N - n

na1   [na] ppi. I: First singular independent pronoun; moi: pronom personnel indépendant, 1ère p. singulier.

Na r̄aju. ‘I am a man.’

Na, ta jo mule na pa varai-a nia. ‘As for me, when dad comes back, I will tell him everything!’ ‘Moi, quand papa rentrera j'irai tout lui dire!’

Na na sa na var̄i-a jara-m. ‘fs:I am coming to replace you.’ ‘Moi je viens pour te remplacer.’

◆ pps. I: First singular Subject personal pronoun, associated to Irrealis mood; je: pronom personnel sujet 1ère p. singulier, associé au mode Irrealis.

Na ljengi-ko! ‘I am going to hit you!’ ‘Je vais te frapper !’

Jo re na m̈aji, na pa avu. ‘If I were a bird, I would fly.’ ‘Si j'étais un oiseau, je volerais.’

Na lpo si na lesi-a r̄a. ‘Let me try and see him.’ ‘Je vais essayer de l'apercevoir.’

Na pa m̈ar̄e sohe sa? ‘How shall I die?’ ‘De quelle façon mourrai-je?’

►  See: -ku.

◈  Etym. *nau.

nahare   [nahaɾe] adv. today, esp. past or present (vs. here, today in the future); fig. nowadays; aujourd'hui.

Ale Raki mo pa juha mo sivo lo m̈asav̈a m̈ar̄a-na. Mo r̄oho mo sna kes nahare. ‘And it was after these events that Araki moved out into the ocean. And it has remained there until today.’

►  See: kesi now, nowadays.

naho   [naho] ni. face; visage, face.

Mo klav̈as mo les naho-n r̄ap̈ala-na. ‘He raised his eyes and recognised the face of his friend.’ ‘Il leva les yeux et reconnut le visage de son ami.’

Asvohinao, nia mo posi-a naho-na mo m̈a sohe naho-m. ‘Asvohinao (devil) can change his face to look like you.’ ‘Asvohinao (démon), il sait transformer son visage pour lui donner l'apparence du tien.’

naho hojo~   ni. front teeth, including canines and incisors; dents de devant, groupant canines et incisives.

►  Ant: p̈ar̄i.

lo naho~   npr. in front of; devant, en face de.

lo naho-ku ‘in front of me’. ‘devant moi’.

►  Ant: lo juhu.

◈  Etym. *nako; *nakon.

naho m̈asanga   [naho n̼asaŋa] n. Orangespine unicornfish, Bisl. Yeloteil strong sikin: reef fish, 30 cm; Nason bariolé (angl. Orangespine unicornfish), poisson récifal, 30 cm. Naso lituratus.

nahorani   [nahoɾani] n. morning; matin.

Nanov lo nahorani, nam r̄uru mo aloalo. ‘Yesterday morning, I got up when the sun was out.’

Mo pa le r̄uru lo nahorani mo je le lesi Raki. ‘When they got up again in the morning, they could not see Araki any more.’

naivou~   [naiβou] ni. [Ego M] wife; épouse.

naivou-ku muru ‘my first wife’. ‘ma première femme’.

naivou-ku par̄ahu / v̈aha-rua ‘my second wife’. ‘ma seconde femme’.

Nia mo lolokoru nira-n naivou-na. ‘He is cross at his wife.’ ‘Il est en colère contre sa femme.’

Nira mo jom̈i naivou-ra, m̈ar̄a nira mo v̈a mo r̄olu mo velu r̄o. ‘They are sad because of their wives, who left home with (the men from the other island) dancing.’ ‘Ils sont tristes à cause de leurs femmes, car elles sont parties avec (les hommes de l'autre île) en dansant.’

▷ For customary laws regarding widows, see elua~ and r̄oha~. The hierarchy rule for a second husband is: r̄oha~ > r̄asi~ > elua~.

►  Ant: r̄ua~.

nak   [nak] vt. Tr: naki-. 1 • strike <s.o., s.th.>, hit; frapper (qqn, qqch), donner un ou plusieurs coup(s) sur.

R̄as mo m̈a mo nak-i-a pilo-n huir̄a. ‘The sea would come back and strike the octopus's head.’ ‘La mer revenait frapper le crâne du poulpe.’

►  Syn: ljeng.

2 • [esp. kava, alcohol] stupefy, have a strong effect upon <s.o.>.

Nam rongo hae mo nak-i-á. ‘I feel the effect of kava [lit. I feel kava is hitting me].’ ‘Je sens l'effet du kava.’

3 • hit <s.o.> with the intention of hurting or killing him; strike dead; frapper (qqn) dans le but de lui faire mal ou de le tuer, tuer en frappant.

R̄aju nohosu ha pa nak-i-a, ha pa nak-i-a lo vuro vo r̄e hina sohe-na. ‘This man is going to be killed; he'll be killed in a fight or something like that.’ ‘Cet homme se fera tuer ; il sera tué au cours d'un combat, ou quelque chose de ce genre.’

4 • kill, in any way (e.g. through black magic); tuer, de n'importe quelle façon.

Niko hosun om nak-i-a r̄aju r̄o! ‘So it was you who killed this man!’ ‘C'est donc toi qui a tué cet homme!’

nak r̄aha m̈ar̄e   vt. kill; tuer.

Na pa nak r̄aha m̈ar̄e-ko! ‘I'm going to kill you [I'm going to strike-you-become-dead]’. ‘Je vais te tuer [je vais frapper-devenir-mort-toi]’.

nam   [nam] pps. I: First singular Subject personal pronoun, associated to Realis mood; je, moi: pronom personnel sujet 1ère p. singulier, associé au mode Realis.

Nam avulai vutiana nam tapai-ko. ‘I am really happy to have met you.’

Nam je levsei rongo-ko. ‘I can't hear you.’ ‘Je ne peux pas t'entendre.’

O kan kore-i-á! — Nam je kore-i-ko. ‘Don't you lie to me! — I am not lying to you.’ ‘Ne me mens pas ! — Mais je ne te mens pas.’

Nam jom̈i. ‘I'm sorry!’ ‘Désolé !’

►  See: na1.

namasu   [namasu] vi. breathe; respirer.

►  Syn: m̈apu.

nanovi   [nanoβi] adv. yesterday; hier.

Nanov nam rongo r̄aju mo hese mo var̄i-a ver̄e nohoni. ‘Yesterday, I heard someone else sing the same song (as you).’

►  Ant: p̈aivuho.

◈  Etym. *nanovi.

naprongo   [napɾoŋo] adv.

1 • [+Realis] although.

Naprongo mo usa, pla-ku per̄a mo je m̈au. ‘Although it does/did rain, my taro is not growing properly.’

2 • [+Irrealis] even if.

►  See: prongo only, just.

naprongo vara   conj. [+Irrealis] even if.

Naprongo vara jo usa, pla-m per̄a jo je levse m̈au. ‘Even if it rains, your taro won't be able to grow properly.’ ‘Même s'il pleuvait, ton taro ne pourrait pas se développer.’

►  Syn: naprongo.

nar̄u~   [naru] ni. Pl: nanar̄u~.

1 • [Ego M/F] child of (s.o.); [Ego H/F] enfant de (qqn).

Nko pa je lahi jo je r̄e nar̄u-m. ‘You will not marry nor will you have any children.’ ‘Tu ne te marieras pas et n'auras point d'enfant.’

Ran mo hese, r̄aju nanar̄u-ra mo r̄oho r̄o lo ima. ‘One day, the people had left their children at home.’ ‘Un jour, les gens avaient laissé leurs enfants à la maison.’

►  See: mara variri the children les enfants.

2 • [Ego M/F] brother's child; [Ego H/F] enfant du frère.

3 • [Ego F] sister's child; [Ego F] enfant de la sœur.

▷ For Ego M, the sister's children, are designated as nephews: elua~, lala, m̈ar̄a~, or r̄ahur̄a~.

▷ Pour Ego H, les enfants de la sœur, ou neveux, sont désignés comme elua~, lala, m̈ar̄a~, ou r̄ahur̄a~.

4 • [Ego M] child of the sister-in-law (ve-r̄ahu~); [Ego H] enfant de la belle-sœur (ve-r̄ahu~).

5 • [Ego M] child of the uncle (elua~), matrilateral cross-cousin; [Ego H] enfant de l'oncle (elua~), cousin croisé matrilatéral.

6 • male child, son: vs. ve-nar̄u~ "daughter"; enfant de sexe masculin, fils : opp. ve-nar̄u~ "fille".

Naivou-ku mo v̈asui nar̄u-ku. ‘My wife has just given birth to my son.’ ‘Ma femme vient de mettre au monde mon fils.’

►  Syn: tu.

◈  Etym. *natu-.

naur̄a   [naura] n. place / island (?); endroit / île (?).

►  See: ureure island île; jara place endroit.

Naur̄a-lap̈a   top. the island of Espiritu Santo, the largest island in the region; l'île d'Espiritu Santo, la plus grande île de la région.

Mo velu, rai nohosu mo r̄oho r̄o Naur̄a-Lap̈a mo rongo leo-ro r̄o. ‘They dance, and the people of Santo hear their voices.’ ‘Ils dansent, et ceux qui habitent Santo entendent leur voix.’

mara Naur̄a-Lap̈a ‘the people of Santo’. ‘les habitants de Santo’.

▷ Corresponds to the "mainland" for Araki islanders.

▷ Synonyme de "continent" pour les insulaires d'Araki.

ne   [ne] dx. first degree demonstrative; Dx:ci.

1 • [adverb] here.

P̈ir̄a nohosu nam varai-ko r̄o inia mo r̄oho r̄o ne. ‘The woman I talked to you about is here.’ ‘Le femme dont je te parlais est ici.’

Lo ran mo hese, Pasta Sope mo sna ne Raki. ‘One day, Pastor Sope came here in Araki.’

►  Syn: nene, kesi.

2 • [noun modifier] this.

V̈er̄al ne mo je v̈er̄al hanhan. ‘This banana is not edible.’ ‘Cette banane-ci n'est pas une banane comestible.’

nene   [nene] dx. nene-n assertive.

1 • [noun modifier] this; Dx:là.

Sari nene m̈ar̄a m̈aji. ‘This harpoon is for fish.’ ‘Ce harpon-ci, c'est pour les poissons.’

Nanovi nam ngoro lo ep̈a nene. ‘Yesterday I slept on this mat.’ ‘Hier j'ai dormi sur cette natte.’

►  Syn: ne, kesi.

2 • [NP-head] this, this one.

Nene m̈ar̄a vahuren-i-a jolong botel. ‘This is used for taking corks out of bottles.’ ‘Ceci, c'est pour enlever les bouchons de bouteilles.’

Nohosu jo olom̈a, nene jo olom̈a, nene jo olom̈a! ‘(to children) Let that one bow his head, let this one bow his head!’

ni~1   [ni] ini~; hini~. vpr. preposition marking an oblique relation: at, to, towards+; à, pour, préposition introduisant certains compléments indirects.

Mo var̄i-a ra-holo mo plan-i-a kaur̄a hinia. ‘(after storing breadfruit) They take coconut palms and throw them over it.’ ‘(après avoir déposé le fruit-à-pain) on prend des palmes de cocotiers et on les jette dessus.’

Nam varai-ko r̄o ini-a. ‘I have told you about her.’

(hi)n-r̄e rani ‘one day...’

Mo var̄i-a mo r̄ai-a aka ni-a. ‘He took (the taro stem) and carved a canoe out of it.’ ‘Il prit donc (la tige de taro) et s'y tailla une pirogue.’

M̈ar̄a r̄ungana hosu mo lesles te ni-ra. ‘Since that time, they have been hating each other. [lit. looking bad at them]’. ‘Et depuis ce temps-là, ils se considèrent comme des ennemis’.

nia   [nia] ppi. he, she: 3rd singular independent pronoun; il, elle: pronom personnel indépendant, 3ème p. singulier.

R̄aju mo v̈ei-ko, nia Supe. ‘He who created you is God.’ ‘L'être qui t'a créé, c'est Dieu.’

Nia mo le sua mo v̈a lo ima-na. ‘As for him, he went back home.’ ‘Quant à lui, il s'en retourna dans sa maison.’

nija   [niʧa] ppi. we (Inclusive): First inclusive plural independent pronoun; nous (Inclusif): pronom personnel indépendant, 1ère p. pluriel inclusif.

Nija p̈aivuho! ‘Good bye! [we tomorrow]’. ‘Au revoir ! [nous demain]’.

►  See: jam1.

niko   [niko] ppi. nko; inko. you: Second singular independent pronoun; tu, toi: pronom personnel indépendant, 2ème p. singulier.

Nko r̄ap̈alam̈am. ‘You are our friend.’

Inko hosu nanov om litovi-á? ‘So it was you who offended me yesterday?’ ‘C'est donc toi qui m'a outragé hier?’

Niko mo je r̄e monohi-m! ‘You have no brain! (you are silly)’. ‘Tu n'as pas de tête ! tu es bête !’

Vi-p̈aka mo re nko pa moli, niko pa r̄aju lap̈a. ‘The banyan means that you will become a chief, an important person.’ ‘Le banian est signe que tu seras chef, que tu seras un homme important.’

►  See: -ko; om.

◈  Etym. *nigo.

nira1   [niɾa] ppi. nra. they: 3rd plural independent pronoun; ils, elles: pronom personnel indépendant, 3ème p. pluriel.

Nira mo m̈ar̄e jeje. ‘They are dead for good.’ ‘Ils sont morts pour toujours.’

Nra mo heli-a koko lo jar̄auta. ‘They dig a hole on the shore.’

M̈aji mo avuavu nra povi. ‘The birds flew away, all of them.’ ‘Les oiseaux prirent tous leur envol.’

►  See: -ra; ha1.

nira~2   [niɾa] npr. Always followed by a human referent.1 • with, together with <s.o.>; avec (qqn). Préposition d'accompagnement.

R̄aju hosun mo r̄oho kia nira-n venar̄u-na. ‘This man was living there with his wife.’ ‘Cet homme habitait là avec sa fille.’

Nira-n ver̄asi-na, nira mo jolo mo m̈ar̄e. ‘ax:lit. Together with her younger sister, they sank and died.’

►  Syn: isa~, peresi~.

2 • against, at <s.o.>; ...

Raki mo v̈alum nira-ni Tumepu. ‘So Araki struggled with Tumepu.’ ‘L'île d'Araki se battit contre (la montagne) Tumepu.’

Nia mo lolokoru nira-n naivou-na. ‘He is cross with his wife.’ ‘Il est en colère contre sa femme.’

3 • [inside NP] with, and.

P̈ir̄a hetehete mo hese nira-n ver̄oha-na. ‘There was a small girl with/and her older sister.’

Hariv nira-n huir̄a mo meresai. ‘The rat and [lit. with] the octopus are enemies.’ ‘Le rat et la pieuvre sont des ennemis.’

Na pa sorosoro m̈ar̄a-n Siho nira-n Hatou. ‘I'm going to tell the story of the Kingfisher and the Hermit-crab.’ ‘Je vais raconter l'histoire ...’

Nam sovi R̄al nira-n Pen r̄o. ‘I am waiting for Ralph and Ben.’

►  See: r̄olu.

no~1   [no] pos. general Possessive classifier for inalienable possession; Classificateur Possessif général.

no-ku ruru ‘my clothes’.

no-m lahi ‘your wedding’.

no-no ta ‘his father’.

Paua no-n God ‘God's power’.

Mo var̄i-a no-no rip̈a, no-no sip̈a, m̈aja, huren-i-a lo aka-na. ‘He took his axe, his knife and his club and put them into his pirogue.’ ‘Il prit sa hache, son couteau, sa massue, et les mit dans sa pirogue.’

◈  Etym. *na.

novu   [noβu] n. scorpion; scorpion. Scorpiones spp.

◈  Etym. *nopu.

no-2   [no] ne- with ne. pf. prefix found on demonstratives: e.g. no-honi, no-hosu, and probably ne-ne; celui.

No-hosu jo olom̈a, ne-ne jo olom̈a, ne-ne jo olom̈a! ‘Let that one bow his head, let this one bow his head!’

▷ Its effect seems to make it compatible with the NP-head position (similar to Eng. 'one' in 'this one'), although it appears in other positions too.

nr̄e ran   [nre ɾan] adv. 1 • one day, in the future (vs. lo ran mo hese "one day, in the past").

Nr̄e ran jo pa v̈anov̈ano, jo lesi-a se jo pa v̈anov̈ano vila. ‘One day we'll have a race, and we'll see who's the faster!’ ‘Un jour, nous ferons la course, et nous verrons bien qui avance (le plus) vite !’

2 • from time to time, sometimes; quelquefois, parfois.

Mo lesi-a pilo-ni huir̄a nr̄e ran. ‘From time to time he caught sight of the octopus's head.’ ‘De temps en temps, il apercevait le crâne de la pieuvre.’

3 • [+Negation] (not) ever, never; [+Négation] pas un seul jour, jamais.

Mo v̈e lesi-a mo re ha nak-i-a ha je levsei nak-i-a nr̄e ran. ‘They try and kill him, but they never succeed.’ ‘Ils essayent de le tuer, mais ils n'y parviennent jamais.’

►  Ant: ran tare always toujours.

nuenue   [nuenue] n. rainbow; arc-en-ciel.

nunu   [nunu] ni. 1 • silhouette, shadow (of s.o); reflection (in water); silhouette, ombre (de qqn); reflet (dans l'eau).

Nam lesi-a nunu-m. ‘I can see your shadow.’ ‘Je vois ton ombre.’

2 • image, esp. photo; effigie, partic. photographie.

Kam soro meje lap̈a m̈ar̄a nunu om var̄i-a. ‘We thank you very much for taking this photo.’ ‘Nous te disons un grand merci pour cette photo que tu as prise.’

◈  Etym. *nunu-a shadow, image, soul; *nunu.

nuru   [nuɾu] vi. nur. dive, jump in the water; plonger, sauter dans l'eau.

Mo sivo mo nur lo r̄asi, mo sivo mo var̄i-a pallaje. ‘He ran down the slope and dived into the sea, looking for coral.’ ‘Il dévala la pente et plongea dans la mer, où il alla chercher du corail.’

 

©   Alexandre François 2008