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Hello, Good Bai!

  • Article
  • High School
  • Middle School
  • Less than 30 minutes
  • Bai
  • Construction
  • Culture
  • Painting
  • Palau
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In this essay, learn about traditional Palauan craftsmanship as revealed in the construction of bai, a longhouse important in Palau's culture.

Hello, Good Bai!

 

In this article, you will learn about traditional Palauan craftsmanship as revealed in bai construction. A bai is a gathering place for village men in Palau.

 

A Palauan long house with a thatched roof and decoratively painted walls
Bai ra Rengarairrai. USDA Forest Service photo by Amanda Uowolo.

 

The traditional bai is built from large trees that are cut down and carved without the benefit of metal tools. To build a bai, one must have a knowledge of the land and of the materials needed for construction, including the types of trees and shrubs that produce those materials. Additionally, one must know the precise construction methods used in building a traditional bai. Once the bai is constructed, a person knowledgeable about and skilled in ornamental design is needed, too.

 

The knowledge of bai construction is traditionally passed from elders to children. Over many years, however, the traditional knowledge of bai construction diminished. The elders in Palau realized that when the men who knew how to construct traditional bai buildings died, this knowledge might die with them. Therefore, these men committed themselves to understanding how to pass on this tradition to the next generation.

 

A Palauan long house with a thatched roof and decoratively painted walls
The Bai Melekeong. USDA Forest Service photo by Amanda Uowolo.

 

They tried a new approach to constructing traditional bai structures. In 1983, a men’s group built the Bai Melekeong (above). In the past, the men would have worked in isolation, only selectively sharing their knowledge. Building the Bai Melekeong was different. Young people were urged to observe the construction, thus ensuring that the knowledge and skills were being passed to the next generation. This effort assured the Palauan community that the traditional knowledge was not lost. The Bai Melekeong sparked a revival of interest in building traditional bai structures and created a new, community-based approach to sharing and passing on knowledge.

 

Until the 1960s, the only other remaining bai had been built in 1890. In 1968, however, a men’s group built a traditional bai that was tragically destroyed by fire in 1978. A new bai was built on the same site in 1991. Then in 2013, a young men’s group completely renovated the bai. These young people represented the next generation’s commitment to learning traditional skills and the passing of these skills to the next generation.

 

In Palau, the ability to observe and quietly learn is highly respected. The skills needed for bai construction are now passed along by showing, observing, and doing. Bai construction relies on individuals with different skills, including identifying, cutting, processing, and transporting trees; milling the wood into proper lengths; and building and painting the bai.

 

The decoratively painted entrance of a bai
The images of the rooster, Palauan money, clam shell, and a demigod can be seen on the Bai of Aimeliik. USDA Forest Service photo by Amanda Uowolo.

 

Painting a bai involves both symbols and a type of picture series that tells a story. A limited number of symbols are traditionally used, including a rooster, a symbol for Palauan money, a clam, a demigod, a spider, and a bird (above). Zigzag lines are used to show someone or something speaking.

 

The interior of a Palauan long house called a bai. The beams overhead are decoratively painted, and there's a central fire pit.
Interior of a bai with fire pits in the middle. Notice the painted beams. These pictures tell stories, events, or myths important to the village. USDA Forest Service photo by Amanda Uowolo.

A bai’s interior beams are approximately 15 feet long and 1 foot wide. Each beam is painted with pictures that tell stories, events, or myths important to the village. These pictures may include people, houses, canoes, and trees.

 

In the 1930s, a Japanese artist and student of folklore came to Palau to study art and culture. Older Palauans who painted bai beams and gables (the triangular end of a building) remember Hisataku Hijikata as the man who taught them how to “make the board small.” Hijikata asked these painters to sketch their stories. He then instructed his students to paint the stories on wood boards. Hijikata insisted that the images be painted accurately, and many said that his boards could not be distinguished from the original beams from which they were copied. Over time, these boards came to be called storyboards—another important new idea that helps to document and preserve Palauan culture in a beautiful art form. One storyboard tells a myth about the breadfruit tree.

 

 

A brightly painted, carved wooden board depicting people climbing a breadfruit tree and handing the fruit down to others on the ground.
This storyboard tells the myth of the fish-bearing breadfruit tree. The carving and painting were done by Darwin Ling Inabo of Tebang Woodcarving Shop in Palau. USDA Forest Service photo by Amanda Uowolo.
The cover of the 'Pacific Islands' NI journal cover. The main image is a color photo of a green jungle.

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Pacific Islands - Vol. 1 No. 21

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  • PDF preview of of 'Hello, Good Bai' FACTivity.
    In this FACTivity, you will draw and color your own storyboard.

    FACTivity – Hello, Good Bai

    • Activity
    • Middle School
    • 1 Classroom Period
    • Art Activity
    • Narrative
    • Storyboard
    In this FACTivity, you will draw and color your own storyboard.
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    Hello, Good Bai!

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  • Education Standards
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Standards addressed in this Article:

The Common Core Standards are educational benchmarks in the United States that outline clear expectations for what students should know and be able to do in English language arts and mathematics from kindergarten through 12th grade, aiming to ensure consistency and coherence in education nationwide.
  • Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
  • By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 6-8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
  • Determine a central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct from personal opinions or judgments.
  • Analyze in detail how a key individual, event, or idea is introduced, illustrated, and elaborated in a text (e.g., through examples or anecdotes).
  • Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings.
  • Analyze how a particular sentence, paragraph, chapter, or section fits into the overall structure of a text and contributes to the development of the ideas.
  • Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and explain how it is conveyed in the text.
  • Integrate information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words to develop a coherent understanding of a topic or issue.
  • Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and evidence from claims that are not.
  • Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
  • By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 6-8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
  • Determine two or more central ideas in a text and analyze their development over the course of the text; provide an objective summary of the text.
  • Analyze the interactions between individuals, events, and ideas in a text (e.g., how ideas influence individuals or events, or how individuals influence ideas or events).
  • Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of a specific word choice on meaning and tone.
  • Analyze the structure an author uses to organize a text, including how the major sections contribute to the whole and to the development of the ideas.
  • Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author distinguishes his or her position from that of others.
  • Compare and contrast a text to an audio, video, or multimedia version of the text, analyzing each medium's portrayal of the subject (e.g., how the delivery of a speech affects the impact of the words).
  • Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient to support the claims.
  • Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
  • By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary nonfiction at the high end of the grades 6-8 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
  • Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to supporting ideas; provide an objective summary of the text.
  • Analyze how a text makes connections among and distinctions between individuals, ideas, or events (e.g., through comparisons, analogies, or categories).
  • Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts.
  • Analyze in detail the structure of a specific paragraph in a text, including the role of particular sentences in developing and refining a key concept.
  • Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how the author acknowledges and responds to conflicting evidence or viewpoints.
  • Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using different mediums (e.g., print or digital text, video, multimedia) to present a particular topic or idea.
  • Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; recognize when irrelevant evidence is introduced.
  • Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
  • By the end of grade 9, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 9-10 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range. By the end of grade 10, read and comprehend literary nonfiction at the high end of the grades 9-10 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
  • Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.
  • Analyze how the author unfolds an analysis or series of ideas or events, including the order in which the points are made, how they are introduced and developed, and the connections that are drawn between them.
  • Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language of a court opinion differs from that of a newspaper).
  • Analyze in detail how an author's ideas or claims are developed and refined by particular sentences, paragraphs, or larger portions of a text (e.g., a section or chapter).
  • Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how an author uses rhetoric to advance that point of view or purpose.
  • Analyze various accounts of a subject told in different mediums (e.g., a person's life story in both print and multimedia), determining which details are emphasized in each account.
  • Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false statements and fallacious reasoning.
Social Studies Standards are educational guidelines outlining the essential knowledge, skills, and concepts students should learn in subjects such as history, geography, civics, and economics, aiming to provide a comprehensive understanding of societal structures, historical events, and global perspectives.
  • Culture
  • Global Connections
  • Individual Development and Identity
  • Individuals, Groups, and Institutions
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  • PDF preview of the Cultural Essay Lesson plan.
    This lesson plan can be paired with any of the cultural essays from the Hawai’i-Pacific Islands edition of Natural Inquirer. After a brief introduction, students will read the cultural essay...

    Lesson Plan – Cultural Essay

    • Lesson Plan
    • Middle School
    • 1 Classroom Period
    • Social Science
    • Culture
    • Human Impacts
    • Reading for Information
    This lesson plan can be paired with any of the cultural essays from the Hawai’i-Pacific Islands edition of Natural Inquirer. After a brief introduction, students will read the cultural essay...
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    Hawaii Pacific Islands - Vol. 1 No. 16

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    In this lesson plan, you will use the visual thinking strategy to elicit prior knowledge before reading a Natural Inquirer or Investi-gator article. This can be used with any Natural...

    Lesson Plan – Visual Thinking Strategy

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    • High School
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    • Visual Thinking Strategy
    In this lesson plan, you will use the visual thinking strategy to elicit prior knowledge before reading a Natural Inquirer or Investi-gator article. This can be used with any Natural...
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    SPLAT! Protecting Pine Trees in the Western United States from Beetle Attack

  • PDF Preview of the ^-W Questions Lesson Plan
    In this lesson plan, students will read a Natural Inquirer article and write short summary notes from each section. Students will then create “6-W Poems” that reflect their understanding of...

    Lesson Plan – The 6-W Questions

    • Lesson Plan
    • High School
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    • Active Forest Management
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    • Citizen Science
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    In this lesson plan, students will read a Natural Inquirer article and write short summary notes from each section. Students will then create “6-W Poems” that reflect their understanding of...
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    Part Of

    Show Me the Money: Promoting Sustainable Forests in the South

Glossary

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  • demigod

    (de mē gäd): A mythological being with more power than a mortal but less than a god.

  • renovate

    (re nə vāt): To restore to a former better state.

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  • Additional Resources

Additional Resources

  • Palau: Airai—Native Place: Bai-ra-Irrai

    Learn more about Palau.

    Visit Websited
  • Belau National Museum

    Learn more about the history and languages of Micronesian region.

    Visit Website
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