An example search has returned 100 entries
eceijo
n. tide flowing a little, begun to flow
bookmarkeucte
v. to begin to blossom
bookmarkham
v.n. to come
bookmarkinbul
n. native rose; rosa chinensis; the hibiscus; also "inpul"
bookmarkincat
n. flax
bookmarkincat tal
n. basket of taro
bookmarkinhau am̃a
n. shrub, 1. 5 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3560)
Example: In ancient times this plant was used as a fiber to make skirts and rope. Take the stems, remove the leaves, rett the stems in sea water for a few weeks, sun dry the stems and then weave into rope or skirts. This plant is not much used for this purpose at the present time. This plant is used to make a medicine with an unspecified use.
bookmarkinhodaig et ecro
n. astronomy word, no def. given--possibly referring to a common shellfish "inhudaig". no def. for "ecro" or any feasible alternate spellings.
bookmarkinhujah
n. kind of tree
bookmarkinhupnan
n. first fruits
bookmarkinjañad
injupjupura
n. night; quite dark
bookmarkinmetla
inmoijeuv adpoig
intinan tal
n. a plantation of taro
bookmarkintisiancai
n. blossom (open)
bookmarkintopasyejitohou
n. herb to 50 cm tall, flowers yellow. (collection: Michael J. Balick #4947)
Example: To treat toothache, collect the uppermost young leaves, rub them in your hand, put mass of crushed leaves into the area of toothache to lessen the pain. Do this as needed until the pain goes away. Keep it in your mouth for 10 minutes then spit out, then add a new one, keep going as needed.
bookmarkinwae
n. tree, 3-4 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3563)
Example: Children like to eat the fruit of this plant. It is said to taste like pineapple/mango. It must be very ripe to be eaten. Peel and discard the skin. The fruit is most sweet when it is on the ground for a few days. Some children eat the seeds of this fruit but it has a strong oily taste--too many cause vomiting and if a person eats 1-2 seeds it can cause diarrhea.
bookmarkinwouasan
n. liana climbing on Syzygium, growing along ridge in dense rainforest. Latex white (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4079)
bookmarkisgeig pan
adj. adjacent
bookmarklelohos
n. a garden of bananas
bookmarkmaranapa
n. kind of banana
bookmark
nagai
n. the name of a tree with fruit like almonds
bookmarknaheñ
nahoacen
n. vine to 3-4 m, aerial tubers brown (collection: Michael J. Balick #4872)
Example: Normally these fruits are considered poisonous. But, people have learned to peel off the skin of the fruits, put the peeled fruits in a conical basked and place a bamboo tube that is dripping water over it to wash the basket of fruits for 3-5 days. This is said to leach out the poison and the end result is similar in consistency to cheese. Wrap this up with leaves and put it in an earth oven to cook. This plant is eaten as a "starvation food" only, consumed in times of drought and famine.
bookmarknahrin nij
n. kind of taro
bookmarknahtancai upunupun
n. thorn
bookmarknalad iran
n. seed of a fig
bookmarknamlau elwa
n. tree to 15 m tall, dbh 40 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4859)
Example: The wood of this tree is good for carving. The fibers go in one direction so it is easier to carve, for example, to make a kava bowl. In general, this is the species used to make kava bowls. If your kava is not strong, then making it in this bowl will make it stronger. The kind of bowl made from this tree has a handle on each side of the bowl and it is held with 2 hands. The place name Anumwmamlau is named after this tree. There are said to be two types of this tree--one with all green leaves (this specimen) and one with white and green leaves. If a person is going to a Tabu place and is concerned about spirits, they should take a handful of these leaves and wash the body all over with it--take a swim (bath) with it. Then the person can go to the Tabu place without risk. There are other unspecified spiritual uses of this tree. The second part of this local name "elwa" refers to the variegation of the leaves.
bookmark
naop yi atmas
n. a small whirlwind
bookmarknaravi
n. a gathering of inmops or horse-chestnuts
bookmark
natisiyeg
n. Squaretail mullet
Example: Photo by ANFC, License: CC BY-NC 3.0 via Fishes of Australia
bookmark
natora
naupiñiña
n. terrestrial fern, growing in secondary forest along the river. Leaves c. 2. 25 m long. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3656)
Example: Put several leaves of this species together to wrap food, especially the fresh water eel, and to carry plants of taro, kava, holding the leaves over one’s shoulder to carry these crops.
bookmarknecñopod
nefesgamtan
n. Humpnose big-eye bream
Example: Photo by Mark Rosenstein / iNaturalist.org, License: CC BY-SA 3.0 via Fishes of Australia
bookmarknefilitikgan
n. kind of taro
bookmark
nemla
n. tree, 4 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4127)
Example: 1. This wood can be used to start a fire, where there are no matches. Two dried pieces of wood are rubbed vigorously together to create tinder. The tinder is then added to dried material in order to start a fire. 2. The wood of this plant is used as rafters in traditional houses.
bookmarknepnai
n. tree to 5 m, flowers white. Growing in secondary forest with metroxylon palms and other large trees. (collection: Michael J. Balick #4954)
Example: The pear shaped fruits are eaten when ripe. Peel off the outer skin, eat inner part and discard the seed. The leaves are used to protect food as it is being cooked on an earth oven. To prepare the oven, pile hot stones, then put a layer of leaves on the stones, and then place hot stones on top of the leaves. To make a hot oven, the stones are lined in a pit, a fire lit, more stones placed on firewood and the top layer of stones gets very hot. Then, remove the stones from the top of the wood, and cook food o the bottom layer of stones, add a layer of leaves, place the food on top of this, then cover with a layer of leaves and then pile the rest of the hot stones on top of the leaves.
bookmarknidincai
n. balsam; resin
bookmarkniditau
n. tree to 8 m, dbh 20 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4867)
Example: Fruits are sweet and edible when ripe. This plant is an indicator of rich soil, a good place to plant one’s garden. The leaves of this species are mixed in with other leaves for an unspecified local medicine that helps to remove spiritual sickness
bookmarkniditau
n. tree, 8 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3636)
Example: The green fruits are edible, as are the young leaf apices--cook these in water and eat them. The wood is used for temporary houses, for example, to provide shade in a garden. For planting taro, or any root crop, sharpen the end of a stick of this tree and use it for making holes, particuarly in river sand where some crops are planted. This tree grows near the river and is an indication that this land is good for agriculture. The wood from the tree is very good for firewood. Name means "who are you." Plant used as an indicator of a tabu place. Take a branch and put it where another person is building or gardening and there is a dispute over that area of land. When this plant is placed there the person who is using the land should stop working it.
bookmarknieg
n. a reed
bookmarknigie
n. shrub, 1. 5 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3537)
Example: This plant is an aphrodisiac. Eat with coconut meat to make the body strong. Take 1/2 handful of leaves and mix with coconut leaves, use as needed. Mostly men eat this combination. It is best to eat with dry coconut that has no water in it. Eat it any time you wish.
bookmarknijcel
nilpudou
n. herb to 50 cm, flowers yellow. (collection: Michael J. Balick #4944)
Example: As a tonic medicine, collect a full handful of leaves, boil in one liter of water until fully cooked, then drink 1 cup 3x daily, warm, to treat a person who has worked too much, who is tired, to help their stomach and to help make them strong. For children and adults. Child’s dose is 1/2 cup, 3x daily until the child feels stronger.
bookmarkniri atga
niriñ neyaiñ
nitschatimi
n. Cordyline fruticosa L.
Example: Leaf: chew (leprosy in mouth). Whole plant: planted for several Kastom purposes; many important Kastom-bound uses as magical or ornamental plant throughout Melanesia.
bookmarknohwan aruman
n. kind of taro
bookmarknop̃oi
n. sprawling, vine-like herb (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3215)
Example: 1. The flower of this plant is used for decoration, for Christmas in particular, in church and home. 2. To attract a mate, put the flower in your hair. 3. This is the introduced one that is named after the wild type.
bookmarknoragidi
pok ko
adv. seaward yonder
bookmarkrap̃ad
[rak͡pad] n. black hawk
bookmark
uhup a nelgo waj
yah
n. a creeping plant
bookmarkThere are currently 2431 entries, 1543 audio files, and 860 images.
All content copyright © Aneityum community. (2015)
Talking Dictionary produced by K. David Harrison, Gregory D. S. Anderson and Jeremy Fahringer. Botanical consultants: Michael J. Balick, Gregory M. Plunkett and Sean Thackurdeen. (2015-2018)
Aneityum language contributors include Kirk Keitadi, Tony Keith, Titiya Lalep, David Nasauman, Osiani Nerian, Ruben Nerian, Chris Nevehev, Romario Yaufati and others as credited within the dictionary entries. Based in part on materials from Inglis, John (1882) A Dictionary of the Aneityumese Language: In Two Parts. I. Aneityumese and English. II. English.
The Aneityum-English Talking Dictionary was made possible by award no. 1555675 from National Science Foundation for “Collaborative Research: Plant, Fungal and Linguistic Diversity of Tafea Province, Vanuatu.” This support is gratefully acknowledged.
Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
All rights reserved. Do not distribute or reproduce without permission.
how to cite:
K. David Harrison. 2015.
Aneityum Talking Dictionary.
Swarthmore College.
http://www.talkingdictionary.org/aneityum
Interface and database design under the direction of Jeremy Fahringer and Swarthmore College ITS.
Supported by
