Aneityum

affix yonder; away from

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 91

adj. driven to and fro with the wind

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

v.n. go after

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 154

v.n. to steer straight

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

[arinʤi tarinʤia] adj. very strong (?)

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

v. run

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

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.

Scientific name: Annona glabra

[et aʤuʤaj an ouʤeiko] phr. he went up there

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

[et amai inɣaɣen] phr. he chews kava (traditional)

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

[et haklin an] phr. he is small

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

phr. on that side

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 82

n. native rose; rosa chinensis; the hibiscus; also "inpul"

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 85, 88

n. tree to 15 m, dbh 75 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #5006)

Example: The stems of this tree are used to make temporary houses and for firewood. This is one of the leaves that is used in an unspecified mixture to put in a rough sea to calm th ewaters.

Scientific name: Syzygium richii, Speaker: Tony Keith

n. kind of crab

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. a bamboo flute

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 86

[iɲeθite anawanariɲ] n. a sand drawing

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

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

n. kind of breadfruit

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

[inman] n. bird, general name

Speaker: Jack Keitadi

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

Speaker: David Nasauman

n. treelet, 1. 75 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4077)

Scientific name: Ixora aneityensis

n. kind of fish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. shrub. Growing in the village. Cultivated. (collection: Ashley A McGuigan #26)

Example: 1a. To stay healthy while pregnant - grate 1 coconut with nekei leaves, about a handfull (8). And 8 inpa leaves and 8 niditau leaves. Pound all of this together and squeeze juice out and bath in this then jump into a clear river to wash it off. 1b. Handful of leaves mashed with grated coconut and put in a shell, heat stones and put in shell, then take hot liquid to rub on body of woman who have just delivered to make their bodies healthy again, back to normal – when they deliver they are in huts, then wash with this and then come out of the huts and rejoin family. 2. Symbolic plant for peace (name means peace). 3. Message plant – put small tips of leaves in hair or make hat out of it and people know you come in peace. 4. When giving a gift, put this leaf on the gift, as in a basket – people wear them they are happy and peaceful – it is symbolic of Aneityumese people – so even when the people leave the island they will grow this plant. 5. People bathe with this leaf, mixed with grated coconut and cover body and hair to smell good and be strong. 6. Mosquito repellant, build fire, put green leaves on top, smoke and aroma chases mosquito away. 7. Take top of leaf with 3 young leaves and put in hair as there is the belief that this plant symbolizes the trinity. So it protects people. If a person from the island goes elsewhere and is faced with black magic they bathe with a handful of leaves, boil them and bathe with the liquid to remove the spell. 8. Decorate people with this leaf day feasts, weddings, and other events – very sacred.

Scientific name: Euodia hortensis, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. a branch

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 88

n. coconut grating bench

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

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. bush land where forest trees grow; also "intucjip"

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 89

n. kind of shellfish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. herb, 1 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3221)

Example: This plant is used as a wild cabbage. The leaves are used to cover fish when baking in an earth oven and then these leaves are eaten. This is another "calendar plant" of Aneityum. When this plant flowers it means that turtles are very fat, so it is the indication that it’s time to go fishing for turtles. Also a "message plant." If a person wishes to break an agreement then the person puts the top leaves of this plant on another individual’s doorstep to indicate that the agreement is broken.

Scientific name: Wollastonia biflora, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. tree, 7-8 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3635)

Example: The wood from this tree is used for house posts. Used to heal bad spirits, headaches, fever, or any other kind of illness that modern medicine cannot fix. Must be taken and performed in the evening before the sun sets. Take four leaves from the top of the intoutau, netethae, nelmaha, inrowod plants. Combine them with 1/4 cup of water and squeeze the juice out of the leaves and pour into a piece of bamboo. Give the mixture to the sick person to drink. The woman must drink half of the mixture and use the other half of the mixture to wash their body with. The woman then has to stay away from other people except for those who helped wash her. Then you must smash the bamboo that contained the mixture where the sun sets.

Scientific name: Aceratium oppositifolium, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of bush

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. the evening star

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 113

n. well branched tree, 10 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4025)

Example: 1. Hardwood is used to make a fishing spear. Wire is fashioned at the point to make a spear head. 2. Young plants are used to fasten coconut leaves to the rafters, in the thatching process.

Scientific name: Arytera brackenridgei, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of bird

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

[kajheɣ vajuɣ] phr. Good bye.

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

n. gun

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

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

Speaker: David Nasauman

n. small turtle

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. shrub, 2-3 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3455)

Example: Fertilizer, take fresh leaves and put in area where plant taro.

Scientific name: Psychotria milnei, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. a plant from which twine is made

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 94

n. young vine, still erect (1 m tall) (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3551)

Example: The leaves of this plant are used as a soap. People collect the leaves and mash them and dip in fresh water and use the water to wash their bodies.

Scientific name: Colubrina asiatica, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of shellfish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. palm tree sp. (RPV #19)

Scientific name: Hydriastele cylindrocarpa, Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. kind of bird

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. kind of bird

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

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. large scandent herb, to 4 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3453)

Example: The leaves of this plant are used to wrap manihot, fish, banana and other vegetables when cooking them in an earth oven or open fire.

Scientific name: Joinvillea plicata, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. kind of bush

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

[nawʊnoan] n. neck

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

n. kind of tree

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 117

n. kind of fish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. kind of crab

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. tree to 10 m, dbh 30 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4900)

Example: Before there was soap, people took the young leaves and crushed them on a stone to make suds for washing clothes in the river. This tree has a very hard wood and can be used for house posts. The sap is reddish and the bark boiled in water until it is red, consumed 2-3 times daily (1 cup each time) until the person feels well. The condition treated is that when a menstruating woman has sex with a man, and he feels tired and lethargic, drinking this tonic makes him feel stronger.

Scientific name: Alphitonia zizyphoides, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

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

[napwat] n. cloud

Speaker: Chris Nevehev

n. well branched tree, 14 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3651)

Example: Poles made from this plant are used for house rafters and burned for firewood. To plant taro in a swampy area, collect the leaves of this species and put them in the hole where the taro is to be planted, mix with a bit of soil and then plant the taro on top of that. Leaves are a type of fertilizer. Used when baking with the earth oven. Hot stones cover the food and then the leaves from this plant cover the stones. The leaves stay on the branch.

Scientific name: Polyscias cissodendron, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. a calm, a smooth sea

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 114

n. epiphytic orchid, growing in dense rainforest. Flowers orange. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4113)

Example: 1. Children often take the leaves of this plant and blow across the surface of a taut leaf to make a whistle sound. Older folks say this blowing invited rain.

Scientific name: Liparis condylobulbon, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. wind-related term; no definition provided

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 113

n. grass to 20-30 cm tall, florets brown. Growing along trail. (collection: Michael J. Balick #4970)

Example: This plant is used to make a medicine to stop bleeding, as a styptic. Squeeze a handful of leaves together and apply the leaves as a poultice to the wound or drip the juice on the wound when it does not seem wise to put pressure on the bleeding. This will stop the blood from flowing from the wound and is only to be used on a small wound.

Scientific name: Paspalum conjugatum, Speaker: Tony Keith

n. the south-east wind

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 113

n. the north-west wind

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 113

n. kind of tree

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 117

n. a bulrush; a flag

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 97

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.

Scientific name: Ficus scabra, Speaker: Titiya Lalep

n. herb, growing in partially drained marsh. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3593)

Scientific name: Schoenoplectus validus, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

[nawuraniŋ alpas] phr. thank you very much

Speaker: Ruben Nerian

[neɪjanθel] n. coconut with sprout

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

Speaker: Osiani Nerian

n. low-growing, creeping vine growing in grassy area just inland from coastal strand. Flowers yellow. (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #3223)

Example: The leaves of this plant are used to treat stomach ache. Take a handful of leaves and mix with 1/2 liter of water, crush the leaves in the water and drink the entire amount when your stomach hurts. Alternatively, this can also be consumed 1x a week as a tonic drink for the stomach and system.

Scientific name: Vigna marina, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. yellow star

Speaker: David Nasauman

n. tree to 15 m tall, dbh 25 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4903)

Example: Wood is used to make canoe as it is very light and lasts in salt water. As a styptic to stop bleeding, when a person gets a cut in the bush, scrape off outer bark and use inner bark scrapings to put on cut. Stops bleeding, leave on for one day.

Scientific name: Hernandia moerenhoutiana, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

n. kind of tree

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 117

n. Little spinefoot, scribbled rabbitfish

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

Scientific name: Siganus spinus via FishBase, Speaker: Chris Nevehev

n. yellow leaves for making petticoats

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 99

n. kind of bush

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. a leaf

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 100

n. blade, as of corn or grass

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 128

n. Bluefin trevally (male) (reef fish)

Example: Photo by Jan Messersmith, License: CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 via Fishes of Australia

Scientific name: Caranx melampygus via FishBase, Speaker: Jack Keitadi

n. tree 10 m tall, dbh 15 cm (collection: Michael J. Balick #4909)

Example: The stems of this plant make a good digging stick for planting kava. Kava planted with this digging stick will be stronger in effect.

Scientific name: Alstonia vitiensis, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

n. kind of tree

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 117

n. shrub to 2 m ,fruits green (collection: Michael J. Balick #4884)

Example: When the new leaves form on this plant, people say that it is time to plant taro. The wood of the larger tree is good for posts.

Scientific name: Decaspermum neoebudicum, Speaker: Natu Kenneth

n. terrestrial fern, 1. 5 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4047)

Scientific name: Diplazium melanocaulon, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. tree fern, trunk 2 m tall (collection: Gregory M. Plunkett #4102)

Example: 1. There are kinds of this plant. This is considered the white one. See GMP #4100, Cyathea sp., which is considered the black one.

Scientific name: Cyathea, Speaker: Wina Nasauman

n. kind of banana

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 118

n. Yellow-Edged Moray

Example: Photo by Bernard Dupont, License: CC BY-SA 3.0 via Fishes of Australia

Scientific name: Gymnothorax flavimarginatus via FishBase, Speaker: Chris Nevehev

n. kind of bush

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. the shark (constellation?)

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 113

[nipʧin niri] n. shell (empty)

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

Speaker: Osiani Nerian

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.

Speaker: Bradacs 2011, p. 442

[nohor] n. Woodford’s Rail

Example: Illustration by John Gerrard Keulemans / Wikimedia Commons, License: Public domain via Wikimedia Commons

Scientific name: Nesoclopeus woodfordi, Speaker: Jack Keitadi

n. kind of shellfish

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. grass

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 120

n. kind of plant, grass, or fern

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 120

n. seed (general term)

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. fish; life

Speaker: Kirk Keitadi

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. type of seashell

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

Speaker: Jack Keitadi

n. Sawtooth barracuda

Example: Photo by Stephanie W. Batzer, License: CC BY-SA 3.0 via Fishes of Australia

Scientific name: Sphyraena putnamae via FishBase, Speaker: Jack Keitadi

adj. rich; good, as applied to fruits

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 110

n. sprouts

Speaker: Inglis 1882, p. 188

n. white sweet potato

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

Speaker: Romario Yaufati

n. Marattia smithii

Example: Frond: bathe in infusion, neurodermatitis and infantile eczema

Speaker: Bradacs 2011, p. 442