To
begin with, traditional Kanak society is organised around clans, which are
both social and spatial units. The clan could initially be made up of people
related through a common ancestor, comprising several families. There can
be between fifty and several hundred people in a clan. This basic definition
of the clan has become modified over the years due to historical situations
and places involving wars, disagreements, new arrivals etc. The clan structure,
therefore, evolved as new people arrived and were given a place and a role
in the social organisation of the clan, or through clan members leaving to
join other clans.
Within the clan there
is a certain form of affective and respected hierarchy, first of all between
the members of the clan and between the families, then within the descendents,
through to the top of the ladder to the clan's chief, also called the "
the eldest brother ". 
The
"eldest brother" who is the clan's representative and is respected
and loved by the clan's members, presides over clan life and settles any disputes
which occur between members of the group. In some places, notably the Loyalty
Islands, clan autonomy becomes reduced through their integration into a large
social organisation, which is known today by the term « district coutumier
» or "customary district". In this more elaborate organisation,
various clans join together around a large "chefferie" (dwelling
places ruled by the chiefs), where their status and prestige is more similar
to Polynesian royalty than to the Kanak clanical chefferie, this development
no doubt resulting from significant Polynesian immigration to the islands
in the past. In this context, the clan not only identifies itself as its own
autonomous entity, but also by the place it occupies in the social organisation
of the district and by the attributes which are bestowed on it in relation
to the great "chefferie" (property owner clan, magic clan, warrior
clan etc.) 
The
clan's chief becomes a sort of servant to the great chief and owes him obedience
and respect. He in turn symbolises the district and assures the social cohesion
to this title, he is respected and admired by the district's population. He
is the reference, the chief of the land and the people, and steps in as a
last resort to settle any disputes.
Men,
have social and public responsibilities (entering into alliances, social relations
and public life, the clan's social durability etc.), responsibilities for
the community's food resources, including responsibility for the yam growing
and customary objects of social exchange.
Women, have responsibility for life, and for everything pertaining to the family's intimacy, the daily tasks and housework and for the family's supplies. As the bearer of life, they ensure the reproduction of the members of the clan.
This
duality can be seen in the young people : the boys work for the community
and are cared for by it ; following adolescence they live together in a separate
area where they are educated on their future social and clan responsibilities.
The girls, on the other hand, live with their mother at the family home until
marriage, where they learn the rudiments of family and domestic life.
In their relations with individuals, social or clan groups, with the community, the Kanak will on all occasions refer to one of the three dimensions of his identity, of his personality, which generate three types of relations :
Blood
relations, by nature more individual, affective, intimate, which induce depending
on the type of relation, specific relations and behaviour. The Kanak will
thus have distinct attitudes and gestures depending on whether he is addressing
a brother, an uncle, a brother-in-law, an aunt etc.
Relations as a result of the position and the roles of his clan in society
; he will be a man of the earth if his clan is a landowner; he will be a fisherman
if he is a member of the clan of the sea, he will be the spokesperson of the
district etc. Finally, relations determined by age which will privilege the
eldest in relation to the youngest, which impose the respect of the elders,
of the oldest to the detriment of the youngest etc. These are the types of
social relations which bestow certain privileges or favours according to age.
Thus, for example at meals, the old men and women will be served first; The
new yams of the harvest will be kept for the elders; a hierarchy based on
age will become established in any social group during activities or community
ceremonies.
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