RAAP—035
MARSHALL ISLANDS STICK CHARTS
Stick charts were traditional navigational aids developed in the Marshall Islands in Micronesia. Rather than mapping fixed landmarks, they encoded the structure of the ocean itself, especially the behavior of swells as they moved across and around atolls.
These charts were constructed from palm ribs or coconut midribs bound with fiber, with small shells or coral pieces used to mark islands. Curved and intersecting sticks indicated dominant swell directions, areas of refraction and reflection around land, and points where wave patterns interacted.
Stick charts were not drawn to scale and did not show exact distances. Designs could differ between navigators because each chart reflected personal knowledge of a seascape. They were typically memorized rather than carried on voyages, serving as teaching tools in which wayfinding knowledge was transmitted orally and embodied. The charts attest to a highly sophisticated, place-based science of reading the ocean.
These charts were constructed from palm ribs or coconut midribs bound with fiber, with small shells or coral pieces used to mark islands. Curved and intersecting sticks indicated dominant swell directions, areas of refraction and reflection around land, and points where wave patterns interacted.
Stick charts were not drawn to scale and did not show exact distances. Designs could differ between navigators because each chart reflected personal knowledge of a seascape. They were typically memorized rather than carried on voyages, serving as teaching tools in which wayfinding knowledge was transmitted orally and embodied. The charts attest to a highly sophisticated, place-based science of reading the ocean.