A taboo is a vehement prohibition of an action based on the belief that such behavior is either too sacred or too accursed for ordinary individuals to undertake, under threat of supernatural punishment.[1][2] Such prohibitions are present in virtually all societies.[1] The word has been somewhat expanded in the social sciences to include strong prohibitions relating to any area of human activity or custom that is sacred or forbidden based on moral judgment and religious beliefs.[citation needed] "Breaking a taboo" is usually considered objectionable by society in general, not merely a subset of a culture.
Etymology
The term "taboo" comes from the Tongantabu, related to the Maoritapu. Its English use dates to 1777 when the British explorer James Cook visited Tonga. Describing the cultural practices of the Tongans, he wrote:
Not one of them would sit down, or eat a bit of any thing.... On expressing my surprise at this, they were all taboo, as they said; which word has a very comprehensive meaning; but, in general, signifies that a thing is forbidden.[3]
and
When any thing is forbidden to be eaten, or made use of, they say, that it is taboo.[4]
The term was translated to him as "consecrated, inviolable, forbidden, unclean or cursed".[5]Tabu itself has been derived from Tongan ta ("mark") and bu ("especially").[6][7] and Fijiantabu ("prohibited", "disallowed", "forbidden").[8] In its current use on Tonga, the word tapu means "sacred" or "holy", often in the sense of being restricted or protected by custom or law. On the main island, the word is often appended to the end of "Tonga" as Tongatapu, here meaning "Sacred South" rather than "Forbidden South".
Examples
Sigmund Freud posited that incest and patricide were the only two universal taboos and formed the basis of civilization.[9] However, although cannibalism, in-group murder, and incest are taboo in the majority of societies, modern research has found exceptions for each and no taboo is presently known to be universal.[citation needed]
Common taboos include restrictions or ritual regulation of killing and hunting; sex and sexual relationships (primarily incest, pedophilia, necrophilia, intermarriage, miscegenation, adultery, homosexuality, fornication, and bestiality); reproduction (abortion, infanticide); the deceased and their graves; food and dining (primarily cannibalism and dietary laws such as vegetarianism, kashrut, and halal); and bodily functions (primarily menstrual cycles, but also defecation and urination).
Taboos may serve many functions[clarification needed] and often remain in effect after their original reason has disappeared.[citation needed]
Communist and materialist theorists have argued that taboos can be used to reveal the histories of societies when other records are lacking.[10]Marvin Harris particularly endeavored to explain taboos as a consequence of ecologic and economic conditions.[specify][citation needed]
Modernity
The rise of rationalism and science has reduced the potency of many former taboos in modern cultures.[citation needed] In the United States and Europe, people openly discuss and explore previously taboo subjects such as sexuality and abortion. Increasing understanding has led medical disorders such as epilepsy, birth defects, and sexually transmitted diseases to be treated more analytically and less judgmentally than in the past.[citation needed]
Incest itself has been pulled both ways, with some seeking to normalize consensual adult relationships regardless of the degree of kinship[12] (notably in Europe[13][14]) and others expanding the degrees of prohibited contact (notably in the United States[15]).
^Putnam, Robert D. "E Pluribus Unum: Diversity and Community in the Twenty-first Century -- The 2006 Johan Skytte Prize". Scandinavian Political Studies. 30 (2), June 2007.
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