Aneityum

adj. tempestuous at sea

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 48

white

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

[ama] num. four

Speaker: David Nasauman

[deseiʧ nadimi] phr. three men (there are)

Speaker: David Nasauman

adj. unripe; also "ehlai"

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 74

[et alk͡puas an] phr. he is big

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

n. tree, 10 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4033)

Scientific name: Planchonella, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

[iɲhoɣ] n. Honeyeater, black and red

Example: Photo by Lars Petersson, IBC1270200. Photo of Cardinal Myzomela Myzomela cardinalis at Makira (San Cristobal) Island, Solomon Archipelago. License: All rights reserved. Accessible on Internet Bird Collection

Scientific name: Myzomela cardinalis, Speaker: Jack Keitadi

[inhuboʊ] n. shell (helical shell, white with purple spots)

Speaker: Chris Nevehev

n. kind of fish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. kind of breadfruit

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

n. kind of breadfruit

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

[inmoiʤev at̚poij] n. the Aurora Australis; streamers (lit. "smoke star")

Speaker: David Nasauman

n. tree, 10 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3516)

Example: The young stems are used to make fishing spears. These stems are also used to make the poles that connect an outrigger to a traditional canoe, as they are light and strong. The large trees have extensive roots and stumps and are used as a pen for pigs by making a fence from these.

Scientific name: Heritiera littoralis, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. tree to 8 m tall, dbh 1 m (collection: Michael J. Balick #4994)

Example: The flowers are used for decoration, in the yard or cut and brought into the house. The stem of this tree is good for firewood.

Scientific name: Bauhinia monandra, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

n. shrub. Found in the village, Unames. (collection: Ashley A McGuigan #31)

Example: 1. To cure when the anus falls out - Pound together 1 braches worth of inpalcapnesgin leaves and of both inloptiri (2-4 leaves, any age) , also take the inner bark of nekeaitimi and nakhe. Put this into your hand, or another leaf and give it to the person to use it. This should be applied to the anus whenever the anus comes out. USed to use a clam shell to extract the bark but not anymore.

Scientific name: Hibiscus rosasinensis, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. unbranched treelet, 1. 25 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3526)

Example: People use the leaves for cooking any ground up food that is cooked on a fire such as manioc or bananas, roasted or boiled in water. Fish can be cooked this way. The roots of this plant can be cooked in an earth oven. These need to be cooked for 2 days or 2 nights, lke a yam. The plant has large roots that are good to eat. Chew like a piece of surgarcane, the taste is sweet like honey. Swallow the juice and spit out the fiber. The roots, once cooked, can be stored for 6 months. In ancient times they were eaten during times when there was no food. This food is said to be able to sustain a person for one day, if eaten in the morning, the person not be hungry until sunset. Today, people eat this plant at festivals, as it is no longer a famine food.

Scientific name: Cordyline fruticosa, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of taro

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 119

[intas anejʧom] n. Aneityumese language

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

n. Samoan tropical-almond (RPV #29)

Scientific name: Terminalia samoensis, Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. a crop, but not the first ripe

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 89

n. tree, 10-12 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3638)

Example: This tree is a good source of firewood, wood for house posts as well as sawn timber. The ripe fruit is edible but some of these are sour. Kids eat fruits – it is black. Pick only the most ripe fruits. This species grows commonly on river banks.

Scientific name: Syzygium gracilipes, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. tree. Growing near village. (collection: Ashley A McGuigan #5)

Example: 1. To cure spirit sickness of the niteitau. Use plants that also end with "au" : niditau, intoutau, naoyerop. Go to the top of the plant to get the soft leaves of the plants niditau, intoutau, naoyerop, also take the bark. The person making the medicine should be holding the these leaves with a piece of nelmaha. Nelmaha means go away. The sick person chews the leaves and bark and swallows the juice spitting out the fiber into the nelmaha the medicine maker is holding. The medicine person then takes the spit out fiber in the nalmaha leaf and throws it into the sea in front of the village. 2. For a baby that is not doing well, as with malnourished, take 4-5 leaves, put in warm water and wash baby – 1x day for 3 days. 6. Use to make temporary house.

Scientific name: Trema cannabina, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. creeping and decumbent vine, growing at edge of strand (near airstrip terminal). (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3575)

Scientific name: Stictocardia campanulata, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. large tree, 16 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3222)

Example: 1. As a child’s game, some times children put the segments of the needles together to see who can make the largest one. 2. A "calendar plant"--when the needles are brown, it is an indication that people should not work hard, but should rest or they will not feel well. If they try to work they will feel sleepy--an indication of the season of higher heat. 3. Wood is used as firewood. 4. Firewood, inner bark good for ciguatera poisoning, scratch the inner bark and squeeze juice into a cup of water and give to the sick person to drink – very effective. Use the largest most mature part of the stem.

Scientific name: Casuarina equisetifolia, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. kind of banana

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

n. the center rib of the coconut leaf

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 90

v. to gather beans

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 90

adj. behind

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

[kajheɣ] phr. Good bye.

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

[katamal] n. Scarlet Robin

Example: Photo by patrickkavanagh/Flickr, License: CC BY 2.0 via Flickr

Scientific name: Petroica multicolor, Speaker: Jack Keitadi

n. Aneityum

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

[lawoñ] n. Vanuatu Scrubfowl (Used to live here, died out, now only live up north)

Example: Photo by Dubi Shapiro, IBC1406511. Photo of Vanuatu Scrubfowl Megapodius layardi at Palikulo Point, Vanuatu. Accessible on Internet Bird Collection

Scientific name: Megapodius layardi, Speaker: Jack Keitadi

n. tree to 5 m, fdby 35 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4979)

Example: The fruits are edible and ripen during November-December. The leaves can be boiled as a medicine. If a person has a hoarse voice, boil 4 or or a few more leaves in 1 liter of water. Cool the mixture and drink once daily until the voice returns to normal. The trunk of this tree is good for timber, as it is a very hard wood. But a productive tree is not cut for timber--only the wild mangos that have flowers and small fruits that do not ripen; these trees are cut for timber. This particular tree, "Mango Amgie" bears fruit with a great deal of fiber, so the name refers to the "mango that you drink." Amgie means "drink" in the Aneityum language. There is another variety of mango, "Mango Cig" that means the mango that you eat. It has a little fiber but good fleshy fruits. This species is introduced from outside of Aneityum.

Scientific name: Mangifera indica, Speaker: Tony Keith

n. erect grass (called ’whitegrass’), growing in coastal forest just behind strand vegetation. Inflorescences whitish. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3440)

Scientific name: Imperata cylindrica, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

adj. dry

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

n. day

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 114

n. coconut spathes

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 136

n. treelet 2. 0-2. 5 m tall, dbh 3 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4858)

Example: If a chief passes away, they are burred in a sacred place. After burial, the people wash their hands with these leaves, mixed with water. The chiefs have a spiritual power and this is used to cleanse the people attending the funeral so that they do not get large sores on their leg or elsewhere on their body. This is part of the ritual for burying the chief.

Scientific name: Euodia hortensis, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

n. half-tide, ebbing

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 155

n. kind of fish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. kind of fish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. Orange-spotted emperor, yellowtail emperor

Example: Photo by FAO / Fishbase, License: CC BY-NC 3.0 via Fishes of Australia

Scientific name: Lethrinus erythracanthus via FishBase, Speaker: Jack Keitadi

n. kind of tree

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 117

n. shrub, 1 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3572)

Example: It is a kastom belief that people should not drink kava under this tree.

Scientific name: Dendrolobium umbellatum, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. terrestrial fern, growing in secondary forest along the river. Fronds dimorphic. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3644)

Example: This is a sacred plant, it will keep crops, such as foods, in good condition and protect people from famine and loss of crops. It grows wild along the river and people leave it there and also move the plants to the house along with Terminalia fruiticosa and other unspecified plants for use in protecting their crops. For example, when people go to the garden, they take their planting stick and place it near these plants for a while, and being near it will help protect the garden as a person then works with their planting stick to plant the garden.

Scientific name: Oceanopteris gibba, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. coconut alcohol

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. shrub to 1. 5 m, flowers white. Red clay soil (collection: Michael J. Balick #4882)

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: Scaevola neoebudica, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

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 banana

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

n. bark

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 127

n. kind of banana

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

n. the poison of the inhac

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 96

n. terrestrial fern, growing in dense rainforest. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4095)

Example: 1. The name means "cranky person". If someone fastens this plant around his head as a deocrative lei, it means that this person is not happy. He does not want to talk or communicate with anybody. The use is no longer common, and now many people do not know the signficance.

Scientific name: Lindsaea harveyi, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. wind-related term; no definition provided

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 113

[naʊintin] n. bowels

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

n. kind of plant, grass, or fern

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 120

n. kind of palm

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

n. shrub to 2 m, dbh 3 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4862)

Example: The common name of this plant refers to the footprint of a chicken. Mix the dried leaves of this plant with pieces of coconut and feed to chickens. They are said to really like it. Plant the shrub near the place that chickens are kept. This feed will make the chickens produce more eggs and also increase the number of healthy chickens.

Scientific name: Acalypha, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

n. understory tree, 2-3 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4050)

Scientific name: Schefflera neoebudica, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. terrestrial fern, growing in dense rainforest. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4094)

Example: 1. The name describes a sea bird, whose long legs are similar in shape to the stipe of this fern.

Scientific name: Tectaria crenata, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

[nɛθoʊn] n. mountain

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

n. low mountain

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 166

n. kind of banana

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

n. hemlock

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 157

n. a bunch of grapes; also "nigaivaine"

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 98

n. kind of flowering plant (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4757)

Scientific name: Melochia odorata, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. sugarcane

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

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. grass to 70 cm tall, sterile. Cultivated at the side of a field. (collection: Michael J. Balick #4958)

Example: The leaves and stems are boiled in water to make tea. The base of the leaves (the whitish part) is used to cook foods that have a strong odor, such as goat or shark. The base is sliced and put in the soup and this helps to keep the smell of the goat or shark from infusing through the rest of the food and making it less palatable. In some areas of Aneityum, such as in cassava fields, there is a fungus that kills the crops. This species is interplanted with the crops to kill that fungus and protect the crop plants.

Scientific name: Cymbopogon citratus, Speaker: Tony Keith

[niʧinɛθoʊn] n. knee

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

[nijom araheθ] n. lit. "round house"

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

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

n. small tree-fern, 1 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3269)

Scientific name: Cyathea, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

[nipatunanin] n. goat horns

Speaker: Osiani Nerian

n. kind of plant, grass, or fern

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 120

n. terrestrial fern on forest floor, growing in disturbed forest. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3482)

Example: People who go fishing take this plant along with other unspecified leaves, crush them and rub them on the fishing line that the person is using. This is said to attract more fish to the bait. It is also a "message plant" to be put in a person’s hat when they come back from fishing and then people know that they caught fish. Local name means "fish gill." For performing a weather magic ritual to produce fog, this plant is fermented along with another plant (nap̃at) in a hole in a sacred stone (called "Naemoso") at a secret location on Aneityum.

Scientific name: Schizaea dichotoma, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of sugarcane

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 120

n. sparsely branched tree, 2. 5 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3628)

Example: This plant is used to make a grass skirt for women. There are two different methods decribed. In the first, collect the leaves, tear off 1/2 of the leaf and pleat the halves. Then dry these in the sun by hanging them from the midrib. After they are dry, weave them into a skirt. In the second, take one leaf at a time, tear the leaf down the center and throw away the midrib. The soft part is used in making the skirt by holding a piece of twine between your toes and under your armpit. Weave the length of the twine with the leaf. The let the pieces to dry in the sun for 2-3 days. The skirt can be thrown in the sea before drying to make the skirt white. Bark of inhao is usually used as twine. Retted strips of leaves, later sun dried, can be used to make pillows. When dogs or humans have fish poisoning this plant can help. Take 2 leaves and pound them (use 1 leaf for dogs) and mix with 1/4 cup of water. no further instructions given. (OR - Leaves to cure ciguatera, chew 1 leaf and swallow juice and spit out fiber. Or extract juice into a cup to drink 1x. Give juice + water in cup for dog that is sick.) There is also a belief that you can use the whole stem of this plant as a digging spade to plant sugarcane so the sugarcane is soft and sweet.

Scientific name: Dracaena sp., Speaker: Titiya Lalep

[niŋa] n. shell

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

n. the New Caledonian banana

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

[nohos u natmas] n. kind of banana

Speaker: David Nasauman

n. kind of shellfish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. fruit trees

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 104

n. kind of taro

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 119

n. kind of taro

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 119

n. shrub to tree, 2. 5 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3583)

Scientific name: Xylosma guillauminii, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. cycad to 3 m tall, 25 cm dbh (collection: Michael J. Balick #5010)

Example: In the past there were no toys for the children, so people made toys from the seed of this plant. They peeled the fruit, took the seed, removed the inside, punched one hole on each side, put a string through each of the holes and twisted the string to spin the seed such that it would make a whistling sound as the fruit spun faster and faster. On Palm Sunday, people use this leaf in Church. People plant this cycad around their homes and use it as an ornamental. Some people believe that having this plant around their homes will keep the bad spirits away.

Scientific name: Cycas seemannii, Speaker: Tony Keith

n. Thumbprint emperor, blackspot emperor

Example: Photo by ANFC, License: CC BY-NC 3.0 via Fishes of Australia

Scientific name: Lethrinus harak via FishBase, Speaker: Jack Keitadi

n. a dried or withered breadfruit tree

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 104

n. liana, climbing on fallen tree (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3500)

Example: 1. When the stems of this plant are older, and it is a vine, is used to tie thatch on roof rafters as it bends well. 2. Burned leaves and rubbed on fishing line and spear to increase catch – used with other unspecified leaves, that are forageable. When you are fishing and if you set a basket or mat it means danger and you have to return to shore – the spirit is telling you that it is enough fishing.

Scientific name: Durandea pentagyna, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. liana, growing at edge of forest. Fruit. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3475)

Example: 1. When the stems of this plant are older, and it is a vine, is used to tie thatch on roof rafters as it bends well. 2. Burned leaves and rubbed on fishing line and spear to increase catch – used with other unspecified leaves, that are forageable. When you are fishing and if you set a basket or mat it means danger and you have to return to shore – the spirit is telling you that it is enough fishing.

Scientific name: Durandea pentagyna, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. a kind of bulbous root

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 105

n. tree (sparsely branched until canopy), 8-10 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3450)

Example: 1. Wood used for house posts and for small parts of the house such as a porch. 2. Timber tree, house posts, young trees for roof rafters.

Scientific name: Syzygium kajewskii, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. tree, 8 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3624)

Example: Use the wood of this plant for roof rafters.

Scientific name: Syzygium myriadenum, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

prep. up there

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

n. liana climbing on broken mango tree, growing in forest at edge of wide tidal stream (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3515)

Example: 1. The ripe fruit of this plant is edible. It was introduced to the island and is considered a foreign vine. 2. 4 leaves of this and 4 leaves of Annona muricata and boil in water and let get warm and wash children when they have measles and fever. Edible fruit – very sweet.

Scientific name: Passiflora maliformis, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

adv. seaward here

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 107

[rak͡pad] n. black hawk

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

adv. downward

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 108

n. kind of taro

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 119

adj. perennial (applied to water); also "etweite", "inweite"

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 171