Book Description

Excerpt from A Grammar of the Motu Language of Papua: By R. Lister-Turner and J. B. Clark, Edited by Percy Chatterton The Motu language is spoken by the Motu tribe, living along the coast from Manuinanu to Gabagaba (Kapakapa) in the Central Division of Papua. It is also widely used, in a "pidgin" form known as "Police Motu," as a lingua franca among natives of other tribes. There are considerable local differences in vocabulary and pronunciation, but the speech of the people of Poreporena, in Port Moresby Harbour, may be taken as the normal. Motu was reduced to written form, and the foundations of its study laid, by Dr. W. G. Lawes, during the last quarter of the nineteenth century; and the "Third and Enlarged Edition" of his "Grammar and Vocabulary" was published in the last decade of that century. During the first quarter of the present century our knowledge of Motu was greatly increased as a result of the labours of Revs. R. Lister-Turner and J. B. Clark, and their "Revised Motu Grammar and Vocabulary," while based on Dr. Lawes' Grammar, is very much more than a new edition of that book. The "Revised Motu Grammar and Vocabulary" has now been out of print for some years, and, in reprinting it, it has been decided to issue it in two parts, of which this "Grammar" is the first. The task of the present editor has been to rearrange Messrs. Turner and Clark's material in order to make the book more helpful to the beginner, without, it is hoped, detracting from its value to the advanced student and the philologist. A few changes have been made in the grammatical nomenclature; and a preliminary chapter on grammatical terms has been written to help those whose knowledge of English Grammar is rusty. Beginners are advised thoroughly to assimilate those parts of the Grammar printed in large type before proceeding to the study of the matter in small type. Two Dictionaries will be available for use in conjunction with this Grammar. The larger will be a reprint, with a few additions, of the very comprehensive vocabulary which formed the second part of Messrs. Turner and Clark's book. The second and smaller, entitled "A Basic Motu Dictionary," comprises a specially selected vocabulary of approximately 1,000 common words, for the use of beginners. In conclusion, I should like to express my appreciation of the enterprise of the Education Department of the Papua-New Guinea Administration, which has made possible the publication of these books. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.