‘Purely of their own manufacture’: the adoption and appropriation of cricket in Samoa, c. 1879-1939

Benjamin Sacks

Research output: ThesisDoctoral Thesis

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Abstract

This thesis considers how Samoans embraced and reshaped the game of cricket following its introduction to the islands in 1879. Almost as soon as they began playing the sport, Samoans recast cricket as the distinctive Samoan game of kirikiti. This act of appropriation established the pitch as a 'contested space' between Samoans and foreigners, who were wary of kirikiti's association with Samoan politics and 'wasteful' customary exchange. The struggle over cricket was not neatly divided between colonisers and colonised, however. Instead, the game's history in Samoa reflected the complexities and blurred boundaries created by imperial expansion and subsequent colonial rule.
Original languageEnglish
QualificationDoctor of Philosophy
Awarding Institution
  • The University of Western Australia
Supervisors/Advisors
  • Martens, Jeremy, Supervisor
  • Barrie, David, Supervisor
Thesis sponsors
Award date1 Aug 2017
DOIs
Publication statusUnpublished - 2017

Embargo information

  • Embargoed from 02/08/2017 to 02/07/2021. Made publicly available on 02/07/2021.

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