference between these two photographs is from about 1883 to 2015. Fortunately the word midi was recorded by R, Parkinson in the form of a photo of a Tolai man wearing a midi. Over a hundred years later Lisa Hilli studied this cultural piece of jewelry and recreated the midi which is shown in the first photo.