Tolai sorcery and change

Despite the considerable literature on the Tolai that has been produced by modern anthropologists as well as earlier ethnographers, we still lack a co ntemporary account of their notions of sorcery and its practice. This artic le is an attempt to plug this gap. Of all the ethnic groups in Papua New Gu inea, the Tolai have had the longest and closest experience of the wider so ciety that came into being with the onset of colonial rule. Over the past h undred years and more, the Tolai have seen momentous changes that have touc hed almost every aspect of their society and culture, Since, as with so man y other tribal societies, magic was such a central feature of their world-v iew, the question arises of how the traditional belief in and practice of s orcery have been affected by their changed circumstances. This is the quest ion that the article seeks to address.