Stakeholders
itaukei
ICH Stakeholders 2
Organization
(2)-
Fiji Museum
The Fiji Museum is a museum in Suva, Fiji located in the capital city's botanical gardens, Thurston Gardens. The Museum holds a remarkable collection, which includes archaeological material dating back 3,700 years and cultural objects representing both Fiji’s indigenous inhabitants and the other communities that have settled in the island group over the past 200 years. The Museum is a statutory body governed by the Fiji Museum Act and the Preservation of Objects of Archaeological and Palaeontological Interest Act.\nIn 1908 the Fijian Society was formed with the specific aim of researching and preserving the country’s history and culture. The formation of a museum was included in this aim. In 1910 the government approved an annual grant of £25 to appoint a collection caretaker. With the passing of the Fiji Museum Ordinance in 1929, the museum was formally inaugurated as a Government Statutory Body with a Board of Trustees.\nThe collection remained on display in the Town Hall until 1919 when a substantial part of the hall was destroyed by fire. The collection was moved to a variety of venues until the government was persuaded by the Trustees to build a National Museum.\nThe current museum was opened in 1955 by the Governor of Fiji, Sir Ronald Garvey. This building was used to house the displays, reserve collection and provide storage. Today the building has two adjoining sections, the first constructed in 1972 and the second in 1978. Together, these buildings provide a history gallery, masi gallery, art gallery, Indo-Fijian gallery, temporary exhibition space, store rooms and gift shop. The archives, photographic studio, editing suite, library and administration offices are located in what was the Nawela Hostel for women, adjacent to the main museum building.
Fiji -
Itaukei Institute of Language and Culture
The iTaukei Institute of Language and Culture (TILC) is responsible for safeguarding iTaukei culture and heritage. In that regard, it updates and edits entries into the iTaukei monolingual Dictionary. It is also custodian of significant iTaukei records such as iTaukei dialects from the fourteen (14) provinces. An important program of the Institute is the culture mapping of the 1,171 villages in the 14 Provinces of Fiji. This exercise is focused on recording all traditional knowledge and expressions of culture significant to the iTaukei but more importantly, it is for the purpose of addressing issues such as intellectual property. nnThe Institute was initially formed as the Fijian Dictionary Project funded by renowned actor Raymond Burr and the American-Fiji Foundation in 1974. The Government later funded the project and in 1986, the Great Council of Chiefs, with Cabinets' endorsement renamed the iTaukei Dictionary Project as the iTaukei Institute of Language and Culture. The Institute was then charged with the three major responsibilities: completion of the iTaukei Monolingual Dictionary; safeguarding and preservation of iTaukei Culture; research and documentation of all iTaukei dialects from the 14 Provinces.
Fiji