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Tongan kava ceremonies are a variety of ceremonies involving the kava plant that play an integral part of Tongan society and governance.They play a role in strengthening cultural values and principles, solidifying traditional ideals of duty and reciprocity, reaffirming societal structures, and entrenching the practice of pukepuke fonua (lit. "tightly holding onto the land"), a Tongan cultural ...
Kava or kava kava (Piper methysticum: Latin 'pepper' and Latinized Greek 'intoxicating') is a plant in the pepper family, native to the Pacific Islands. [1] The name kava is from Tongan and Marquesan, meaning 'bitter.’ [1] Other names for kava include ʻawa (), [2] ʻava (), yaqona or yagona (), [3] sakau (), [4] seka (), [5] and malok or malogu (parts of Vanuatu). [6]
Kavalactones are a class of lactone compounds found in kava roots and Alpinia zerumbet (shell ginger). [1] and in several Gymnopilus, Phellinus and Inonotus fungi. [2] Some kavalactones are bioactive. They are responsible for the psychoactive, analgesic, euphoric and sedative effects of kava. [3] [4]
Once the kava is of the right strength, as deduced from its colour, the master of ceremonies will call out the nickname of the first recipient using an archaic formula (kava kuo heka). The touʻa will fill the cup and the cup is then brought, often by a young lady, to the intended chief, and brought back afterwards.
The Samoan word ʻava (pronounced with the glottal stop) is a cognate of the Polynesian word kava associated with the kava cultures in Oceania. Both terms are understood in Samoa. The ʻava ceremony within Samoan culture retains the same ritual pattern with slight variations depending on the parties involved and the occasion.
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