The Yap Islands, with a population of about 11,000, are located within the Federated States of Micronesia in the West Pacific. It is a place where still-vibrant tradition and culture converge. After long years of foreign control, culminated by Japan and then the US, Yap finally won its independence in 1986. As an isolated state, Yap is, however, yet experiencing difficulty in securing its economic autonomy. Through a series of five articles, starting with this one, I would like to introduce Yap, an island state bounding in natural beauty and endowed with rich traditional values and culture.

What may best symbolize Yap's traditional culture is its stone money, which can be found lying about carelessly within villages and around houses. This form of money is still used when holding weddings and other ceremonies, building houses, and settling problems. There is even a special bank where it can be deposited. It comes in all sizes from giant pieces of over two meters in diameter to tinier pieces of less than a few tens of centimeters, and is crafted of various kinds of rock.

The stones used in making the money are not from Yap, but transported from as far away as Palau, some 400 kilometers across the sea. Even today, shell axes are used to chisel and carve the stones before they are loaded into the belly of outrigger sailing canoes for the perilous voyage back to Yap. The value of a piece of stone money is determined by the length of its journey and other aspects of its history. The people of Yap, who do not have a written language, have for several hundred years passed the stories associated with individual pieces of stone money down through a long oral tradition. They are, however, hesitant to reveal these stories for fear that doing so may diminish the money's value.

Another custom representative of Yap tradition is its "men's houses." Thatched with nippa palms, these traditionally constructed wooden structures have a distinctive character about them. They are places where the men of the village pass along traditional customs and rites, conduct collaborative tasks, and communicate with one another. Because it is also from them that the men watch and wait for good fishing conditions, they are always constructed beside the seashore. It is in them where the men learn and continue to observe the village rules, taboos, and functions.

At the center of the village order is its chief. At the time of Yap's independence, a system was installed for the villagers to elect their own chief; however, with the sole exception of XXX, the elections maintained all of the incumbents in office. Two chief's councils have been organized as extralegal bodies with the power to overturn decisions of even the state government and assembly in matters of tradition. On the other hand, an old caste system still continues especially with regard to people of the outer islands, who have difficulty finding acceptance and leading successful lives in Yap Proper.

Though unrelated to tradition per se, men and women alike have a taste for betelnuts, which they chew with a sprinkling of lime. The chewer's mouth becomes bright red from the juices of the nuts and numbed by their bitterness. There are those folks who abstain from betelnut chewing, being unable to do it without getting nauseated. Betelnuts are chewed in Southeast Asia and India as well, but in Yap the world would stand still without them„they are loved that much.

In the islands, men can be observed toting guardedly frond-woven shoulder bags, from which they will, when so moved, extract some betelnuts and a bit of lime. It's safe to say that they will chew them whenever there is a break in their activities. For the people of Yap, upon whom the intense rays of the equatorial sun constantly beat, the stimulant derived from betelnut chewing is an indispensable part of their daily lives.

When making leis, the Yapese determine the beauty of the flowers used by the quality of their fragrance. They're fond of hanging gingery-scented leaves and sour-sweet smelling fruit around their necks. The fragrances of plants are generally know to have various effects„they can relax, stimulate, etc. As such, they have of late become used in aromatherapies to affect mood and promote health. It would seem to me, however, that the Yapese have long before appreciated the essence of plant fragrances.

The capital of Colonia is a small town situated on an inlet. It has virtually no buildings over two stories tall. Only a scattering of people can be seen on its streets, where here and there middle-aged women in waistcloths chat and laugh while walking along. The people of Yap enjoy a leisurely life style and don't find any special virtue in work. Though material civilization and a money economy are finding footholds in the island state, the Yapese appear to still have only a weak attachment to cash. In Yap, where life is still rooted in a traditional culture characterized by stone money, a sharp silhouette still remains of a gradually fading past.