Dictionary yeeli ila ye seogiuliu ishile mariken ka yesa translate ngali ishile faliuwashe be yebe tepangi sari ka re tugufaiye tage me liugiunengi ka re tagiula kapetali faliuwashe be yebe masherage ngaliire be rebe tirile kabunge kapetali faliuwash. Shoka re gaforiye dictionary yel ila semaliu remariken ila ital Josiah Murphy me riuwemaliu reyaurupige ila iteeri Lenny Saumar me Dominic Jr. Taiwer Taruwemai. Yaiulepale gashigeshige yebe lago ngali University of Hawaii me Bilinski Foundation me Waikiki Beachboys Canoe Club rel yar gatapetape ngali gaforile iye dictionary yel. Gare yore yami gassiye gare gai tipeli be gaibe fang tubami ngali gaforile iye dictionary nge gaibe mwele be gaibe kepate ngaligemame. Yaamame email ika yebe ffate me faale.
This dictionary provides multimedia samples of actual Woleaian language used to describe various watercraft, components, equipment, and related terminology used by Woleaian paddlers in the Outer Islands and in the Hawaiian Islands. Entries are organized alphabetically by first letter of the Woleaian term, with equivalents in Hawaiian and English. Entries contain additional linguistic information in English, and all information is in the process of being translated into Woleaian. Check back periodically as more entries are added!
Dictionary data was elicited by linguist Josiah Murphy (University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa) working with two native Woleaian speakers from Eauripik: Lenny Saumar and Dominic “DJ” Taruwemai Taiwer Jr. The three have been working on linguistic and anthropological documentation of the Woleaian language and material culture since 2022, focusing on topics related to canoeing, marine culture, and oceanography. They also paddle outrigger canoes together with the Waikiki Beachboys Canoe Club in Hawai‘i; the Beachboys supported this project via access to canoes and equipment, some of which can be seen in dictionary photos. Support also comes from the Bilinski Foundation and the UH Foundation. All dictionary content belongs to the Woleaian community, with authorship of photos and videos remaining with their originators.
Woleaian speakers call their language Kapetale Faliuwashe ‘the language of our [is]land’ (ISO 639-3 woe, Glottocode wole1240; Hammarstrom et.al. n.d.). Woleaian is a Nuclear Chuukic language from Western Micronesian, in the Oceanic branch of Malayo-Polynesian languages. This language has 16 consonants, 8 vowels, and 6 diphthongs. Woleaian orthographic symbols roughly approximate their IPA equivalents, with the exception of: <l> /ɾ/, <r> /ɽ/, <y> /j/, <ng> /ŋ/, <g> /x/, <iu> /ʉ/, <eo> /ɵ/, <oa> /ɒ/. One key phonological feature is phrase-final devoicing, meaning the final vowel or obstruent is uttered nearly silently. Nouns and verbs share the same written form, marked in compound phrases or understood by context. The unmarked word order is subject-verb-object, with nominative-accusative syntax.
Woleai and Eauripik Atolls are located in the center of the Outer Islands of Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia. The 2010 census records 1,077 residents, while 1,892 Woleaians lived elsewhere in FSM (FSM Statistics 2010). Lenny reports that the two atolls support approximately 500 year-round residents, with many men working elsewhere much of the year. The Woleaian dialect chain stretches from Ulithi in the west to Satawal in the east (Metzgar 2004; Sohn 1975). Woleaian speakers often come into contact with the regional languages Yapese, Chuukese, and Pohnpeian; they also use loanwords from Spanish, German, Japanese, and English. The Woleaian language is considered threatened (ELP 2024) or definitely endangered (UNESCO 2024) due to the small number of speakers; however, that number has been stable for the previous hundred years. Woleaians are proud of their language, speaking it at home and in public for storytelling, skills demonstration, and religious practice.
The language was first academically described by Ho-min Sohn with Anthony F. Tawerilmang, who published a general dictionary in 1976. The current, Latin-based orthography was devised in the 1950s. There is relatively little reading material, but Woleaian people living in areas with electricity and satellites regularly use phone texting and social media. This dictionary is part of a larger plan to create more materials that showcase the Woleaian language, knowledge, and traditional practices. You can also explore this depository for more information: https://woleaian.kaipumakani.org [uploads in process].
Lenny Saumar, [email protected]
Dominic Taruwemai Taiwer Jr, [email protected]
Josiah Murphy, [email protected]
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Department of Linguistics
Moore Hall 569, 1890 East-West Rd, Honolulu, HI 96822