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Phillip H. McArthur is an American folklorist and anthropologist at BYU-Hawaii. [1] McArthur's scholarly work focuses on the Marshall Islands. McArthur has spent much of his career documenting and analyzing Marshall Islander narratives, mythology, songs, and performances.
McArthur initially travelled to the Marshall Islands as a missionary for the Mormon church, returning for his PhD research. [2] [3] He would later study under folklorists and scholars Richard Bauman and Beverly J. Stoeltje. He obtained an associate degree in psychology from Ricks College, a bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University in anthropology, and both master's and Ph.D. degrees in folklore studies and cultural anthropology from Indiana University.
McArthur's work in the Marshall Islands closely examines social power and indigenous epistemologies with special attention to the tumultuous relationship with the United States. [4] McArthur's research emphasizes social theoretical and semiotic approaches to traditional narrative (i.e. myth, oral history), cultural performance (ritual, ceremony, festival, spectacle), history, cosmology, and local cultures within the contexts of decolonization, nationalism and globalization. This includes a deepening attention to political and economic forces, and their relationship to social power and practice. [5] With a geographical specialization in Oceania, he additionally includes comparative studies on cultures of Asia, Native America, Africa and the Classical world. He also integrates deep interests in comparative philosophy, the history of ideas, dialogic ethnography, and traditional arts.
Representative Publications:
The Marshall Islands, officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands, is an island country west of the International Date Line and north of the equator in the Micronesia region in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean.
Micronesia is a subregion of Oceania, consisting of approximately 2,000 small islands in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean. It has a close shared cultural history with three other island regions: Maritime Southeast Asia to the west, Polynesia to the east, and Melanesia to the south—as well as with the wider community of Austronesian peoples.
The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI) was a United Nations trust territory in Micronesia administered by the United States from 1947 to 1994. The Imperial Japanese South Seas Mandate had been seized by the US during the Pacific War, as Japan had administered the territory since the League of Nations gave Japan a mandate over the area from Imperial Germany after World War I. However, in the 1930s, Japan left the League of Nations and invaded additional lands. During World War II, military control of the islands was disputed, but by the war's end, the islands had come under the Allies' control. The Trust Territory of the Pacific was created to administer the islands as part of the United States while still under the auspices of the United Nations. Most of the island groups in the territory became independent states, with some degree of ties kept with the United States: the Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands and Palau are today independent states in a Compact of Free Association with the US, while the Northern Mariana Islands remain under US jurisdiction, as an unincorporated territory and commonwealth.
Majuro is the capital and largest city of the Marshall Islands. It is also a large coral atoll of 64 islands in the Pacific Ocean. It forms a legislative district of the Ratak (Sunrise) Chain of the Marshall Islands. The atoll has a land area of 9.7 square kilometers (3.7 sq mi) and encloses a lagoon of 295 square kilometers (114 sq mi). As with other atolls in the Marshall Islands, Majuro consists of narrow land masses. It has a tropical trade wind climate, with an average temperature of 27 °C (81 °F).
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of Oceania or any other island located in the Pacific Ocean.
The Micronesians or Micronesian peoples are various closely related ethnic groups native to Micronesia, a region of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. They are a part of the Austronesian ethnolinguistic group, which has an Urheimat in Taiwan.
The Indigenous peoples of Oceania are Aboriginal Australians, Papuans, and Austronesians. These indigenous peoples have a historical continuity with pre-colonial societies that developed on their territories. With the notable exceptions of Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, New Caledonia, Guam, and Northern Mariana Islands, indigenous peoples make up the majority of the populations of Oceania.
Micronesian mythology comprises the traditional belief systems of the people of Micronesia. There is no single belief system in the islands of Micronesia, as each island region has its own mythological beings.
Oceanianliterature developed in a unique geographical environment that allowed the development of a unique literature to thrive. Oceanian literature was heavily influenced by religion, ritual and colonization. This can be seen by the large amount of religious symbolism and political activism featured in it.
The Micronesian Games are a quadrennial international multi-sport event within the Micronesian region. The Games were first held in 1969 in Saipan. The 2010 Micronesian Games were initially due to be held in Majuro, until the hosts withdrew. The 2010 Games were hosted by Palau. The Federated States of Micronesia won the bidding to host the 2014 Micronesian Games in Pohnpei State, and later won again against CNMI for the 2018 Micronesian Games, held in Yap State.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Marshall Islands:
The Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture (FestPAC), also known as the Pacific Arts Festival, is a travelling festival hosted every four years in Oceania. It was conceived by the Pacific Community as a means to stem erosion of traditional cultural practices by sharing and exchanging culture at each festival. The major theme of the festival is traditional song and dance.
Japanese settlement in the Marshall Islands was spurred on by Japanese trade in the Pacific region. The first Japanese explorers arrived in the Marshall Islands in the late 19th century, although permanent settlements were not established until the 1920s. As compared to other Micronesian islands in the South Seas Mandate, there were fewer Japanese who settled in the islands. After the Japanese surrender in 1945, the Japanese populace were repatriated to Japan, although people of mixed Japanese–Marshallese heritage remained behind. They form a sizeable minority in the Marshall Islands' populace, and are well represented in the corporate, public and political sectors in the country.
The following outline is provided as an overview and topical guide to Oceania.
William Albert "Bert" Wilson was a scholar of Mormon folklore. The "father of Mormon folklore" helped found and organize folklore archives at both Utah State University (USU) and Brigham Young University (BYU). He directed the folklore archive at USU from 1978 to 1985, and chaired the English department at BYU from 1985 to 1991. He and his students collected jokes, legends, stories, songs, and other information to add to the Mormon folklore archives.
Rosalie Aten Konou is the Marshall Islands' first female lawyer. She has held the positions of head of the island nation's Legal Aid Office and Assistant Attorney General.
Delap SDA School, also known as Majuro SDA School or Seventh-day Adventist is a private co-educational K-12 Christian school operated by the Guam-Micronesia Mission of Seventh-day Adventists. It is located in Delap, on the island of Majuro, in the Republic of the Marshall Islands. The school is located directly beside the Majuro Cooperative School, and within 500 meters (1,600 ft) of the hospital and the capitol building.
The Marshalls Broadcasting Company (MBC) is the national broadcaster of the Marshall Islands. It operates one radio station, V7AB and one television channel.
