-
Texte
-
*
,
DICTIONARY,
W IT H
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS
ON THE
p o l y î ^e s i a n
language
,
AND A
SHORT GRAMMAR
OF THE
TAHI TI AN DIALECT: ,
WITH AN APPENDIX
CONTAINING A LIST OF FOREIGN WORDS USED IN THE
TAHITIAN BIBLE, IN COMMERCE, ETC.,WITH THE SOURCES
FROM WHENCE THEY HAVE BEEN DERIVED.
TAHITI Î
P R IN TE D AT THE LONDON MISSIONARY SOCIETY’S PRESS.
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1
I NTRODUCTORY REMARKS
ON T H E
POLYNESIAN LANGUAGE.
HE inhabitants of most of the numerous Island* of
the South Sea, called by modern Geographers by
T
the general name of Polynesia, have one common Lan
guage, which for that reason may be called the Polyne
sian ; it prevails also over a considerable part of Austra
lasia, yet it has apparently no affinity with the langua
ges or dialects of the major part of the Australasians.
The Polynesian, whether it may be considered as a
primitive or mother tongue itself, or a sister of the M a
lay, derived from one common parent, is undoubtedly of
great antiquity, the people that speak it being, it is pro
bable, separated for ages from the restof the world, hav
ing no intercourse with any other nation, and thinking till
lately, that they themselves were the only people in ex
istence.
And while, as the Language of a rude and uncivilized
people, it has, as might be expected, many deficiencies,
when compared with the highly cultivated and polished
languages of Europe, it lias, at the same time, in some
respects, a force, a simplicity, and precision, as in the in
stance of the personal pronouns, that may perhaps be
superior to them all.
Its resemblance to the Hebrew in the conjugation of
the Verbs, and in many of its primitive words, could ea
sily be shown ; many words seem to have truly Hebrew
roots, such as mate, death, mura'or maramara, bitter, rapaau to heal, pae, side, &c.
As the Polynesian prevails over such a vast tract of the
South Pacific Ocean, and is spoken by people for the
most part inhabiting small detached islands, having little
Il
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS OX
or no intercourse with each other, it has a great variety
of dialects, yet not so different, but they all may easily
be known to belong to one common language.
Of these Dialects, the principal are, the Samoan, the
Hawaiian, or that of the Sandwich Islands, the Marquesan, that of New Zealand, the Tongatabuan, or that
of the Friendly islanders, and the Tahitian. The others,
so far as they are known, hear more or less affinity, some
to one, and some to another of these.
There is, in the Polynesian Language, a great number
of radical or primitive words, that seem to prevail through
all the dialects, having nearly the same pronunciation,
and the same ideas affixed to them; such as male, death;
vai, water; ua, rain; feuua, land; tai, the sea; uta, the
shore ; rnetua, a parent ; Aina, God, &c.
Other words, such as the numerals, the personal and
possessive pronouns, are nearly the same in all the
groups, and probably the same may be said of the use of
the adjectives, and of the conjugation of verbs.
Many words, however, appear very different, when
they are not so in reality, because in some dialects the
first syllable of a word is dropped or exchanged; as, t for
k, h fo r/, n for ng, l for r, or the contrary, as the word
man in the Hawaiian, is kanaka) as also in Parai a or one
dialect of the Paurnotu people, in the Marquasan it is
anata, in the Tongatabuan, tangata, as also at New Zea
land and Samoa, and in the Fijiian d aleet, it is tomota,
and in the Tahitian, taata. I ha is the general word for
fish in the different dialects, hut id in Tahitian, also
huaka for a hog, but jmaa in Tahitian, lia is the genelid word for the sun, but at the Marquesas, a, and the
Friendly islands, la. Arihi and ai/ci are the general
words for a king or principal chief, in Tahitian, it is urii.
Of the above dialects, those that bear the greatest re
semblance to each other are the Hawaiian, tiie Marquesan, and that of New Zealand; the Tahitian comes next,
and differs chiefly from them in abridging the words, and
dropping a great number of consonants, and in discard
ing entirely the nasal ng, the g, and k.
The Tongatabuan dialect differs from them all in many
respects, it substitutes the l for the r, and uses the ; con
THE POLYNESIAN LANGUAGE-
111
sonant, which the other dialects never do, it has strong
aspirates resembling the Greek chi, or the ancient Brit
ish eh, and has a great number of words unknown in the
other dialects of the Polynesian language, but they may
probably be traced to the dialects used at the Fijiis, New
Caledonia, and the Marian or Ladrone islands ; there
seems to be nothing in thiidialect of the Friendly island
ers to support the conjecture that the New Zealanders
are their descendants.
The Fijiians are undoubtedly a different race of people
from the Friendly islanders, and apparently from all that
speak the Polynesian language; and though their lan
guage is partly Polynesian, they have a great many words
that indicate a different origin. The words Kalao, God ;
Leva, a woman, Siego, the Sun, tolatola, a shoulder, sala,
a leg, &c., seem to have no affinity with the true Polyne
sian, though they may have with some of the Malay dia
lects; ha lam or bitlan, the words used by the Fijiians for
the moon, are also used by the Malays.
Before these introductory remarks are closed, it will
be well to point out the general modes adopted by the
Tahitians of transmitting historical facts, previous to the
introduction of letters among them.
They had several methods by which they secured that
object, and the first that may be mentioned, was, the his
tory of their gods. This was called in the native lan
guage, “ Rohu Atua.” In their accounts, gods and men
were so blended together, that it is impossible to distin
guish, in many cases, the one from the other.
Taaroa, was considered by them as self existent, and the
creator of all things, and as such, they presented to him
the first fruits of their lands.
Taaroa first created the family of the gods, who dwelt
with him in the “ Po,” or region of darkness. He next
created a secondary class of deities, to superintend the
affairs of this world.
These were said to be made from a log of Aito, cut up
into chips, and each chip was converted into a secondary
deity.
'1'iie first man and woman, descended from Taaroa by
his daughter “ Hina” She is said to be now in the moon.
iv
INTRODUCTORY r e m a r k s on
The Roliu Atua gives the following account of the
titular god and royal family of Huahine.
Tutapu and his wife dwelt on a land called Puatiriura.
They had an only daughter, Hotuhiva. No husband
was to be found for her on her own land. Her parents,
however, were very anxious she should obtain one, and
therefore put her in a drum, called Taihi, under the care
of Tane and the god or idol Taputura, and sent her to
sea. After sailing about for some time, they landed at
Manunu on Huahine; which name signifies “ cramped.”
The spot was formerly called “ Toerauroa.”
Tane became the titular god of Huahine. The young
lady, Hotuhiva, was married to a chief named Teaonuimaruia. They had tw'o sons, Tina, and Hena, and they
are considered to be the ancestors of the present chiefs.
Another method was the “ aufau fetii,” i. e. family ge
nealogies. The sovereign Chiefs paid more attention to
this subject than persons of the lower orders did. Their
accounts extend much farther back, and are more cor
rect than those of the latter class.
On the supposed validity of these genealogies, the
Chiefs found their claims to supreme anthority ; and the
land proprietors their claim to their patrimonial posses
sions. Parents, therefore, are very careful to teach their
children the aufau fetii, that they may trace back their
ancestors as far as possible. When a dispute arises re
specting land, each party repeats the list of his ancestors
who have been proprietors of the said land, and the per
son who can trace farthest back into past ages, and give
the most consistent account of his pedigree, is allowed
to have just claim to the disputed land.
All such genealogies were committed to memory; and
when reference was made to them in land disputes, the
parties trusted entirely to it, and do so, in most cases, at
the present time ; some few only having written them.
The Sovereign chiefs were, as every thing belonging to
them was, moa (sacred), and few besides themselves,
were acquainted with them.
Legendary tales formed another method which they
adopted of transmitting historical facts from gene’
ration to generation, and some of these were highly
THE POLYNESIAN LANGUAGE.
V
wrought in hyperbolical language, to give to the indi
viduals of whom they were related, and to their descend
ants, a claim to the reverence due to a divine nature.
Giving peculiar designations to their wars, victories,
and individuals, was another custom practised to me
morialise past events.
There has been a great aptness among these islanders
from time immemorial, in selecting terms for such a pur
pose.
A destructive sea fight near an island on the reef of
Raiatea, is designated “ Te tamai i te hoo ro to j” and
the mention of that term to the old men who were en
gaged in it, calls to mind the awful scenes and conflicts
which then took place, and which Were witnessed by
them.
Another conflict between the Poraporans, and the
islanders of Raiatea, and Huahine, is called “ te tamai
huri aua {” this term reminds the Poraporans of the
greatest state of humiliation they had experienced for
many years ; as their fastness ivas almost taken, and
themselves were compelled to sue. for peace and liberty.
Another method of commemorating individual cir
cumstances, as well as public events, was that of taking
new names, which has long been very' common, and is
still practised. These circumstances are, accidents, sick
ness, deaths, &c. A father takes the name “ avae mai,”
(diseased foot) because his child, or some other me ni
er of the family, had been suffering from a bad foot.
Another is called “ Iriti,” because some person of the
family died of convulsions. Another is named Piha-ati,
from the circumstance of a relative having been buried
in a coffin made of the ati. The name Pomare, was given
to him upon the same principle, illustrated by the fore
going circumstances. Po, signifies night, and Mare,
coughing ; and as the sovereign had had a severe night
of coughing, he adopted the name.
The last mode that shall be mentioned is their Pehes,
or songs.
Such a practice of transmitting historical circum
stances to posterity, common to all unlettered countries,
was frequently adopted by the inhabitants of the Socie
VI
INTRODUCTORY. REMARKS &r.
ty «and Georgian islands. These pehes were of a na
tional, domestic, and individual character.
The inhabitants of one island would set forth the pecnliar character, and convey their own ideas of the in
habitants of a neighbouring island. Some circumstance
which occurred in the wars, would often form the foun
dation of a pehe.
Parties on the same island composed pehes respecting
their fellow islanders. These refer to some disagreement
between themselves ; and also to any particular line of
conduct pursued by certain individuals.
To such an extent was the practice adopted, that there
are pehes respecting almost every district, piece of land,
and family.
After the arrival of the Missionaries, much labour was
spent during the first years of their residence in the isl
ands, collecting materials for a dictionary, wnich was
eventually drawn up with considerable care, and sent
home to England to be printed, by the Directors of the
London Missionary Society ; but as the Missionaries
were not, at that period, fully agreed among themselves
as to the orthography, the Directors recommended delay
in order to consider what alteration of that kind might
be thought advisable. The present work was arranged
by the Rev. John Davies, of Pa para, and was ready for
the press upwards of twelve years ago, and part of it
was then actually published by the Rev. D. Darling, at
Bunaau'ia, but deficiency of type, and other unavoidable
circumstances, interrupted the progress of the work.
The following short grammar is a second edition of the
one which was published in 1823, with corrections and
additions.
SHORT
f
GRAM M AR
OF T H E
TAHITIAN
DIALECT.
THE TAHITIAN ALPHABET.
LETTERS.
NAMES.
SOUNDS OF PRONUNCIATION.
ah
e
fa
he
as a in Father.
as a in Fate.
as f in Farm.
as h in Heaven.
I
as e in Me.
mo
as m in Mote.'
tiu
as n in Noon.
o
O o
as o in Go.
as P in Pat.
P p
P
ro
as r in Rode.
II r
t
as t in Time.
T t
as u in Rule.
u
U u
V
as V in Veer.
V v
The above letters represent what are termed native
sounds. The remaining letters are foreign sounds, and
arc pronounced as follows :
B
pronounced as p.
A
K
F
H
I
M
N
a
e
f
h
i
m
u
si
K
iL ]
W
Ph
>
pronounced as t.
pronouheed as r.
pronounced as ua.
pronounced a* f.
2
2
A SHORT GRAMMAR OF
The Tahitian dialect abounding in vowels, and discard
ing every hard consonant, it is very difficult for the Tahi
tians to pronounce such consonants as occur not in any
of their own words ; yet there seems to be a necessity of
introducing the above supplementary letters for tlie sake
of proper names and foreign words. Several of them are
used in the other dialects.
Some of the Tahitian consonants are often exchanged,
as / for h, and h for/, in a considerable number of verbs,
when the prefixes fa a or han occur. The h is invaria
bly pronounced with the aspirate, though frequently so
softly, as not to be perceived by foreigners, unless pecu
liar attention be paid to it. Sometimes the r and the ?»
seem to be exchanged, as ramu, namu, but what is
most remarkable in the pronunciation of the Tahitian
consonants, is, the universal practice of confounding b
and p, d and /, and it is a fact, that scarce a Tahitian can
be found, who is able to distinguish between them. In
spelling or pronouncing the letters singly, they run all
the ps into b, and all the is into d ; but in speaking,
they immediately turn most of them into p and t, and
there is hardly a Tahitian word, in which it can be said,
that b and d are universally used. These two letters b
and d have, therefore, been rejected from the Tahitian
Alphabet. Some few words in the dictionary commenc
ing with b, will be again found under the letter^?.
OF THE VOWELS.
The common sound of the Vowels is that which is ex
emplified above; but there are many instances where the
same sounds in quality, are different in qiiantity, being
much longer in some words, where the vowels ought to
be marked with a circumflex, thus; â, ù, î, ô, û. In
some few instances the vowel a is pronounced very short,
as in tapono, a shoulder, tata, to bale, tatou, to count,
parais speech, &c., which might be marked thus; tapo
no, tàtà, tàtnu, &c. In some few others, it seems to have
THE TAHITIAN DIALECT.
8
the sound of a in the English word liar, as, pape, water,
vave, soon, and the future adverb ia.
DIPTHONGS.
The Tahitian dipthongs are all of that character which
is termed proper ; as each vowel has its own distinct
sound.
SYLLABLES.
In the formation of Tahitian words, the consonants
must be invariably separated by one or more vowels.
And when Tahitians write, or pronounce Foreign words,
they always insert vowels between the consultants. Eve
ry syllable is invariably terminated with a vowel.
WORDS.
The words in Tahitian, as in English, may be divided
into nine different sorts, viz. : the. article, the noun, the
adjective, the pronoun, the verb, the adverb, the preposi
tion, the conjunction, and the interjection.
OF THE ARTICLE.
If the Article be considered as an “ index to the noun,
to limit and designate its signification,” the followingappear to be used in Tahitian as articles : a, te, o, na, muu,
tau, pue, hui, te hoe, e talii, and ma or man.
1.
jE and te are commonly (not always,) what a, or an
and the are in English, viz., indefinite and definite arti
cles, as in the following examples :
e
e
e
e
e
taata, a man,
ninnu, a bird,
fare, a house,
pure, a prayer,
talma, a priest,
te
te
te
te
te
taata, the man,
manu, the bird,
fare, the house,
pure, the prayer
tahua, the priest.
4
À SHORT GRAMMAR OF
Sometimes the article te is prefixed to proper names;
ns Te maharo, Te mehameha, &c., apparently to ease the
pronunciation ; and at other times it is placed before
nouns, where no article would be used in English, as te
Atua, which ought to be translated God,and not, the God.
Sometimes it seems to be rather emphatic than definite,
as when Captan Wallis visited Tahiti in 1 7G7» some of
the old people in relating the circumstance, and the con
sternation the inhabitants were in on seeing the ship, &c.,
say “ tao aera ratou, e ere ontou te taata.’ they thought
that you were not men but gods, or some superior beings.
2. The o is supposed to have the nature of an article,
as it is prefixed as an index to the pronoun when in the
nominative case, as o van, o oe, o oia, o maua, &c., as
also to proper names of persons and places; as o Potnarc,
o Tu, oTea, &c., o Moorea, o Huahine, o liaiatea, o Ta
hiti, &c. ; some, however, suppose it to be the sign of the
nominative case. Not understanding this, strangers have
often made it a part of the name itself, as Otahiti ; but
there is no more propriety in writing Otahiti for the
name of the Island, than there would be in writing
Oengland and Ofrance, for England and France.
3. The words te hoe and e (ahi are used in Tahitian ex
actly in the same way as the French article o f unity, \ iz. ;
when un or une is used, they are prefixed to nouns to sig
nify one thing in a vague sense, as the French say, une
pomme, an apple, une heure, an hour, so the Tahitians
would say, te hoe vi, te hoe hora, any one, but only one iu
a vague sense.
When the noun will not admit of individuality, as
wind, water, earth, &c. ma or maa is prefixed, as maa
pape, some water, maa matai, some wind, 8fc. and often
the article of unity is also used ; as, hotnai e tahi or te hoe
maa pape, give me some little water.
4. The words na, mau, tau, pue, and hui, are prefixed
to nouns, to denote plurality in such nouns, and to limit
and restrict in a manner, well known to the natives, but
not easily attained hy a foreigner.
ATa is prefixed to nouns to denote, in general, a small
plurality, two or three, or a small number, as na metua,
parents, both father and mother ; na taata, the men, two
THE TAHITIAN DIALECT.
6
or three, or a few ; but sometimes it may denote a great
number, when it is uncertain.
Mau seems to be an unlimited plural, as mau tanta,
men, any number: mau metuu, parents, without limiting
the number.
Tau seems to be used to denote a small indefinite plu
rality in the noun, as “ aita rea tail taata rii,” but few men,
two or three, or a small number ; yet it does not seem to
be used exactly as synonymous witli na. The words pile
and /««'are also prefixed to certain collective nouns, and
mark no definite plurality; as, pue arii, the royal family
or principal chiefs, pus raatira, the subordinate chiefs
collectively, /«« arii, and /mi raatira, appear to have
nearly the same meaning as pile arii and raatira ; but
pile taata seems to be an exception, as being more limit
ed ; hui hoa, is also used for friends, denoting a number
of them without limiting it.
O F NOUN8.
Nouns have two numbers, the singular and plural, or,
perhaps more properly, the Tahitian nouns, w.ien not in
the singular number, have a plurality limited or unlimit
ed, us determined by the articles mentioned a b o v e , viz.,
na, mail, tau, pue, and hui, which are prefixed to the
various nouns, for there is nothing commonly in the noun
itself, to signify either number or gender. Sometimes
the plurality of the noun is signified by the adjective fol
lowing it, n*puaa maitatai, good hogs.
Na prefixed to a noun denotes a limited plurality, as;
la, fish, na ia, two, or a few fishes.
Ofai, stone, na ofai, stones, two or more.
Pepe, a butterfly, na pepe, butterflies, two or more.
llao, a fly, na rao, flies, two or more, but limited.
The unlimited plurals are formed by prefixing mau to
the noun, us;
Atua,
God,
mau Atua,
Gods.
Varna, Spirit,
mau Vurua, Spirits.
Fatu,
Lord,
mau Fatu,
Lords,
A SHORT GRAMMAR O f
6
Arii,
Haavâ,
Fetia,
Fcnua,
King,
Judge,
Star,
Country,
man Arii,
man Haavâ,
mau Felia,
mau Ferma,
Kings.
Judges.
Stars.
Countries.
OF GENDER.
The gender is distinguished, either by different words,
or bv adding tune or vahine ; oni or ufa, to the noun, as
follows;
Paha, a boar,
Tuane, a brother of a
sister,
Tamatoa, a boy,
Tane, a male,
Oui, a male, of beasts,
Matiaa, or maiaa, a dam or sow.
Tuahine, a sister of a brother.
Tainahine, or potii, a girl.
Vahine,a female of womankind.
Ufa, a female of beasts.
Most of the nouns have no gender, and may be con
sidered as neutral, or common, when not determined by
the connexion, or by tane or Vahine. oni or ufa, being
added to the noun ; as, nietua, a parent, male or female;
but to determine which, tone or vahme must be added;
thus, metua tane, a father, or male parent, metua vahi
né, a mother or female parent, nietua hovai, a parent
in law, nietua hovai tane, a father in law, nietua hovai
vahine, a mother in law, hunoa, a child in law, hunoa
tane, a son in law, hunoa vahine, a daughter in law.
Puaa is a common noun, and means any one of the swine
kind, but puaa oni, is a male of the swine, and puaa ufa,
a female or sow. So manu, a bird, is in itself a com
mon noun, and so is ia a fish, raau, a tree or plant, but
when a tree or plant is to be distinguished as male or
female, tane or vahine is added, as niuita lane, the male
papaw tree ; niuita vahine, the female papaw. Moora
is any of the duck or goose kind, and so is moa, any of
the domestic fowl kind, and to distinguish cock and hen,
goose and gander, duck and drake, oni or ufa, must be
used,
THE TAHITIAN DIALECT'.
t
OF CASE.
If by case be understood the different endings of the
noun, the Tahitian nouns have no c u s p s , that is, nothing
in the noun itstlfro distinguish its case. It tias been said
that English nouns have but one variation of case, viz. :
the genitive or possessive, and therefore English cases of
nouns are distinguished by the prepositions, to, for, with,
from, by, &c., and by the same means the Tahitian cases
of a noun may be distinguished, viz., by the little words
a, na, o, no, te, i, e, and ia.
EXAMPLES.
Haavft, a judge.
SINGULA It.
Nom.
Gen.
Dat.
Acc.
Voc.
Abl.
Tehaavft, the judge.
No te haavft, of or belonging to the judge.
I te haavft, to t he judge.
I te haavft, the judge.
E te haavft e, o judge.
E, i, or na, te liaa\ft, by the judge.
PLURAL.
N.
G.
D,
A.
V.
Ab.
Te matt haavft, the judges.
No te man haavft, of or belonging to the judges.
1 te matt haavft, to the judges.
I te mau haavft, the judges.
E te mau haavft e, o judges.
E, i, orna, temau liaatft, by the judges.
Substitutive pronoun, men, such an one..
S IN G U L A R .
N.
G.
D,
A.
V.
Ab.
O men, such an one.
No ntca, of such an one.
la mea, to such an one.
Ia mea, such an one.
E mea e, o such an one.
E, ia, or na, mea, by such an one.
8
A SHORT GRAMMAR OF
OF THE ADJECTIVE.
The adjective is commonly placed after the noun to
express its quality; as, taata m ait ai, a good man, Atua
mana, a powerful God, raau maoro, a long tree, te ral
teitei, the lofty sky, te ofai teimaha, the heavy stone, pa
lau paari, wise speech.
In some lew instances the Tahitian adjectives corres
pond in number with the nouns to which they belong, as:
SINGULAR.
PLURAL.
F. taata niaitai, a good man, E taata maitatai. good men.
E taata inn, a bad man,
E taata iino, bad men.
E raau rahi, a large tree,
E raau rarahi, large trees.
The word mau might be inserted; as, mau taata mai
tatai, good men.
There is nulli ng in the adjective itself to denote com
parison, or degrees of qualities, this is done by the aid
of particles, i, ae, atu, hau, roa, ino, and e, as :
E men maitai, a good thing.
E men maitai ae, a better thing in a small degree.
E mca ino, a bad thing.
E mca ino ae, a worse thing, o ra little worse.
Teitei, high, teitei ae, a little higher.
Rahi, great, rahi ae, a little greater.
Rahi atu, great beyond the thing compared.
Rahi roa, very great.
Rahi roa atu, greater still, or beyond.
Rahi roa ino atu, immoderately great.
Sometimes the word hau is used when two things are
compared ; as, o tei hau ïa i te rahi, that outstretches, or
outdoeth in greatness. Hau atu is also used, when it is
still greater, as t
E mea maoro, a long tiling.
Ua hau teie i te maoro, this is longer.
Ua hau atu hoi teie, this is still longer.
Ua hau e atu teie, this is much longer than any of them.
Til Ë TAHITI AS DIALECT.
9
Another way of comparing is by placing the adjective
before the noun that is to he compared with another,
and inserting the preposition i or ia between those two ;
as, e rahi teie i tera, this is great to that, or e iti teie i
tera, this is little to that. E rahi Tahiti i Moorea, Tahiti
is great to Moorea ; c rahi atu Beretane, Britain is great
beyond Tahiti ; e rahi roa ’tu America, America is great
beyond them all.
Sometimes an accumulation of epithets is used to mag
nify the greatness, or signify the littleness of an object}
as, E mea ino rahi roa tu, a thing exceedingly bad,
E mea iti haihai roa, a thing exceedingly little.
O F T H E PRONOUNS.
The personal pronouns are used in the Tahitian with
peculiar precision, they are of three sorts, singular, dual,
and plural.
SINGULAR PRONOUNS.
1st. Person, O Vau, I.
2d. Person, O oe, Thou.
3d. Person, O oia, He, She, or it.
O
mea is also often used as a substantive pronoun in
the 3d. person singular, answering to such an one.
DUAL PRONOUNS.
j ( O Tttua, Thou and I, or we two.
' ( O Maua, He and I, or l the speaker, and another.
2. O Urua, Ye two.
3. O Raua, They, two persons spoken of.
PLURAL PRONOUNS.
. CO Tatou, ye and I, or we and you, and our party.
' ( O Matou, we, three or more.
2. O Outou, you or ye, three or more.
3. O Raton, thev, three or more.
3
lo
A SHORT GRAMMAR OF
Fera is also a plural indefinite pronoun of the third
person. It is commonly used in speaking of persons in
their presence, and may be either dual or plural.
The pronouns have no distinction of gender, but the
cases are distinguished as follows:
SINGULAR.
N. O Vau, I.
G. Na’u, no’u, mine.
D. Ia’u, to me.
A. Ia’u, Me
Ab.Ia, na, or e an, by me.
DUAL.
7 ( O taua, Thou and I, or we two.
' \ O maua, He and I.
q CNa taua, no taua, Ours, two.
’ ( Na maua, no maua, His and mine.
D &A \
taua>lls two> t0 ,IS>&c' Xla maua, him and me, to him and me.
.,
Future Tense.
1 s. E haamau mi, I will or shall cause to hold.
2 - E haainau oe, Thou wilt or shalt cause to hold.
3 - E haainau oia, He or she will or shall cause to hold.
The same of the duals and plurals.
IM P E R A T IV E M O O D .
2 s. A haamau na oe, cause thou to hold.
3 - - E haamau oia, let him or her cause to hold.
1 dual E haamau taua, do you and I cause to hold.
2 - - A haamau na orua, let you two cause to hold.
3 - - E haamau raua, let them two cause to hold.
1 plur.E haamau tatou, let us 3, or more, cause to hold.
2 — E haamau outou, let you 3, or more, cause to hold.
3 - - E haamau ratou, let them 3, or more, cause to hold.
S u b j u n c t i v e M o o d .—
Present Tense.
1 sing. Te haamau nei au, If I cause to hold.
2 — Te haamau nei oe, If thou cause to hold.
3 — Te haamau nei oia, If he or she cause to hold.
The same of the duals and plurals.
1 sing. Ahiri te
2 — Ahiri te
3 Ahiri te
The same of
Imperfect Tense.
haamau ra vau, If I then caused to hold.
haamau raoe, If thou didst cause to hold.
haamau ra oia, If he or she caused to hold.
the duals and plurals.
Perfect Tense.
1 sing. I haamau ha vau, If I have caused to hold.
2 - - I haamau na oe, If thou have caused to hold.
3 - - I haamau na oia, If lie or she have caused to hold.
The same of the duals and plurals.
Future Tense.
1 sing. Ia haamau au, If I will or shall cause to hold.
2 - - la haamau oe, If thou wilt or shalt cause to hold.
3 - - la haamau oia, If he or shewillorshall causeto hold.
The same of the duals and plurals.
26
A SHORT GRAMMAR OF
MAU H IA, to be held.—3d. Conjugation.
I n d i c a t i v e M o o d .— Present Tense.
1 sing. Te mau Ida nei au, I am held.
2 - - Te mau hia nei oe, Thou art held.
3 - - Te mau hia nei oia, He or she is held.
The same of the dual and plurals.
Imperfect Tense.
1 sing. Te mau hia ra vau, I was (then) held.
2 - - Te mau hia ra oe, Thou wast held.
3. — Te mau hia ra oia, he or she was held.
The same of the duals and plurals.
Perfect Tense.
1 sing. I mau hia navau, I have been held.
2 - - I mau hia na oe, Thou hast been held.
3 - - I mau hia na oia, He or she has been held.
The same of the duals and plurals.
Future Tense.
1 sing. E mau hia vau, I will or shall be held.
2 - - E mau hia oe, Thou wilt or shalt be held.
3 - - E mau hia oia, He or she will or shall be held.
The same of the duals and plurals.
I m per a tiv e M ood.
1 sing. la mau hia vau, may 1 or let me be held.
2 - - la mau hia oe, mayest thou, or be thou held.
3
- la mau hia nia, may he or she be held.
The same of the duals and plurals.
S u b j u n c t i v e Moon.—Present Tense.
1 sing. Te mau hia nei an, If 1 be held.
2 - - Te mau hia nei oe, If thou be held.
3 - - Te mau hia nei oia, If he or she be held.
The same of the duals and plurals.
Imperfect Tense.
1 sing. Te mau hia ra vau, If I were or was then held
2 - - Te mau hia ra oe, If thou wert held.
3 - - Te mau hia ra oia, If he or she were held.
The same of the duals and plurals.
Perfect Tense.
1 sing. I mau hia na vau, If I have been held.
2 - - I mau hia na oe, If thou have been held.
THE TAHITIAN DIALECT.
37
CS CO
3 - - I man hia na oia, If he or she have been held.
The same of the duals and plurals.
Future Tense.
1 sing. Ia man hia vau, If I will or shall be held.
- - Ia mau hia oe, If thou wilt or shalt be held.
- - Ia mau hia oia, If he or she will or shall be held.
The same of the duals and plurals.
4th. Conjugation, HAAMAU HIA, causing to be held.
I n d i c a t i v e M o o d .— Present Tense.
1 sing. Te haamau hia nei au, I am caused to be held.
2 - - Te haamau hia nei oe, Thou art caused to be held.
3 - - Te haamau hia nei oia, He or she is caused to be
The same of the duals and plurals.
[held.
Imperfect Tense.
1 s. Te haamau hia ra vau, I was then caused to be held.
2 - Te haamau hia ra oe, Thou wast caused to be held.
3 - Te haamau hia ra oia, He or she was caused to be held.
The same of the duals and plurals.
Perfect Tense.
ï s. I haamau hia na vau, I have been caused to be held.
2 - 1 haamau hia na oe, Thou hast been caused to be held.
3 - 1 haamau hia na oia, He or she has been caused to be
The same of the duals and plurals.
[held.
Future Tense.
1 s. E haamau hia vau, 1 will or shall be caused to be held.
2 - E haamau hiaoc, Thou wilt orshalt be caused to be held.
3 - E haamau hia oia, He or she will or shall be caused to
The same of the duals and plurals.
[beheld.
I m pe r a t iv e M ood.
1 s. Ia haamau hia vau, may I be caused to be held.
2 - Ia haamau hia oe, mayest thou be caused to be held.
3 - Ia haamau hia oia, may he or she be caused to be held.
The same of the duals and plurals.
S u b j u n c t i v e M o o d .— Present Tense.
1 s. Te haamau hia nei au, If I be caused to be held.
2 - Te haamau hia nei oe, If thou be caused to be held.
3 - Te haamau hia nei oia, If he or she he caused to be held.
The same of the duals and plurals.
28
A SHORT GRAMMAR OF
Imperfect Tense.
1 s. Te liaamau hia ra vau, If I was then or were caused
to be held.
2 - Te liaamau hia ra oe, If thou wert caused to be held,
b - Te liaamau hia ra oia, If he or she were caused to be
The same of the duals and plurals.
[held.
Perfect Tense.
1 s. I liaamau hia na vau, If I have been caused to be held.
2 - I haamau hia naoe,If thou have been caused to be held.
3 - 1 liaamau hia na oia, If he or she have been caused to
The same of the duals and plurals.
[be held.
Future Tense.
1 s. Iahaamauhia vau,If I will or shall be caused to beheld.
2 - la haamau hia oe, If thou wilt or shalt be caused to
be held.
3 la haamau hia oia, If he or she will or shall be caused
The same of the duals and plurals.
[to be held.
The above is the conjugation of a regular verb in its
various modes, times, and significations ; but there are in
Tahitian, as in other languages, anomalous verbs of vari
ous kinds. Some are irregular in their form, others in
their significations, or applications, as they are now used
by the natives, such as uni to ask, fau ani, to give away.
Some are often used as auxiliaries to other verbs, and
sometimes as principal verbs themselves, as pau, which
commonly accompanies another principal passive verb;
as, Ua pau i te amu hia, it is eaten, or consumed by eat
ing, sometimes it is used alone, signifying consumed, van
quished, or conquered.
Ua, is a particle of very frequent use, and may be con
sidered as an affirmation or auxiliary verb of being, but
not a distinctive mark of tense. It is prefixed to verbs to
signify, that the action expressed by the verb has taken
place, or is now existing, or shall exist or take place in
connection with some actor circumstance, mentioned or
implied, as for instance, “ A vavahi na teienei nao, e ua
rni torn anae ua tia faahou i'a ia’u. John ii. 19.
It is moreover used as a prefix to all kinds of adjec
tives affirming the present existence of the quality men-
THE TAHITIAN DIALECT.
23
tioued, and strongly implying its former absence, or the
want of j as,
Ua meumeu, it is thick.
Ua ino, it is (now) bad,
Ua maitai, it is now good, Ua rairai, it is thin.
Ua ereere, it is black.
Ua poto, it is short,
Ua teatea, it is white.
Ua roa, it is long,
Ua rearea, it is yellow.
Ua teitei, it is high,
Ua uraura, it is red.
Ua haahaa, it is low,
Most nouns may be turne into different kinds of verbs
in the following manner ;
Verbs Active.
Verbs Passive.
Nouns.
faa aho
aho hia.
A ho,
faa amaa
amaa hia.
Amaa
amae hia.
faa amae
Amae
faa anae
anae hia.
Anae
faa ete
ete hia.
Ete
faa ioa
ioa hia.
Ioa
faa fata
fata hia.
Fata
faa fare
fare hia.
Fare
tapape
pape hia.
Pape
haamanao
manao hia.
Manao
Adjectives are' turned into Verbs thus :
Verbs Active, Verbs of the 4th conjug.
Adjectives,
faa aano hia.
faa aano
Aano
faa i hia.
faa i
I
faa iti hia.
faa iti
Iti
faa itoito
faa itoito hia.
Itoito
faa fatata
faa fatata hia.
Fatata
haamaitai
haa maitai hia.
Maitai
faa nehenehe hia.
Nehenehe
faanehenehe
Verbs neuter. Verbs active. Verbs of the 4th conjug.
faa ara
faa ara hia.
Ara
faa ata
faa ata hia.
A ta
haainoe
haamoe hia.
Moe
faa noho
faanoho hia.
Noho
faa taoto
faataoto hia.
Taoto
haavare hia.
haavare
Vare
Some words are used as nouns and verbs neuter with*
out any alteration butin the 2d. and 4th conj., thus j
30
A SHOUT GRAMMAR OF
Nunns. Verbs neuter. V. o f the 2d. V. o f the 4th conj.
Ora
ora
faaora
faaora hia.
Mate
mate
liaamate
haamate hia.
Pohe
pohe
haapohe
haapohe hia.
Ba
ea
faaea
faaea hia.
Oto
oto
faaoto
faaotohia.
But besides the above mentioned distinctions of tiie
verbs, there are others of reduplication, not yet taken
notice of, and those of varions forms.
Some appear to have a duality of number, although
not always perhaps definite, such aspopohe, hohore, rereva, apipiti, &c. Others, signifying a repetition of the ac
tion have the whole verb doubled, as hiohio, revareva, &c.
But the greatest number in repeating the verb, drop a
syllable or a letter, some in the first, as hahaere, paraparau, horohoroi, hohoe, Ik,c., others in the last part of the
compound; as, opanipani, patiatia, amuimui, manaonao,
faaroorooyopoopoo, faaiteite, faatiatia, tipaopao, aroharoha, vaiihoiho, Ike., others differ from all these in their
form or application, us,pararahi,parahirahi,pararau,&c.
The following is a list of them :
Horo, to run, hohoro, when two persons run together.
Hoo, to barter, buy or sell, hohoo, when two persons do so.
Pou, to descend or come down, popou, when two persons
descend together.
Pohe, to die, (mute is the common and old Polynesian
word,) popohe, when two persons die together, hoe a
popohe raa.
Revu, to go or depart, rereva, when two persons go to
gether.
The greatest number, however, of the reduplicates,
have no mark of number, but denote a repetition of the
action, as in the following examples :
Amaha, to split or open, amuhamaha, to do so repeatedly.
Amui, to associate, amuimui, to do so repeatedly.
Apoo, to meet or assemble for some business, apoopoo, to
do so repeatedly.
Aroha, to pity, love or compassionate, aroharoha, to do
so repeatedly.
THE TAHITIAN DIALECT.
31
Faarno, to hear, faamoroo, to listen or hearken repeated-*
ly, or hear repeated conversations.
Faaite, to make known, fnaiteite, to make known re
peatedly or by little and little.
Faatia, to relate or rehearse, faatintia, to do so repeat
edly, by taking by little any subje ct of discourse.
Feruri, to reason, or exercise the judgment, feruriruri,
to do so repeatedly.
Haapii to teach, haapiipii, to do so repeatedly.
Hio, to look, hioliio, to act the spy by looking or prying
into things repeatedly.
Haere, to go or move, hahaere, to repeat the motion.
Hopoi, to carry or convey, /icpo/icpoi, to cat ry or con
vey repeatedly.
H uti, to pull or pluck, hutihuti, to pluck repcatc dlv, as
the feathers of a fowl.
Haavare, to deceive, haavarevare, to cause repeated de
ceptions.
Horoi, to wash, horohoroi, to wash repeatedly.
Hue, to paddle or row, ho hoe, to do so repeatedly.
Mahemo, slipped off, ma/icniohewo, did so repeatedly.
Matara, loosened or got free, mularatarci, a repetition of
the same.
Manao, to think, manaonao, to exercise thoughts with
anxiety or concern.
Ofati, to break, ofutifati, to do so repeatedly.
O oii, to cut, otioti, to repeat the action.
Opani, to shut as a door, opam'pani, to repeat the same.
Pcitia, to strike, thrust or pierce, patiatia, to repeat the
action.
Para/ii, to dwell or abide,pararahi, to dwell or abide, ap
plied to two persons ; para/iirahi, to abide occasional
ly or for a little while. “ No parahiraki ae i o 011tou.” John, vii. 33.
Parau, to speak, pararau, applied to two conversing to
gether, paraparau, to converse repeatedly. Paraparait raa, a conference or meeting for speaking.
Rave, to take or receive, raverave, to take in hand repeat
edly, as a person waiting at table.
Tipao, to mark, tipaopau, to do so repeatedly.
32
A SHOUT GRAMMAR OF
Ui, to ask or inquire, uiui, to make repeated inquiries.
Utam, to dig the ground, utarutaru, to do so repeatedly.
Vaiiho, to leave, vaiihoiho, to leave frequently.
O F A D V ER BS.
There are in Tahitian, as in other languages, a great va
riety of adverbs, the principal of which are adverbs of
time, place,order, quantity, quality, affirmation, negation,
interrogation, comparison, doubting, indication, restric
tion, and prohibition.
O f Time.
Time present. Tcie and teinei, now or this present iustant, nei hère, or this present instant.
Time past: A auanei, today (past); nanalri, yesterday,
fa, when, i nnfea, when connected with an interrogation,
time past ; aenei, signifying the action past, or gone by ;
ra and aera have a similar meaning; hou, late or lately,
as, hou aenei, or lion iho nei, lately, past, but not long
ago; mutaa aenei,mutaa iho, and nntlaa ihora, formerly.
Time to come: Aunei, or auanei, to day, (to come) and
sometimes it signifies that an action will shortly take
place; aria, presently; ariana, by and by or shortly ; ia
roovauae, in a little while or shortly; iaroaroa iti ac, in
a little time or presently; ia, when, future; ananahi, or
apopo, to-morrow.
Time indefinite : Pinepine, often ; rnauiho, applied to
an action often repeated ; mahia, as, eita mahia, soon or
quickly, vave, soon; vavevate, very soon, or speedily;
reira, then.
Of Place.
Nei, here ; ae, a little aside, or a small distance higher
or lower, or farther off, iho, also determines the place of
the action, similar to ae ; aera and ra, signify distance
aside ; na, denotes the place where the person addressed
is, and is opposed to nei ; as, i o na, yonder with you ;
and i o nei, here with me ; atu, and atura, denote the ac
tion to be passing from the speaker or agent, or the place
understood ; mui,maira and mai nei, the reverse, the as
pect of the action being towards the person or place un
derstood ; reira, there, reiraiho, there at that very place.
THE TAH1TIAX DIAt.EOT.
S3
The following are also used as adverbs, i nia, above ; i raro,
below ; i roto, within ; i rapae, or i vaho, out, without ;
as, haere i nia, go above; haere iraro, go below, &c.
O f Order.
Matamua or mutamehni, first in order or foremost ;
muri iho or muri ae, that which comes close behind or af
terwards; ria, as oc na, thou first in o rd er;‘ mata na i
te papai teienei, write this first. Teihea te papai na't
Which shall be written first ? Teie na, this first.
O f Quantity.
Atira, enough, or (there is) a sufficiency ; ariirea, a
little or small quantity ; rnhi, much ; e rahiy too much ;
iti, little; e iti, too little; noinoi, little or small; haihai,
very little; as, e mea iti haihai roa, a verv little thing;
e raverahi, many; aitarea, few.
O f Quality.
Tia, right or straight; hape, wrong; ino, ill ; maitai,
well ; teoteo, proud, or proudly; nehenehe, orderly or in
good condition ; purotu, comely ; these, and many other
adjectives seem to be used adverbially.
O f Affirmation.
E,
yea, or yes; oia, yes ; ia, truly so, or truly it is it, or
that ; oia inau, truly so ; parait man, or tarn mau, truth,
or the very truth.
O f Negation.
Aore, aima, aina, aipa, aita, nay, nor, not ; aita roa,
not at all, or by no means ; (time past,) e ere, e ore, e ete,
no, not ; (time present), e ore, eita, eima, eina, the same
negatives, with respect to what is future. The time of
these adverbs is most exactly observed by the Tahitians.
O f Interrogations.
Eaha or aha? W hat? and sometimes why ; as, Eaha i ore ai ? Why not? No te aha ? for what reason or
cause? E hia? how'many? applied to things. Toohia? how many? applied to persons. Nahca? how?
or which way ? Eihea ? Where ? or at what place ? a
thing or a person is to be. Teihea ? Where ? when the
inquiry is about the place where a person or thing is
supposed to be. Ahea or afea 1 When ? (future) ; na-
84
A SHORT GRAMMAR OF
flea and nafea when ? time past, but the i is often pre
fixed, as, i nafea, when ? i tianahi, yesterday.
O f Comparison.
Mai, like unto, mai iu’na te hum, like unto him ; te
hunt a te hunt, of one likeness. Mai ia’na te rahi, of
one size or bigness with him ; mai te reira, as that is;
M ai ore mai ora, likely to be lost, or scarcely saved, but
this is a peculiar Tahitian phrase that can hardly be Eng
lished. Mai ore mai noua te boti ia matou. Acts,
xxvii. 1G.
Of Doubting or Contingency.
Paha, perhaps ; peneiae, probably, or it may be ; tia
or tia ae, peradventure, or it may be.
O f Indication.
Ahio nal lo ! behold or take notice; na (without an
aspirate) see here ; i naha ! behold with attention.
( f Restriction.
Anae, only ; as, oia anue, lie only ; otahi or hoe, only,
as tamaiti otahi, only son, or tamaiti hoe ra.
O f Prohibition.
Eiaha, not, do not,imperatively, as Eiaha e eia, do not
steal. Eiaha e taparalii i te taata, do not commit murder.
Anna is used in the same way, as auaa haere, do not go.
The above are the principal adverbs in common use,
but there are many more belonging to some of the above
classes, and others, that may not strictly come under any
of them.
OF PREPOSITIONS.
A great number of words appear to be used sometimes
as adverbs, and sometimes as prepositions, the principal
prepositions are the following;
Ma, by, na te Atua i hamani i te taata, man was made
by God.
E , by, e mea hamani hia e ana, a thing made by him.
Mu, for, na outou, fo r you, A7« vai ? fo r whom ?
Mo, of, no te taata, o f man. Mo te Atua, of God.
Ia, to, hopoi atu ia mea, take it to such an one.
Tei nia, above, tei nia tci te rai, above in the sky.
THU TAHITI AX DIALECT.
35
Tei rare, below, tei raro tei te moana, below in the deep.
Tei roto, in, witbin, tei roto i te fare, in the house.
Tei vaho, or tei rapae, outside, without, opposite to tei roto. I, to or at, i uta, at a place inland, e pure te Alua, pray
to God.
Ma, will), ma te aau atoa.
Mua, before; muri, behind.
Ia, till ; until, e tiai atu vau e ia tae mai oia ra. I will
wait till be comes, llolo and rotopu, among.
Iho, close by, by the side of. Fatata, nigh or near.
Pi/ia’e, and pihaiho, lying by the side of.
Also the signs of the cases of nouns, and the genitive
and accusative of pronouns, are signified, for tiie most
part, by the prepositions, i, ia, nu, no, ta, to, and a,
and o, as mentioned before. Ti, or tei, answers to in,
but is commonly prefixed to roto, or rapae ; as, tei
roto, tei rapae; sometimes otherwise; as, tei te pahi, in
the ship ; tei te fare, in the house.
OF CONJUNCTIONS.
The usual words in Tahitian to join sentences, or dif
ferent parts of a sentence together, are the following ; e,
ton, or atoa, hoi, area, oi, ra, a and ma.
E is a copulative conjunction, answering to and ; as, te
rui e te ao, day and night; ta ne e te vahine, husband and
wife. Toa, atoa, and hoi, answer to also, and likewise,
as, haere atoa matou, we also go, haere atoa outou,goye
likewise. Na te Atua i hauiaui te rai, e to te rai atoa ra,
nana hoi i hamuni te fenua e te moana, God made the sky
and the things also therein contained, the land also, und
the deep. /, also, often serves as a copulative conjunction
where no English word can be found to answer it.
Ma, seems likewise to be a true Polynesian copulative,
although lost in the Tahitian dialect, except in counting;
as, ahum ma toru, ten and three ; e pili ahum ma pae,
twenty and five.
The disjunctives are ; area, c and rd, as in the follow
ing examples; eiaha lei reira, area teie, not that but this;
or thus, eiaha ïa, teie aï, not that, but this; lete unci,
36
A SHORT GRAMMAR OF
e tera ? this or that ? The following are conjunctions of
various kinds; ia, if; ahiri, if; oi, lest, or that it may
not ; a has the same meaning, e arare pohe, take care
lest (you) die ; also o te, as, o te pohe hoi, lest (he) should
die. I te men, no te men, noa, noa ’tu, noa iho, these
are conditional or inferential conjunctions answering to
therefore, because, although, &c. “ rave noa a oia i te semeio i raverahi i mua i to ratou aro, aore a ratou i faaroo
ia’na. John xii. 37OF INTERJECTIONS.
There are various kinds of interjections, expressive of
the feelings or sudden emotions of the mind ; as,
Aue] of surprise, wonder, or astonishment. A ne 1
alas! of pain, grief or sorrow. A \ of sudden indigna
tion or disappointment. A ! (pronounced differently) on
a sudden discovery of something unlooked for. Aha] of
sudden displeasure or vexation. Ahe\ of surprise or af
fectionate concern about something that cannot be
helped, as the death of a person. Aue te piri e ! of won
der and surprise. Aue te poupou e! of admiration or
wonder, liaio of disgust and contempt. H eel of dis
pleasure and vexation. Uhu ! of disappointment in
something that occurred. Aitoal expressive of satisfac
tion as to some event that has taken place, as well fitting
some previous cause or circumstance, or the state of the
speaker’s mind. Manava ! of greeting or welcome to
visitors. Io nei oe\ of parting, as adieu, literally, thou
be here. A da, and aore, although generally adverbs of
negation, yet are often used as interjections of wonder or
surprise, aita te mahana! how hot it is ! aita te toteoe !
how cold it is! aita te rave ata e! how difficult to manage !
OF SYN TAX.
The rules of syntax arc usually comprised under those
of concord or agreement of words, and those of govern
ment or dependence of words; many of the English rules
of concord and government will not apply to the Tahitian
dialect, hut the following observations may be of some use,
THE TAHITIAN DIALECT.
37
The Nominative Case and the
Verb.
•
There is nothing inherent in the verb, (a few of the re~
duplicates only excepted) to signify persons numbers nor
gender, and consequently the rules about their concord or
agreement with the verb have no place in Tahitian.
The nominative case commonly follows the verb, and
may be easily known by putting the questions O vai ? and
eaha? who: why? which? what? as, Te tere ra te rd,
the sun proceeds on its course. JEaha te tere! What
proceeds ? Te rd, the sun. Te rnaue ra te manu, the
bird flies. Eaha te mane! What is it that flies? Te manu, the bird. Haere atura Iesu i Ierusalema, Jesus
went to Jerusalem. O vai te haere i Ierusalema ? who
went to Jerusalem ? the answer must be Jesus which is
the nominative. But there are instances of the nomina
tive being placed before the verb ; as, O vau te haere, I
go, or it is I that go. In this construction the te must be
inserted between the pronoun and the verb; it also im
plies an opposition ; as, It is l who go, not another. Also
when a negative is used; as, Eita vau e tae, I will not
go ; or when an offer is made ; as, O vau nei te haere. I
will go.
When two nouns, signifying the same thing, are in ap
position, ra must invariably be placed between them; as,
O te Arii ra, () Pomare, tei papai.
The Queen, Pomare, who will write.
The omission of the ra would place the word “ arii” in
the genitive, and the sense would be the chief of the
queen Pomare.
When two or more nouns or pronouns follow the same
verb, the first oidy has the sign of the accusative case.
E parau atu ia Inane, raton, o Petero, e Paulo, ma.
Substantive and Adjective.
The Substantives in general, have no gender, or note of
plurality in themselves, yet some of the adjectives have,
and ought to agree with the substantives when they are
preceded by the plural articles; as, te mau raau rarahi ra,
the great trees, mau puaaiino, bad lings, mau taata niuitatai,good men; tautamarii tamaroa iino,some bad boys.
38
A SHOUT GRAMMAR OF
It is also a general rule that the adjective ought to fol
low the substantive; as E Atua mana, mighty God, and
not precede it as in English. Substantives are also often
implied, but not expressed; as, mana i'a, or te maua, ig
norant, or the ignorant or unskilful, but the word taata
or man is understood.
The Antecedent and the Relative.
The relatives are not affected by number or gender,
they are often nominatives to the following verbs; as, te
Atua o tei faa ora ia’u, the God who preserves me. Tana,
which agrees with any sort of antecedent, ought always
to be followed by either ra, nei or na, in some part of the
sentence ; as, tana taata ra, that man, before spoken of,
tuna pen nei, this custom mentioned or understood ; see
more on this subject under the relative pronouns.
O f Government.
One word governs another, when it causes it to be in
some case or mood.
One substantive governs another; as, T ote A tu a ra
aroha, God’s pity or compassion; T a te aril ra paraît, the
king’s speech. Interrogative phrases or sentences, ought
to be answered according to the interrogation ; as, Na
vai tera ra mea ? Na’u, whose is that thing ? Mine. Te
aha nei oe ■ Te ohipa nei au ; W hat doest thou here ?
I am at work here.
A verb active governs words in the dative or accusative
cases ; as, te parau maira ia’u, speaks to me, te haapii
mai nei ia’u, teaches me, te faaite aturu ia’na, makes
known to him.
PRAXIS.
Ioane, xiv., 15. Ua hinaarooutou ia’u ra, e haapao i
ta’u parau.
Ua, a particle of affirmation affixed to verbs, and adjec
tives affirming the existence of the action or quality to
which it is prefixed.
llinuuro, love, verb active '2d pers. plural, subj. mood,
present tense, implying a condition, i f you love.
Outou, pronoun, '2d. person plural, nominative case, you.
Ia’u, pron. 1st. person, singular, acc. case, me.
THE TAHITIAN DIALECT.
39
Ra, a particle or adverb of time or place.
E , a sign of the tense of the following verb.
Haapan, verb active, imperative mood,•regard or keep,
agreeing with its nominative, oatou.
I, a prep, or particle of connection, sometimes answering
to to, and often apparently an expletive.
T a ’u, pronoun. Is2. person singular, gen. case, my.
Parau, a common subst. sing, number, acc. case, word,
speech or command, agreeing with ta’u, my.
Ioane, x. 14. O van te liai mamoe maitai ra, ua ite au
i ta’u iho, e ua ite hia vau e raton.
O, an article prefixed to pronouns and proper names,
when in the nominative case.
Vctu, pronoun, ls
