The Register of
Mary Clifton Ayres Fieldnotes and Recordings
1979 - 1983

MSS 0113

Mandeville Special Collections Library
Geisel Library
University of California, San Diego

Extent: 1.25 linear feet (2 archives boxes, 1 card file box)

Abstract

Fieldnotes and recordings of Mary Clifton Ayres, ethnographer and professor of anthropology, made during her ethnographic fieldwork (1979-1981) in the Morehead District, Western Province, Papua New Guinea. Ayres' research formed the basis for her doctoral dissertation entitled THIS SIDE, THAT SIDE: LOCALITY AND EXOGAMOUS GROUP DEFINITION IN MOREHEAD AREA, SOUTHWESTERN PAPUA. The materials are arranged in three series: 1) WRITINGS, 2) FIELDNOTES and 3) CASSETTE TAPES.

Biography

Mary Clifton Ayres was born on August 17, 1953. She received her Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Chicago in 1983. Her dissertation was entitled THIS SIDE, THAT SIDE: LOCALITY AND EXOGAMOUS GROUP DEFINITION IN MOREHEAD AREA, SOUTHWESTERN PAPUA.

Ayres conducted research in Papua New Guinea from October 1979 through October 1981, with funding from the National Science Foundation. Her fieldsite was in the Morehead area of Western Province, Papua New Guinea. This is the same area in which F.E. Williams, a government anthropologist, conducted fieldwork from 1926-1932. Williams' fieldwork results were published in his book, PAPUANS OF THE TRANSFLY (Clarendon, 1936). Williams' work, however, was among Nambu dialect speakers, while Ayres' work concentrated on speakers of the Tonda dialect. Thus, Ayres' work provides an important complement and contrast to Williams' earlier description of the area, as well as providing an important ethnographic description of present-day culture in the Morehead area.

Scope and Content

The Ayres Papers contain data collected during anthropological research conducted in the Morehead District, Western Province, Papua New Guinea between October 1979 and September 1981 by Mary Ayres. Included are photocopies of fieldnotes and copies of tape recordings made in the field. The collection is arranged in three series: 1) WRITINGS, 2) FIELDNOTES and 3) CASSETTE TAPES.

SERIES 1: WRITINGS

The WRITINGS series contains a photocopy of Ayres' dissertation entitled THIS SIDE, THAT SIDE: LOCALITY AND EXOGAMOUS GROUP DEFINITION IN MOREHEAD AREA, SOUTHWESTERN PAPUA.

SERIES 2: FIELDNOTES

The FIELDNOTES series is arranged in six subseries: 1. Volume I - Rouku; 2. Volume II - Western Villages; 3. Volume III - Eastern Villages; 4. Stories; 5. Genealogies; and 6. Marriage Exchanges. Ayres organized and described the materials as follows:

1. Volume I Fieldnotes - Rouku: Data recorded from the people of the kamundjo tjokwasi dialect group (total population: approx. 100). I lived in Rouku (Tjevethak) village in this area. This volume represents the most detailed data recorded during my research. The notes are filed chronologically, in the order collected.

2. Volume II Fieldnotes - Western villages: Data recorded among the dialect groups in the western part of the Morehead area. The volume is subdivided according to dialect group/locality, and the notes are filed chronologically within each section.

3. Volume III Fieldnotes - Eastern villages: Data recorded among the dialect groups in the eastern part of the Morehead area. The volume is subdivided according to dialect group/locality, and the notes are filed chronologically within each section.

4. Stories: Non-secret/sacred stories for groups throughout the area. Pagination follows from Volume III of fieldnotes. The stories were tape recorded. No literal transcriptions into native language were made. Rather, assistants played the tapes, pausing every sentence or so to give me a loose translation into English, which I then wrote down. An index of stories, and an index of tape recordings is provided.

5. Genealogies: Genealogies for groups throughout the area. Each page is numbered for easy cross-referencing. Each marriage is also numbered. This number refers to the list of marriage exchanges, in which exchange partners are identified.

6. Marriage Exchanges: A list of marriage exchange partners. Individuals are cross-referenced to the genealogies. The back section of this volume of notes contains explanatory notes on particular marriage exchanges.

SERIES 3: TAPE RECORDINGS

The TAPE RECORDINGS series contains copies of all the recordings Ayres made in the field as well as an index of contents.

Finding aid generated: 2005-10-28