ABSTRACT
Fijian identity is tightly bound to the concepts of modernity, tradition and culture. These concepts however, are not neatly definable ideas but rather fluid, and at times messy, processes. Therefore, identity too must be understood as a constantly changing and malleable process influenced by these temporal and cultural contexts. Modernity creates upheaval in society – it changes how people experience the present, remember the past and practise their traditions. In Fiji, modernity is closely linked to Christianity and its arrival in the 19th century impacted how people constructed their culture and their identities. The dissemination of Christian values, myths and ways of knowing in Fijian culture has necessarily produced a hybridised Fijian identity that frequently negotiates the past and the present. The evolution of Fijian identity can be analysed through the application of the lens of kava ceremony and kava consumption. Kava drinking is inherent to Fijian society and identity. It has remained a continuous cultural, spiritual and political custom despite numerous disruptions produced by modernity. Kava ritual under the influence of Christianity and modernity has undergone hybridisation, homogenisation and democratisation yet persists as an integral part of traditional and modern Fijian culture. Thus, the custom can be analysed to reveal the contradictions and negotiations that occur in Fijian identity every day, as Fijians grapple with the coexistence of tradition and modernity.
