A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

A Tavogivogi appears as a young man or woman and attracts a person of the opposite sex. The encounter ends in disappearance, followed in the narrative by sickness and death of the deceived person. No visible bodily mark initially reveals the spirit’s identity. Codrington gives a naming test involving a tree, treating the wrong answer as a narrative sign that the attractive stranger is not what they seem.

The departure may take the form of a bird or another creature. The name is connected by the collector with a word for changing form. He compares Tavogivogi to neighbouring islands’ mae snakes but explicitly says Tavogivogi are not thought to appear as snakes. That distinction preserves the source’s local account while its illness attribution remains a recorded belief.

Human appearance conceals identityDisappears in another creature’s formWrong tree name exposes deception
01

Origins & earliest records

R. H. Codrington, The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-lore (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1891), Chapter X, printed pp. 172. The selected historical account dates this collected witness; it does not establish the beginning of the tradition.

02

Records & interpretation

The complete relevant primary narrative was read in the public transcription, with printed-page markers checked. The original page images have not been visually collated in this pass. Local account and collector interpretation remain distinct.

In the literature

“There is no outward sign”
R. H. Codrington; underlying selected contributor unnamed · The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-lore
Chapter X, p.172; concealed character · R. H. Codrington

A wrong answer to a tree-name question is given as a narrative sign of deceit, despite no visible distinguishing feature. The collector connects the name with a Banks’ Islands word for changing form. That suggested etymology is attributed to him; no independently established universal derivation is claimed.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    The Melanesians, Chapter X, pp. 172

    R. H. Codrington (collector and English presenter; Edward Wogale named for the main Qat cycle) · 1891

    Specific island variants and named narrative provenance retained. Colonial and missionary judgments are not adopted as present community consensus.

  2. 02

    The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-lore

    R. H. Codrington; selected underlying contributor unnamed · 1891

    R. H. Codrington, The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-lore, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1891; selected University of Toronto historical scan/OCR. Chapter X final accounts and complete Chapter XIX III.9 and III.13 independently read; interleaved Basi footnote excluded from Deitari narrative.

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

Located primary passages

Specific passages supporting details in this entry, grouped by their published witness.

The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-lore

R. H. Codrington, The Melanesians: Studies in their Anthropology and Folk-lore, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1891; selected University of Toronto historical scan/OCR. Chapter X final accounts and complete Chapter XIX III.9 and III.13 independently read; interleaved Basi footnote excluded from Deitari narrative.

  1. The collector describes Tavogivogi appearing as an attractive youth or woman, followed by a deceived person’s sickness and death. The departure takes a bird or another creature’s form. These remain historically reported beliefs rather than medical explanations. Codrington explicitly excludes snake appearance while comparing neighbouring mae accounts.

    Chapter X, p.172; Attractive stranger and change of form

  2. A wrong answer to a tree-name question is given as a narrative sign of deceit, despite no visible distinguishing feature. The collector connects the name with a Banks’ Islands word for changing form. That suggested etymology is attributed to him; no independently established universal derivation is claimed.

    Chapter X, p.172; Naming test and attributed etymology

Specific reported account, not modern universal consensus. No song, prayer, healing or ritual formulas excerpted; facsimile not visually checked in this batch.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Primary textCodrington 1891, Chapter X: SpiritsResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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