Before colonisation there was little restriction on mobility. The oral narratives give the impression that most communities experienced some division as they expanded, quarrelled or were defeated by a neighbour. Those who departed opened new regions, joined another group or took over some of its territory. Some domains had renowned war leaders (ama lesi, ‘war father’). They were able, if required, to call on and obtain the support of other allied domains against a predatory neighbour, or to enrol them as a raiding partner. ^[31] These authoritative and respected men were active members of the nili and the kakehan of their river, where followers (wife-takers) were coopted.

Among the Alune and the Wemale, origin groups are called nuru. Alune nuru perpetuate themselves by reference to a genitor line of derivation and Wemale nuru by reference to a genitrix one. Large nuru expand into new territories and set forth branches (sanai) over the whole region, establishing Houses (Luma) that can be found in more than one domain. ^[32] Residency determines linguistic affiliation and mode of derivation of these Luma units. What all the members of a nuru have in common is a name. To this name is attached a narrative recalling the deeds of an ancestor and/or a place of origin.

The people regarded as the descendants of the initial ‘core’ of a nuru constitute its nuruwei, its elder or ‘initial trunk’ (sumber, pohon). The claim to that prestigious position might be disputed between the ‘branches’ (sanai) of a nuru. Nuru order their ‘branches’ in different, sometimes combined orders of precedence. Thus a ‘branch’ might call itself a mena, the ‘elder’ (‘firstborn’, ‘the one who walks ahead’), while another ‘branch’ might be a muli, in a junior position (‘last born’, ‘the one who came after/follows’). Between them, a ‘female branch’ (bina) might have developed among various collateral ‘branches’. As ‘branches’ grow and diversify, some keep their core name, recognising a common origin without necessarily keeping in contact with the initial ‘core’ (nuruwei). Other units take an additional name to distinguish their ‘branch’ and might forget their name of origin. ‘Branches’ might also sever the link with their initial nuruwei and initiate a new nuru (of which they become the nuruwei).

As nuru generate influential members and rich Houses, it is not so much a hierarchy that is established between them as a fluctuating competition. Renown and value are the objects of regular evaluation and readjustment. Thus claims for prestige and precedence apply between nuru and within them, between their ‘branches’ and Houses established in the various domains. However, there is little interaction between the various ‘branches’ of a nuru unless their Houses are in the same or a nearby domain. There is no nuru head, nor any authority that can be applied over a branch, a House or an individual by the nuru as a jural body. As some nuru become extinct, while the ‘branches’ of others transform themselves into a new core, it is difficult to make a precise count of the nuru and of their branches and Houses distributed across all Wemale and Alune domains and on other islands.

All nuru consist of ‘Houses’ or Luma. The first House to arrive in a domain is the Luma inai, the ‘mother House’, of its nuru in a domain. The Houses of the same nuru who arrived afterward, or decided to branch out from their Luma inai but remained in the same domain, are differentiated and called Luma sanai, ‘branch Houses’.

The various Houses of a nuru, in one or several domains, are usually distinct and unrelated; however they do not intermarry. Sharing a common nuru name implies exogamy. It is by the intermediary of their Houses, which are exchanging units, that different nuru give and return brides to each other within or beyond a domain. Remote communities such as Hena Manusa Manuwe are essentially endogamous at domain level. Within the domain, the ‘rich and famous’ (hena upui: ‘Grandfathers of the hena’), the elder and ruling lines, which have gained founding positions, exchange brides largely among themselves. But, through strategic marriages, proper behaviour and multiple descent, any House or any of its lines, including those perpetrated by women, may achieve status and wealth, enhance its renown and eventually fuse with, or replace, an older line or a declining House.

An Alune hena is a territorial, sociopolitical, economic and ritual unit standing in its own right. ^[33] The members of this community have joint assets and interests. They also share a sense of common identity and similar values, which derive from a strong awareness of the spiritual duties associated with their historical domain in the region. The entity called the hena comprehends the group, its settlements, its land, hills, rivers, forest and gardens, all named and narrated. It also includes all the dead and living beings dwelling within it.

Narratives depict how supra-human ancestors explored the region, marked territorial boundaries and assembled families (Luma), leading them through warfare and alliances to found a community. These founding ancestors established the position of their domain within the river batai and its institutions (the nili ela and kakehan). The following generations had to maintain these rights and gather enough followers to preserve a strong community and a large territory. As elders say: ‘who adds people adds land.’ ^[34] Nowadays, under the administration of the modern State, maintaining the number of their members remains a matter of survival for the highland communities.

One of these ancient domains is the Alune Hena Ma’saman Uwei, now called Desa Manusa Samanuwey (or Manusa Manuwe).