John Frum

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John Frum (or Jon Frum, or John From) is a figure associated with cargo cults on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu. He is depicted as an American World War II serviceman, who will bring wealth and prosperity to the people if they follow him. He is sometimes portrayed as black, sometimes as white; from David Attenborough's report of an encounter: "'E look like you. 'E got white face. 'E tall man. 'E live 'long South America."^[1]

John Frum gathering area

[edit] History

The religion arose in the 1930s, when Vanuatu was known as the New Hebrides. It is not known whether it arose spontaneously or was deliberately created; nor is it clear whether an individual named "John Frum" existed. The name is sometimes considered a corruption of "John from (America)", which the natives heard from US GIs during World War II.^[2][1] The surname Frum is rare in the English-speaking world; it does not appear at all in either the 1851 or 1901 censuses of the United Kingdom,^[3] although there may have been a John "Frumm" or "Frumme" or "Fromme," which are common German and Jewish family names (frum ≈ devotional, religious).

Ceremonial cross of John Frum cargo cult, Tanna island, New Hebrides (now Vanuatu), 1967

Some people living around Sulphur Bay on Tanna revere a god named Kerapenmun associated with the extinct volcano Mount Tukosmeru; the attributes of this god likely influenced the development of the John Frum movement. A native named Manehivi, under the alias of Jon Frum, began the cult by appearing among people and making promises of houses, clothes, food, and transport.^[4] He promised the dawn of a new age, in which all white people, including missionaries, would leave the New Hebrides (as they were then known), and that the native Melanesians would gain access to the material wealth which white people enjoyed. For this to happen, the people of Tanna should reject all aspects of European society (money, Western education, Christianity, work on copra plantations) and return to traditional kastom (a word for native Tannese customs).

In 1941, followers of John Frum rid themselves of their money in a frenzy of spending, left the missionary churches, schools, villages and plantations, and moved further inland to celebrate traditional custom through feasts, dances and rituals. The movement gained popularity in the 1940s when some 300,000 American troops established themselves in Vanuatu. The islanders were impressed both by the egalitarianism of the Americans and their obvious wealth and power. This led them to conflate perceived benefactors such as Uncle Sam, Santa Claus and John the Baptist into a mythic figure who would empower the island peoples by giving them cargo wealth. Followers of John Frum built symbolic landing strips to encourage American aeroplanes to land and bring them "cargo". In 1957, a leader of the John Frum movement, Nakomaha, created the "Tanna Army", a non-violent, ritualistic organisation which organised military-style parades, their faces painted in ritual colours, and wearing white t-shirts with the letters "T-A USA" (Tanna Army USA). This parade still takes place every year on February 15.

The power of John Frum appeared to be confirmed by the post-war influx of tourists to the region, who brought with them a degree of material prosperity to the islands. The cult is still active today. The followers believe that John Frum will come back on a February 15 (the year of his return is not known), a date which is observed as "John Frum Day" in Vanuatu.

John Frum cargo cult and their ceremonial flag raising

In the late 1970s, John Frum followers opposed the imminent creation of an independent, united nation of Vanuatu. They objected to a centralised government which they feared would favour Western "modernity" and Christianity, felt to be detrimental to local customs. The John Frum movement has its own political party, led by Song Keaspai. On John Frum Day in February 2007, the John Frum Movement celebrated its 50th anniversary. Chief Isaak Wan Nikiau, its leader, was quoted by the BBC from years past as saying that John Frum was "our God, our Jesus," and would eventually return. ^[5]

Chief Isaak Wan Nikiau, its leader, became a Christian in the 1990's and gave up his belief in the John Frum Movement.^[6]

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, is also worshipped in Vanuatu by cargo cult followers, the Prince Philip Movement, following a royal visit to the area in 1974.^[1] He is now regarded as the head of the cargo suppliers.

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

This article includes a list of references or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (October 2008)

• Attenborough, D. (1960) Quest in Paradise : Lutterworth Press, (reprinted 1963 Pan Books Ltd.)
• Rice, Edward (1974). John Frum He Come : Cargo Cults & Cargo Messiahs in the South Pacific. Garden City: Dorrance & Co. ISBN 0-385-00523-7. 
• Huffer, Elise, Grands Hommes et Petites Îles: La Politique Extérieure de Fidji, de Tonga et du Vanuatu, Paris: Orstom, 1993, ISBN 2-7099-1125-6
• Jarvie, I. C. (1964). The Revolution in Anthropology (reprinted 1967) pp. 61-63. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
• Theroux, P (1992) 'The Happy Isles of Oceania' Penguin Books ISBN 0-14-015976-2
• Tabani, Marc, Une pirogue pour le Paradis : le culte de John Frum à Tanna (Vanuatu). Paris : Editions de la Maison des Sciences de l'Homme, 2008.
• Nat. Geographic: May 1974. "Tanna (Island, New Hebrides, South Pacific Ocean) Awaits the Coming of John Frum (cargo cults of Melanesia since about 1940)".

[edit] External links

• "In John They Trust" article in Smithsonian Magazine
• BBC Report on the 50th Anniversary of the John Frum cult
• Jon Frum Movement
• The last cargo cult