An example search has returned 100 entries
ateucradi se an namilvai
v.n. get off the reef
bookmarkcustard apple
n. tree, 5 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3520)
Example: Children sometimes eat this fruit but it smells bad. Adults do not eat it. An introduced species so there is no local name.
bookmarkEk idivaig nenis ainyak
phr. I am quite useless
bookmarkereinmerei
n. the clear part of the moon when first seen
bookmarketuko, cai
v. to split wood
bookmarkincanaij yohon
n. kind of plant, grass, or fern
bookmarkincet edwa
ingejei wou
n. tree, 4 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3647)
Example: 1. The straight poles of this plant are sharpened and used to plant kava, and only for kava. Not used for planting other crops. 2. Special for catching eels in fresh water, poke stick with leaves into hole where eel lives and they don’t like it so they come out and you catch them, by cutting with knife.
bookmarkinholai
n. Blue sea chub, snubnose chub, topsail drummer
Example: Photo by ANFC, License: CC BY-NC 3.0 via via Fishes of Australia
bookmarkinmadedi
n. Tabernaemontana padacaqui
Example: leaf used for for wounds; cold maceration taken internally against "skin cancer" (severe wounds?). Stalk, chewed, influences sex of an embryo in favor of a girl.
bookmarkinman anjap
n. sea bird
bookmarkinpa
n. shrub, 1. 25 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3525)
Example: The young leaves are edible, after boiling for 5 minutes. A piece of coconut and a pinch of salt is wrapped in the leaves and eaten. The mature leaves are used to wrap food such as pig or cow meat and cooked in an earth oven. Tie this bundle with a piece of Pandanus fiber to secure it before putting in the earth oven. Both the green and ripe fruits are edible. This plant is used in kastom ceremonies. For a peace ceremony, if there is an argument, then this leaf is used to make peace between the parties. For many ceremonies, put on top of taro, kava or food pile, . For peace ceremony, when a person has food in an offering, give a branch of this plant to the other party to symbolize that the conflict is over. It is a "message plant" that conveys a meaning that people do not have to say out loud. When a stranger walks through a village with this plant in his or her hand, people know there is no threat or problem. When a young man first shaves, people give him a necklace of this plant. In the old days, hair was pulled out of young men, now people use razor blades.
bookmarkinpak
n. species of banyan
bookmarkintal eteuc
n. the name of a plant with a white flower; a lily
bookmarkintinan tal
n. a plantation of taro
bookmarkisji ariko
v. to gather beans
bookmarklakasia
leyei cap
n. kind of taro
bookmarkmafure mafutoga
n. an astronomy term; no definition given
bookmarkmetagi asori
n. kind of taro
bookmarknahanemek
n. kind of breadfruit
bookmarknahojcei
nahtau
n. kind of sugarcane
bookmarknala
name cedo
namlau
n. shrub, 2 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3490)
Example: 1. The larger stems of this plant can be used to build houses, for rafters. 2. It is also a good source of firewood. 3. Ancestors, before go to chief’s canal and want to talk about a complicated issue – a person would cut a branch and bring it to the sea and tap the water surface and would say what he wants, ask that he would want that issue to be solved and that others would follow his ideas and then go back to the meeting place and take stick, keep wind at his back, moving stick in all directions and then he will convince the people of his ideas. This is done by the chief’s spokesman. Helps convince the opposition. Helps keep power in hands of parent(??) chief rather than subchiefs who might have other ideas.
bookmarknap̃udve
n. epiphytic fern, fallen to ground (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3494)
Example: When a dog is poisoned by cuguatera from eating a fish, the root of this species is collected, cleaned and a handful is boiled in 1-2 cups of water and given to the dog to drink. This treatment should be done 3x daily, in the morning, around noon and during the evening meal for as long as the dog is sick.
bookmarknasjiñaho
natarau
n. a bamboo flute
bookmarknauras
n. kind of tree
bookmarknausakrai
n. thorn
bookmarknauwai
n. kind of banana
bookmarknauyerop̃
n. tree, 2 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3487)
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. Edible fruits, when ripe or green, does not taste when green, but sweet when ripe. 3a. Leaves (young) are edible, for example wrap around coconut meat and eat or cook with island cabbage and other leaves, boil and add coconut milk and eat. 3b. The young leaves are edible, after boiling for 5 minutes. A piece of coconut and a pinch of salt is wrapped in the leaves and eaten. The mature leaves are used to wrap food such as pig or cow meat and cooked in an earth oven. Tie this bundle with a piece of Pandanus fiber to secure it before putting in the earth oven. 4. During big feast, use this a lot – circumcison or wedding feast, harvest leaves and wrap around meat and bake on earth oven – sometimes we cut down a whole tree to gather leaves. 5. To make men’s custom belt – split stem, peel outer bark off to take inner bark and peel it, tear end to make strap that can be tied. Dry in sun but not direct sunlight. 6. Older large trunks were burned by ancestors to keep fire going – did not need matches (lefre(?) matches) because embers would stay for days and when make a fire add smaller branches to make a flame.
bookmarknawou
necemas moso
n. terrestrial plant on forest floor, growing in disturbed forest. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3483)
Example: 1. This is a "message plant" that signifies that there has been a death. The person holds it or puts it on their head, goes to another person’s house and hands it to the person they wish to convey the message to, without saying anything and that person knows that someone has died. It can also be handed to that person. The person receiving the message then asks "who" and is told the deceased person’s name. 2. Use it to produce more fog on top of mountain – use w/ another plant, nap̃at (GMP 3268) – put these in a hole on the sacred stone to ferment as it fills with water. After it rots there will be a lot of fog. Name of stone = NAEMOSO. So the fog helps keep the plants moist and growing well.
bookmarknedouyatmas
negaivaine
n. a bunch of grapes; also "nigaivaine"
bookmarknekro
nelkasau
n. shrub to 4 m, fruits green (collection: Michael J. Balick #4987)
Example: This leaf is used as the upper layer of leaves on the earth oven. If the leaves of #4986 are in short supply, people cover the first layer of stones in the earth oven with these. The stems of this plant are used as tinder to light fires. The seeds are poisonous.
bookmarknepñatimi
n. epiphyte on syzygium tree, growing in secondary forest along trail above river. old fruits. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3660)
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.
bookmarkneusjai
n. a fern tree
bookmarknieg
n. a reed
bookmarkniegred
nigirid
n. tree, 4 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3503)
Example: The leaves of this plant are used in cooking, particuarly with 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.
bookmarknijkowai
n. Spanish flag, stripey
Example: Photo by Ian Shaw / iNaturalist.org, License: CC BY-NC 3.0 via Fishes of Australia
bookmarknilbuthou
nipnyineuc
n. another name for "masoa"; arrowroot
bookmarknirid u numu
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.
bookmarkniriyau
n. Goldspotted spinefoot
Example: Photo by Mark Rosenstein / iNaturalist.org, License: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 via Fishes of Australia
bookmarknisiug
n. a tree, the leaves of which have no center rib
bookmarknitidae
nohwan nuputu
n. kind of taro
bookmarknoragidi
nourasjohou
nowat
n. Convict surgeonfish, convict tang
Example: Photo by Philippe Bourjon / Fishbase, License: CC BY-SA 3.0 via Fishes of Australia
bookmarknuarin marara
n. dale
bookmarknumuyehec
nup inceen
n. the rib of a leaf
bookmarknusjai um legad
n. kind of sugarcane
bookmarksiki
adv. down there, at a short distance; also "sike"
bookmarkupuhasin
n. sprouts
bookmarkwaderei
n. kind of taro
bookmark


