Abstract
The techniques used by the Sanio-Hiowe of Papua New Guinea to produce edible starch from the sago palm (Metroxylon sp.) are described. Input-output analysis demonstrates that this is a highly productive subsistence technology; nevertheless, the Sanio-Hiowe economy is characterized by an absence of intensification. This is ascribed to functional consequences of dependence on hunting and gathering in the interior. In coastal and riverine habitats, other societies using sago supplemented by fishing or horticulture can more fully exploit the potential of sago as a basis for economic intensification and a more sedentary life.
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This field research among the Sanio-Hiowe of Yareno hamlet was carried out from March 1966 to August 1967 with the assistance of W. Townsend and the support of a National Science Foundation dissertation research grant and a United States Public Health Service Fellowship. In earlier publicationsHiowe was spelledHeve. I have altered the spelling of Sanio words to conform to the phonemic analysis of Lewis and Lewis (1970).
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Townsend, P.K. Sago production in a New Guinea economy. Hum Ecol 2, 217–236 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01531422
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01531422