Weght hiyu "Kanaka" wawa

[Ros' Haruo]

I have been extremely busy elsewhere and haven't had a chance to follow the
list much recently, but this about Polynesian matters reminds me that one
pair of Hawai'ian words that I once thought seemed to have a CJ reflex is
"mauka/makai" (respectively, roughly, "away from the water/towards the
water" ("water" here meaning, as it almost always does in Hawai'i ;-) , the
Big water). But now I can't recall what the CJ words that I thought might be
related were. In Hawai'i, for many folks, "mauka/makai" is a much more
significant part of the directional vocabulary (even in English) than are
the "cardinal points of the compass".

lilEnd

        ROS' Haruo / 204 N 39th / Seattle WA 98103 / Usono
    lilandbr at scn.org / lilandbr at hotmail.com / tel 206-633-2434
TTT-Himnaro Cigneta : http://www.geocities.com/cigneto/pretaj.html
Nove en La Lilandejo : http://www.geocities.com/lilandr/novaj.html
      ("la Esperantisto antauxe nomata Liland Brajant Ros'")





>From: "David D. Robertson" <ddr11 at COLUMBIA.EDU>
>Reply-To: "David D. Robertson" <ddr11 at COLUMBIA.EDU>
>To: CHINOOK at LISTSERV.LINGUISTLIST.ORG
>Subject: Weght hiyu "Kanaka" wawa
>Date: Mon, 3 Feb 2003 01:53:35 -0500
>
>I also received the following replies about "Kanaka", which weren't sent to
>the list at large but are interesting.  Hope it's OK to take the liberty of
>sharing these notes from anonymous contributors.  --  Dave
>
>
>Kanaka is a bonafide Hawai'ian word and means "person."  I know that a
>similar word exists in all the other Polynesian languages.  I also think
>that many of the Micronesian languages have similar sounding words for
>"person."  The Vanuatuians refered to in the passage that you quote
>speak a Polynesian language.
>-----------------------
>
>Hawaiian simplifies the T's of other polynesian languages to K's and the
>NG's to N's.
>
>   "Person" is Kanaka (Hawaii) and Tangata (Rarotonga)
>   Kanaka is definitely Polynesian in origin and does not come from "Cane
>hacker."
>
>   Incidently the the word Owyee, Hawaii, Avaiki (Rarotongan) is the
>mythical homeland of all
>   Polynesians before they became sea faring folk.  I've read some theories
>that it is in Malasia or
>   Taiwan but it is found in most polynesian oral traditions.
>
>The word also has a history in melanesia...
>
>   In the late 1960's a radical student movement took up the name Kanak
>(human being) as a challenge
>   to the derogatory Canaque and Kanaka used by European settlers. The
>indigenous Melanesian
>   population and other supporters of independence now use the name Kanaky
>for the islands. For the
>   French and settler population, Nouvelle Caledonie (New Caledonia) is an
>overseas territory of
>   France; for those who call this Kanaky, it is a colonised nation seeking
>to re-establish itself
>   as part of the South Pacific.
>   ( http://www.caa.org.au/horizons/h17/kanaky.html )
>
>I just thought the spelling Canaque was an interesting French variation
>although possibly a
>derogatory spelling.
>
>Some other interesting Polynesian words...
>
>   "South" is Kona (Hawaii) and Tonga (Rarotonga)
>   The famous Kona Coffee is from the South Coast of the Big Island of
>Hawaii.
>   Rarotonga is a compound meaning "down south."
>
>   "Mukmuk" is Kai (Hawaii) and Kai (Rarotonga)
>   Rarotongan extresses home as Kainga which is the passive or "Kah iskum
>muckamuck"
>
>   "Man" is Kane (Hawaii) and Tane (Rarotonga)
>
>   "Saltchuck" is Kai (Hawaii) and Tai (Rarotonga)
>   "Chuck" is Wai (Hawaii) and Vai (Rarotonga)
>
>   "Sawas", "indigenous" is Maoli (Hawaii) and "Maori" or "Moori"
>(Rarotonga)
>   Vai maori is fresh water from the land as opposed to tap water.
>---------
>
>My teacher in the 1960s, Lummi elder Joe Hillaire, was
>of Hawaiian ancestry also.  He would point out the
>wave in his hair.  His "Kanaka" ancestor was recruited
>by the British and he wound up at Fort Victoria
>(Victoria, BC).
>
>It was always my understanding that "Kanaka" was a
>Polynesian word for any Polynesian person, including
>Hawaiians.  As I understood it, the British recruited
>Polynesians to hunt sea mammals and many wound up
>working for Hudson's Bay Company, along the Columbia
>River, in Puget Sound, and along the Straits along
>Vancouver Island, BC.


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