AREOI, or AREOITI

This article appears in Volume V02, Page 453 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: APO-ARN

AREOI, or AREOITI , a

secret

SECRET (Lat. secretum, hidden, concealed)

society which originated in Tahiti and later extended its influence to other

South

SOUTH
SOUTH, ROBERT (1634–1716)

Pacific islands. To its ranks both sexes were admitted. The society was primarily of a religious character. Members styled them-selves descendants of Oro-Tetifa, the Polynesian god, and were divided into seven or more grades, each having its characteristic tattooing. Chiefs were at once qualified for the highest grade, but

ordinary

ORDINARY (med. Lat. ordinarius, Fr. ordinaire)

members attained promotion only through initiatory

rites

RITES

. The Areois enjoyed

great

GREAT

privileges, and were considered as depositaries of knowledge and as mediators between God and man. They were feared, too, as ministers of the taboo and were entitled to pronounce a kind of

excommunication

EXCOMMUNICATION (Lat. ex, out of, away from; communis, common)

for offences against its rules. The

chief

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

religious purpose of the society was the

worship

WORSHIP (i.e. " worth-ship," O. Eng. weor8scipe)

of the generative

powers

POWERS, HIRAM (1805-1873)

of nature, and the ritual and ceremonies of initiation were grossly licentious. But the
a m .0
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O
Rhyolitic ashes Upper 1 Upper Ashes
Massive ashes =Middle of
Acid andesitic ashes =Lower Arenig.
Daerfawr Shales. Zone of Didymograptus Murchisoni. Platy ashes Lower Ashes of Arenig

Great

GREAT

Agglomerate 5 (Hypersthene Andesites). Olchfa or Bifidusshales (Didymograptus bifidus).
bn Filltirgerig or Hirundo Beds Didymograptushirundo.
Erwent or Ogygialimestone
Henllan or Calymeneashes 1 Didymograptus Llyfnant or Extensusflags
Basal Grit extensus.
Areois were also a social force. They aimed at communism in all things. The women members were common property; the period of cohabitation was limited to three days, and the female Areois were bound by oath at initiation to strangle at

birth

BIRTH (a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages from the root of the verb " to bear ")

any child born to them. If, however, the infant was allowed to survive half an hour only, it was spared; but to have the right of keeping it the mother must find a male Areoi willing to adopt it. The Areois travelled about, devoting their whole time to feasting, dancing (the

chief

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

dance of the women being the grossly indecent Timorodeementionedby Captain Cook), and debauchery, varied by elaborate realistic stage presentments of the lives and loves of gods and legendary heroes.

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