Your tavale are your husband's brother, your wife's sister, your mother's brother's sons and daughters, and your father's sister's sons and daughters. The relationships with a tavale is one of joking. If the tavale are different sexes then the joking is often of a sexual nature. In traditional Fijian culture these are the relations that it was okay to marry. Abroad Male Dominance F ijian way of life is highly influenced by the attitude that men have higher status then women.
Men sit separate from the women because they are seen as more important.
Inherited positions are passed down through the males and women are able to assume these positions only when all the male possibilities are exhausted. Fijians also trace their descent through the males. Although women are also recognized as important to society, men are seen as the more respected sex. This respect is resounded throughout daily activities in their culture. During ceremonies men are the ones who usually participate.