Aneityum

[ahi] adj. white (color)

Speaker: David Nasauman

n. white (color)

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

v. walk fast; share greetings

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

v.n. to steer, as a boat or a ship

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

v.n. sail without making headway

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 180

n. kind of banana

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

wind blowing

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

pre. far; long; applied to distance or time

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 77

n. herb to 1 m, flowers blue. In transitional zone from pine forest to ’primary’ forest. (collection: Michael J. Balick #4982)

Example: This is used to treat Ciguatera disease when a person eats fish that is contaminated. Squeeze juice from a handful of leaves of this herb into a cup, add a small amount of water, and drink 1 cup once a day for 3 days, or continue until the person feels better. This illness is a problem on Aneityum with the reef fish. It is better to eat fish that are farther out to sea. This treatment is also used for dogs who eat contaminated fish. Make the same preparation and forcibly pour this in their mouth as they will not drink it willingly. Do this treatment once daily until the dog feels better. The dogs get this illness because they are fed the scraps, especially the bones of the fish, and this is thought to be where the disease is found. This is considered to be a dangerous illness and dogs who get it frequently die.

Scientific name: Stachytarpheta jamaicensis, Speaker: Tony Keith

n. shrub, 1. 5-2 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3580)

Example: This plant is gathered for firewood. It is said that the fragrance of the flowers is not nice.

Scientific name: Geniostoma rupestre, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

[inŋa] n. Purple Swamphen

Example: Photo by Bernard Spragg, License: Public domain via Flickr

Scientific name: Porphyrio porphyrio, Speaker: Jack Keitadi

n. kind of taro

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 119

n. kind of fish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. Macaranga tanarius (RPV #42)

Scientific name: Macaranga tanarius, Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. a rainbow

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 113

n. a bamboo flute

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 86

n. epiphyte on main trunk (near base) of large tree, growing in dense rainforest. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4060)

Scientific name: Phlegmariurus squarrosus, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. shrub to 2 m in height, flowers white. In agricultural field. (collection: Michael J. Balick #4951)

Example: The young 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.

Scientific name: Codiaeum variegatum, Speaker: Tony Keith

n. kind of taro

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 119

[inmeg inʤupʤupura] n. night, night before the moon comes out

Speaker: David Nasauman

n. kind of breadfruit

Speaker: David Nasauman

n. tree, 4 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3579)

Example: The fruits of this plant is edible and tastes like a guava. The wood is used for house posts, and the smaller stems used to make rafters to hold thatch. Firewood.

Scientific name: Eugenia rariflora, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

[inmoʤev] n. star

Speaker: Chris Nevehev

n. large leaf

Example: Photo by K. David Harrison, April 2016.

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. fallen tree, growing in coastal vegetation along strand. Flowers orange. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3554)

Example: The stems are used for house posts as they are very strong.

Scientific name: Cordia subcordata, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of fish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. treelet, 2 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4085)

Example: 1. The green leaves of this plant are used to cover fish, when cooking them in a fire.

Scientific name: Cordyline fruticosa, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. terrestrial orchid, 1 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3708)

Scientific name: Calanthe chrysantha, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. water; fresh water

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 89

n. sweet potato

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 173

n. tree to 15 m, dbh 20 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4914)

Example: Use the leaves to make compost to be placed at the bottom of the hole where taro is to be planted, cover with soil and grow the taro in that hole. Serves as a fertilizer.

Scientific name: Pittosporum campbellii, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

n. pungent scrub, island musk (RPV #101)

Scientific name: Evodia hortensis, Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. a native pudding made of taro, coconut milk, etc.

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 91

n. kind of taro

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 119

n. kind of fish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

[ŋmoroŋmora] n. ants

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

n. Achyranthes aspera L.

Example: juice squeezed from leaves; taken internally against asthma and put into boils

Speaker: Bradacs 2011, p. 439

[naθran ɣap] n. smoke

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

n. herb to 1 m, flowers white (collection: Michael J. Balick #5003)

Example: The leaves are used to wrap fish for cooking in an open fire. If you eat a bad fish and begin to feel the effects of it a few hours later, such as with Ciguatera illness, cut the base of the stem of this plant and let the sap drip into a half coconut shell with coconut water in it, drink the shell and it will make the person vomit out the bad food. It does not taste good but is very effective in making a person vomit as it contains a toxic compound.

Scientific name: Crinum asiaticum, Speaker: Tony Keith

n. kind of plant, grass, or fern

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 120

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.

Scientific name: Dioscorea bulbifera, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

n. palm to 15 m tall, dbh 30 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4913)

Scientific name: Carpoxylon macrospermum, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

n. kind of sugarcane

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 120

n. sapling, 3 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4106)

Example: 1. Sapling wood is used to make fishing spears. A straight sapling is first heated in the fire to render it pliable. The sapling is further straightened and then decorticated. Once cooled, wire can be added a prong to the end of the spear.

Scientific name: Dacrycarpus imbricatus, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of fish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. a light wind; the beginning of a wind

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 95

n. herb to 1 m,flowers yellow. (collection: Michael J. Balick #4893)

Example: To make rope, cut the stems, tie together in a bundle and place in the sea. Cover the bundle with rocks for about a week, then take it out, wash it, dry in the sun until the fibers bleach white and use to make grass skirts. This is the process of retting. When the cyclone season is finished, the plant has flowers and fruits--in May through July--this means no danger of cyclones.

Scientific name: Urena lobata, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

n. well branched tree, 12 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4081)

Example: 1. The wood is used to carve a bi-handle bowl from which chiefs would drink kava.

Scientific name: Glochidion ramiflorum, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. small shrub, 0. 5 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3219)

Example: 1. A stimulant plant. If a person is going to their garden early in the morning before the sun come up, break 2 top young leaves and chew and swallow the liquid, spitting out the fiber. This makes the person able to work harder and not feel tired while in the fields. It was noted that "a person can do the work of many people if they chew this." 2. The leaves are used for fertilizer for taro--put a bunch of leaves in a hole were taro is to be planted as a compost/antibiotic. This practice is said to kill all of the bad organisms such as bacttively impact the health of the taro plant. 3. This species is collected in the coastal areas, and is different from the one that looks similar to it, that grows in the forested areas. People take 4 leaves, chew leaves, swallow juice, gives energy to work hard the entire day. For fishing, take lots of ripe fruits and put in pocket, you will be able to catch a lot of fish. It brings good fortune when fishing. Roots – take one root, wash where a woman is giving birth to a newborn baby, give a drop of the juice from the root to clear the mucus in the throat.

Scientific name: Scaevola taccada, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. grass. Found along intra village path. (collection: Ashley A McGuigan #35)

Example: 1. Bath for babies to make them healthy and walk faster, mix with plants WAKAS (AAB 34), NITIDEI (GMP 3658 or 4043), and a grass NATUTAHUT (MJB 4945). Put all in a kettle filled of water and wash them with it – use 1 handful of each leaf.

Scientific name: Digitaria sp., Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. kind of flowering plant (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4765)

Scientific name: Adenanthera pavonina, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. kind of crab

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. herb to 0. 75 m, fruits brown. Growing in cultivated area near village. (collection: Michael J. Balick #5011)

Example: People use this for an uspecified medicine.

Scientific name: Achyranthes aspera, Speaker: Tony Keith

n. kind of crab

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

[napwat] n. cloud

Speaker: Chris Nevehev

n. kind of crab

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. the juice of the breadfruit tree

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 96

n. a bamboo flute

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 151

[naʊintiɲ nʊmʊ] n. fish bowels

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

v. to fish (with a net)

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. shield aralia (RPV #11)

Scientific name: Polyscias scutellaria, Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. tree to 5 m, dbh 4 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4898)

Example: The leaves are used to cover goat or pig meat when a person is roasting it on an earth oven It prevents it from burning and enhances the taste of the meat.

Scientific name: Delarbrea paradoxa, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

n. a red coconut

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

n. large-leafed orange mangrove (RPV #93)

Scientific name: Bruguiera gymnorhiza, Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. small tree, 4 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4026)

Example: 1. The name of this plant means birdfoot. Accordingly, portions of this plant are used when a fire is smoky, to abate the smoke.

Scientific name: Plerandra actinostigma, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of flowering plant (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4791)

Scientific name: Acalypha wilkesiana, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

[nɛθoʊn] n. foot, leg

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

n. kind of tree

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 117

n. a shrub, a plant, a sucker

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 98

n. a mat of coconut leaf

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 99

n. kind of tree

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 117

n. terrestrial, occasional (collection: Tom A. Ranker #2487)

Scientific name: Ptisana smithii

n. kind of plant, grass, or fern

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 120

n. terrestrial, rare (collection: Tom A. Ranker #2486)

Scientific name: Histiopteris incisa

n. tree, 9 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3707)

Example: The small straight stems of this plant are used for fishing spears and the larger poles for rafters.

Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. type of seashell

Example: Photo by K. David Harrison, Dec. 2018, Aneityum island.

Speaker: Jack Keitadi

n. tree, 6 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3513)

Example: 1. The flower is used to make a necklace and the wood used as poles for a house roof. The flower is very fragrant and people put it behind their ear to enjoy the aroma. The leaf is used to bake taro in the earth oven. Use a fire to heat stones, then when the fire burns down and the stones are hot, pile these leaves on top of the hot stones and then place the food being cooked--taro, fish, pig, cassava, banana or other foods--on top of the leaves. Then pile more of these leaves on top of the food and then place additional hot stones on top of that pile of leaves. While the food is cooking--each type of food takes a different amount of time--the leaves give off a very nice smell and help flavor the food. 2. Firewood, flower smells good, put in coconut oil to give it aroma. Grate coconut, add small amount of water, put in bowl, heat until water is evaporated, the oil is on top, take all the coconut cream on bottom save oil in another pot. Drop 2-3 flowers into coconut oil and boil, or more flowers. Try not to burn the oil. Take out flowers and use pure oil. Also used for final covering of large earth oven during feast along with GMP 3503 – esp. wedding feast. Planting pole and hard and heavy wood – sharp end. 3. This is a "calendar plant." When it flowers, people know that the taro is ready to harvest.

Scientific name: Gardenia tannaensis, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of plant, grass, or fern

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 120

n. kind of plant, grass, or fern

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 120

n. Green humphead parrotfish, bumphead parrotfish

Example: Photo by Klaus Stiefel / Flickr, License: CC BY-NC 3.0 via Fishes of Australia

Scientific name: Bolbometopon muricatum via FishBase, Speaker: Jack Keitadi

n. vine climbing up a macaranga tree, growing in open disturbed area. Fruits green. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3588)

Example: 1. To build a cyclone house, take the vine of this species to tie pieces of the house. To prepare the vine for use as rope, collect many feet of it, put it in a fire, roll it in a figure 8, wait until it softens and then use for tying. This vine is hard and needs to be heated to a high temperature in the fire to make it soft; the person preparing this must use gloves to tie it to the posts and rafters while it is still warm. When it cools, it is very strong. Rope made from this vine will last a long time--perhaps 10-15 years. It can also be used to make a regular house. However, it is not as strong as GMP #3589. 2. For men who want rasta in hair, take a few leaves and dry them, burn with some other plants to rub on the rasta and keeps it healthy, keep from splitting.

Scientific name: Geitonoplesium cymosum, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of plant, grass, or fern

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 120

n. breadfruit leaf

Example: Photo by K. David Harrison, April 2016.

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. coconut leaf

Example: Photo by K. David Harrison, Dec. 2018, Aneityum island.

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. kind of flowering plant (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4760)

Scientific name: Polyalthia nitidissima, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. tree, 8 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3627)

Scientific name: Polyalthia nitidissima, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of taro

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 119

n. tree, 7 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3521)

Example: 1. The inner bark of this plant is used as a dye or paint to provide a brown color. Boil the inner bark in a pot with a shirt and the color of the shirt will be changed to brown. 2. For toothache, people take the inner bark and mix it with sea water, and then rinse the tooth with this mixture to remove the pain. 3a. People macerate the leaves and the bark and when the tide is low, spread this in a pool of water to poison the sea shells that are edible. When they die, the eyes of this organism comes above the sand, indicating where they are, and people harvest and eat them. 3b. To attract and collect clam – NIPJINUMU – scrape bark in a pool of sea water where the clams are attracted immediately and can be collected, coming up from the sand. 4. Firewood, unspecified medical use.

Scientific name: Acacia simplex, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. terrestrial fern, growing in primary rainforest. [in transect t9-3] (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3631)

Example: Use it to cover fruit of inm̃ap (Inocarpus fagifer) in earth oven.

Scientific name: Christella dentata, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

[niŋa] n. shell

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

n. kind of shellfish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. the Futuna banana

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

[nuhu] n. floating rock from the volcano

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

n. kind of tree

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 117

n. terrestrial fern, 0. 4 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3577)

Example: Join two of the inrolled fronds together at the part where the frond is opening (the tip that is curled) such that the leaves are held together by their unfolding growing tips. Place this along the path that is frequented by a wild pig (they travel along paths) and when the pig passes these two leaves, and is chased by a hunter’s dogs, these leaves in this formation are said to sap some of the pig’s energy and thus allow the dogs to catch up with it. This was explained to Tony by another person who mentioned it as a sort of magical power possessed by this type of fern.

Scientific name: Blechnopsis orientalis, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. the south-south-west wind

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 113

n. tree, 6 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3263)

Example: 1. A "calendar plant". When this flowers in the bush, and people are making their gardens in that area, it means the garden is ready to harvest. 2. Firewood, calendar, and message plant – for people who live up in the forest can see this coastal plant and when it flowers it is a good time to go fishing or to move to the coastal area for a few weeks to relax. July-August. Tide is low so everything is exposed so it is a good time to fish for there, 2 months. 3. Flowers have a nice nectar, sweet, kids drink.

Scientific name: Metrosideros collina, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. tree to 8 m, dbh 60 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4984)

Example: Peel the shell of the fruit and eat the inner part, or make jam from this part. Spit out the seeds. The branches of this tree are used for firewood.

Scientific name: Ceratonia siliqua, Speaker: Tony Keith

v. live

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

n. the seed of breadfruit that is not firm

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 111