Massimn.adj.

1893 S. H. Ray in 9th Internat. Congr. Orientalists 2 760 Of these, the Misima is the same as the New Guinea Melanesian, whilst the Nada forms..show the pronouns usual as possessive suffixes.]

1894 A. C. Haddon Decorative Art Brit. New Guinea 184 Following Dr. E. T. Hamy, I adopt the term Massims as a collective name for the mixed people inhabiting the archipelagoes off the south-east of New Guinea... The term Massim..originally arose from an imperfect knowledge of the island of Misima, but I employ it solely as a convenient conventional name.

1910 C. G. Seligmann Melanesians Brit. New Guinea 9 The most characteristic cultural feature of the Massim is the existence of a peculiar form of totemism with matrilineal descent.

1971 M. W. Young Fighting with Food in Massim Society iii. 54 Unlike in many areas of the Massim, men do not attribute malevolent supernatural powers to women.

1896 Mind 5 264 The double scroll..has been independently evolved from the eye and beak of the frigate-bird in the ‘Massim’ District.

1936 R. Firth Art & Life New Guinea 22 The Massim area, in the south-east, is particularly famous for the wealth of carving with which its spatulæ are embellished.

1961 B. A. L. Cranstone Melanesia 42 The prow-boards of Massim canoes..are always carved by specialists.

1999 Britannica Online (Version 99.1) Some motifs represent matters important in Massim belief systems, but this symbolism is poorly understood outside Massim culture.