26

RADIOLOGICAL CLEANUP OF ENEWETAK ATOLL

had been obliterated.3! The map of one ofthe islands of Enewetak Atoll
(Medren) showing wato division lines appears on Figure |-28.

One facet of Enewetak Atoll culture that differed from that of other

Marshall Islands was the system ofland tenure and inheritance. In the rest

of the Marshalls, matrilineal is the rule. The land tenure system at

Enewetak was, in ideal and in practice. a bilateral one. [n most cases, a

married couple divided the land which each had inherited among their

children, and a child usually received some tand from both his father and
mother. As the younger islanders matured, they worked the land with
their parents. As the parental generation died and as membersof the next
generation married and produced children, the process was repeated with

parents allocating land among their offspring.32 Every individual possessed

rights to some land on islands away from the settlements of Enewetak and
Enjebi. All land in the atoll was held by someone. with the exception of

one parcel on Enewetak Island which was donated for the location of a
church.
The people resided on their landholdings on Enjebi and Enewetak
Islands. In most cases, households were headed by males and were
situated upon land held by them. Ideally, residence was patrilocal, i.e.,

upon marriage, females moved to their husband’s households, although

—~ @—,

exceptions to the rule did occur.33

LEO

TORKED |

aNEVAL?
CINEGA
acoeN

~ GIKEY Aa TALES

CISRET
ALMIRA

LOKOIENE

/
LIMANWA

FIGURE 1-28. MEDREN ISLAND SHOWING NAMES AND BOUNDARIES
OF WATOS.

Select target paragraph3