Heritage

Things To Do In Fiji: From Lovo to Meke, Here Are 6 Authentic Fijian Cultural Traditions For Visitors

The archipelago of Fiji is home to a diverse cultural heritage, from the native iTaukei people to the Indo-Fijians who put down roots in the 1880s. Here are six cultural traditions that every traveller to Fiji must experience at least once

Women singing in Malolo Island, Fiji Photo: Guy Cowdry/Shutterstock
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Fiji’s cultural identity is an amalgam of its iTaukei indigenous people, Indo-Fijians who arrived during the British colonial era to work on sugarcane farms in the early 1880s and European, Chinese and other Pacific Island influences. This has created a society where diverse traditions thrive side by side, whether that is in the languages they speak (English, iTaukei and Fiji Hindi); religious customs, which extend from ceremonial traditions of the iTaukei to Christian communities and Hindu temples; and cuisines, like the iTaukei dishes of kokoda, spicy Indian curries and flavourful Chinese stir-fries.