The Whale's Tooth

When poor people were in Fiji, they used something commonly know to the Fijian people called a Whale’s tooth. It is special because it got people things they didn’t have when it was presented to them.

These special whales teeth are like any normal tooth. They have a thick short rope attached to the whale tooth so you can hold it. The teeth are usually white but can come in light green as well. The teeth come in all different sizes. A whale’s tooth is hollow but has nothing that goes on top of the tooth and it looks like it’s carved.

In the olden days, in Fiji, there had been a tradition to kill a whale and take a tooth out. It belonged to the people of Fiji and came from the Fijian Islands. When Fijians were poor they got a whale tooth and presented it to someone. When the poor presented it to someone, they would give some of their money away to the people who presented the whale tooth.

The whale’s tooth is special because it got the poor families their needs. Another reason why it’s special is because when someone wanted to marry someone they would present the whale tooth to them and they would say yes. Fijians liked to use the whale’s tooth because it meant so much to them and their lives.

By Grace