When does a teenager become an adult? In many countries, it happens on your 18th birthday, but in some parts of the world, you have to do something special to enter the world of adults. On the island of Papua New Guinea, the Niowra tribe lives near the Sepik River, which is full of crocodiles. The people believe that the crocodiles made the Earth and its people. When it is time for teenage boys to become men, a ‘crocodile ceremony’ takes place.
The boys are taken to a hut called ‘The Crocodile Nest’. The hut is full of crocodile teeth and skulls. The boys are told to think of their crocodile ‘fathers and mothers’ to help them to be strong and brave. Then they are beaten several times a day for six weeks and bamboo is used to make cuts on their chests and backs. The boys play the drums together during their time in the hut – this helps them to feel that they are not alone. The Niowra believe that this ceremony makes the boys stronger and braver, so that they can survive in the dangerous forest. They also say that the boys don’t feel the pain if they believe in their crocodile ‘fathers and mothers’. And the amazing thing is that some of the boys sleep through the most painful parts of the ceremony! When the ceremony is over, there is singing and dancing and the crocodile men are given adult responsibilities in the village.
1. What is special about the place where the Niowra tribe lives?
2. What do the Niowra believe?
3. What is ‘The Crocodile Nest’ and why do the boys go there?
4. What do the boys do during the ceremony?
5. How does a boy’s life change after the ceremony?