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Language: Tahiti (1773)

Source/Author:  Sydney Parkinson (1773) 
Identifiers:  ISO-639-3:tah  Glottocode: tahi1242 
Notes:  Vocabulary of the language of Otaheite, with remarks SYDNEY PARKINSON, Draughtsman to JOSEPH BANKS, Esq. on his late Expedition with Dr. SOLANDER, round the World. (London, 1773).

"REMARKS on the Otaheitean Language.
The language is very soft, having a great number of vowels, diphthongs, and triphthongs. Every word, almost, begins with a vowel, which they most commonly drop.

It is also very metaphorical, as I have observed in many instances; as Matapoa, a person blind of an eye, which literally is Night-eye. Mataavai, the name of the bay we anchored in, literally signifies Watery-eye; which appellation is not unapt from the great quantity of rain which falls in the bay. Tehaia, a woman's name, who being lost when a child, her friends went about, crying Tehai? which means, Where is she? The natives could not repeat, after us, the sounds of the letters, Q, X, and Z, without great difficulty; G, K, and S, they could not pronounce at all. Many of the names of the people of our ship having the G, K, or S, in them, they could not approach nearer the sound of them than as follows:

Toote, for Cook.
Matà for Monkhouse.
Opane - Banks
Petrodero — Pickersgill
Tolano — Solander
Tate — Clark
Treene — Green
Poline — Spoving
Hite — Hicks
Taibe — Stainsby
Towara — Gore
Patine — Parkinson

"They have various sounds peculiar to themselves, which none of us could Imitate; some of them they pronounced like B and L mingled together; others between B and P, and T and D. Some like Bh, Lh, and Dh. When they mean to speak of a thing somewhat small, they often double the word, as Oorè oorè, a smallish nail. They also double the word for the superlative, as teá teá, very white. Mai, when placed after a verb, signifies that the action was done to you.
Mai, when added to an adverb, signifies several things, as Mai Maroo, somewhat soft, or inclining to be soft. They have a whoop, when they call after any person, which they pronounce like Ahu! raising their voice very high at the last syllable." 
Data Entry:  Typed By: Richard Parker  Checked By:  
Statistics:   
Classification:  Austronesian:Malayo-Polynesian:Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian:Eastern Malayo-Polynesian:Oceanic:Central-Eastern Oceanic:Remote Oceanic:Central Pacific:East Fijian-Polynesian:Polynesian:Nuclear:East:Central:Tahitic 
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Entries:

ID: Word: Item: Annotation: Cognacy: Loan:
175 above earo upper    
191 all      
192 and      
146 ash eàrahow ashes 67  
173 at      
13 back word info etoo back 11  
165 bad, evil      
14 belly eoboo belly 2  
176 below etooa under    
153 big      
97 bird manoo bird 1  
147 black      
23 blood matee blood    
15 bone opareemo skeleton or bones x  
113 branch word info      
18 breast eom breasts 7  
18 breast eoo nipples 1  
56 child earee boy 63?  
56 child midee child 64?  
131 cloud word info eat clouds (This is likely [ata] - MW) 118  
139 cold word info mareere to be cold 1, 52  
166 correct, true      
168 day mahan day 8  
10 dirty      
96 dog      
140 dry word info marroowhai dry 13  
82 dull, blunt toòmmoo blunt opposed to oeoe 10  
11 dust      
43 ear tareeh ears 1  
119 earth/soil      
98 egg hooirmoa egg    
204 Eight word info walhoo Eight 3  
45 eye matau eyes 1  
180 far      
104 fat/grease paiy fat    
60 father mituatane father 9  
99 feather      
208 Fifty word info      
143 fire wahaeahei fire 1  
111 fish eiya fish 1  
201 Five word info illemei Five 1  
116 flower      
132 fog      
200 Four word info ha Four 1, 66  
117 fruit hoora-ooiro fruit 1  
164 good myty good 15  
164 good manamanatey very good or sweet 15?  
118 grass      
151 green poemeedee green bead 1, 11  
26 hair word info eraowroo hair 40  
1 hand      
184 he/she      
24 head erowroo head 1  
142 heavy      
61 house fale house 14  
194 how? word info      
57 husband tane husband 14  
182 I waow I 1, 21, 18  
182 I naow myself 1, 22  
193 if      
174 in, inside      
16 intestines      
126 lake      
114 leaf ewawaowerao leaf 1?  
2 left      
4 leg/foot eawy legs 1, 100  
135 lightning eoeffr it lightens (this seems phonetically French to me - MW) x  
17 liver      
155 long word info oëoëteres THIS FORM SEEMS UNLIKELY TO ME -MW. long small or slender    
108 louse word info oatoo louse 1  
54 man/male      
103 meat/flesh eeree flesh    
129 moon maram moon 7  
109 mosquito      
59 mother mituaheine mother 4  
30 mouth ewauh mouth 1, 8  
63 name      
158 narrow      
179 near whattata near at hand 9  
25 neck eaee neck 20  
68 needle      
163 new      
167 night po night 1  
205 Nine word info iva Nine 5, 44  
195 no, not      
27 nose eahoo nose 1  
162 old word info      
197 One word info tohe One 15  
209 One Hundred word info      
210 One Thousand word info      
190 other      
160 painful, sick mate my sickness *this looks more like 'death' to me MW    
53 person/human being tata people 1, 66  
133 rain eworooai it rains    
102 rat eyoare rat 12  
149 red      
3 right      
6 road/path      
115 root      
65 rope taod thick rope 9  
112 rotten word info      
125 salt      
121 sand      
124 sea      
203 Seven word info hitoo Seven 1  
81 sharp      
154 short word info      
19 shoulder etapon shoulders    
161 shy, ashamed      
202 Six word info whaine Six 25  
12 skin eweyoraèe skin 1  
128 sky      
152 small      
145 smoke word info eohoo smoke    
106 snake      
110 spider ootooròhonnoo spider 5, 39  
130 star efedee star 1  
79 stick/wood etoomoo wood    
79 stick/wood epeea woody stalk    
120 stone owhai stone 1, 39, 3  
105 tail eairo tail of quadruped 10  
105 tail ehaòwpè tail    
206 Ten word info hoolhoo Ten    
178 that      
62 thatch/roof      
187 they      
157 thick word info mènne thick short and round    
156 thin word info      
177 this t'èna this    
183 thou tooanahoe you and I x  
183 thou tooanahahow   x  
199 Three word info torhoo Three 1  
134 thunder patiree it thunders 14  
41 to bite      
137 to blow word info hiamòorre light puffs of air    
28 to breathe oròmàtoo air or breath    
144 to burn word info      
91 to buy ehò to buy exchange or barter 7  
38 to chew word info      
85 to choose      
172 to climb word info eàeenietematto ['e'a] to climb up rocks 32  
172 to climb word info epèeniea to go up with rope x  
7 to come eheèroharreehòe to come and go    
39 to cook word info      
196 to count      
34 to cry      
78 to cut, hack word info      
75 to die, be dead màtteno natural death 1  
75 to die, be dead màtteroah to die or be dead 1  
75 to die, be dead wharrawai to go or pass away    
90 to dig      
50 to dream      
40 to drink norothoedéadeet'avai to drink cocoa-nut liquor    
37 to eat eei to eat 1, 47  
95 to fall word info itop to fall 124  
22 to fear      
123 to flow      
101 to fly airareè to fly 11  
86 to grow word info      
44 to hear aiwee to understand or comprehend; to listen or give ear    
171 to hide word info emòto to box or fight x  
72 to hit word info      
89 to hold word info      
69 to hunt word info      
74 to kill      
20 to know, be knowledgeable      
33 to laugh      
49 to lie down word info      
76 to live, be alive      
92 to open, uncover      
84 to plant      
93 to pound, beat word info      
64 to say paraowmai speak to me 12  
64 to say porai to talk 12  
77 to scratch word info mayneeneeormyneere to tickle    
46 to see      
67 to sew word info      
70 to shoot word info      
51 to sit parahei sit down 17  
48 to sleep iraòwai to dose slumber or be drowsy    
29 to sniff, smell ephàow to smell    
36 to spit tootoòà to spit 120  
36 to spit hooàre spittle 18  
80 to split word info      
88 to squeeze word info eninnei to squeeze or press one 11  
71 to stab, pierce      
52 to stand eetoò to stand 2  
73 to steal woreede stolen    
42 to suck eotte to suck 9  
87 to swell word info hoònnehoònne swelled    
9 to swim eaow to swim 5  
21 to think      
94 to throw word info      
66 to tie up, fasten      
8 to turn word info wahoee to turn or go back again    
8 to turn word info ehaòe to turn or go back again    
35 to vomit      
5 to walk      
83 to work word info      
47 to yawn amama to yawn 19, 28  
32 tongue treero tongue 15  
31 tooth eneeho teeth 1  
207 Twenty word info arooato Twenty    
198 Two word info rooa Two 1  
138 warm word info verrverra hot applied to victuals 8  
122 water word info avy water 2  
185 we word info      
141 wet      
188 what? word info      
170 when? word info nehàia when 5  
170 when? word info ehai when where 5  
181 where? word info nooie tehai where is such person?    
181 where? word info harehie whither do you go?    
181 where? word info tehai where is he?    
148 white teà white 8  
189 who? word info      
159 wide      
58 wife huaheine wife 5, 68  
58 wife maheineeawaow housewife 5, 68?  
136 wind matai wind 1, 66  
100 wing      
55 woman/female aheine woman 1, 106, 116  
127 woods/forest      
107 worm (earthworm)      
169 year      
150 yellow poeooleoole yellow bead    
186 you      

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