ulepe

Wauja

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /uˈlɛ.pɛ/

Noun

ulepe

1. bread in the form of large, unleavened toasted manioc griddle cakes, traditionally considered an essential element of any meal.

   ...Walama okapojala. Kapaipiyapai ipitsi amunaunki. Meyeityapai tumapai ulepe, meyeityapai tumapai usityui pessoalnaun ou. Oukaka Walama akapojatene inyaun wi: "Natu amunaunpei, maka aitsa natu numeiyeitya. Maka Arawi keyeityapai tumapai ulepe, usityui." En, umapai okapojala katahan...[sings]

   This is the kapojai song that Walama sang [before he became chief]. [The old chief at that time] had grown weary of his chiefly responsibilities. He no longer bothered to make bread [to distribute as a ceremonial sponsor]; nor did he bother to make manioc porridge to give his people to drink. So Walama [who was a young rising chief at that time] sang [about the other chief] in his kapojai song: "Let me be chief; I won't be lazy. My wife Arawi is industrious; she'll make plenty of manioc bread and porridge." Eh, here’s how his song goes ... [sings]

   Muntoyakiya, tonejunaun tumapai ulepe. Onusityupei. Au ha wi.

   That night, the women made manioc bread. [That they would make into] porridge for [their lover] in the morning. That was done.

   Tuma ulepiu. Tuma usityui yiu.

   They finished making the bread. They finished making the porridge.

Usage notes

• Note that Aruta tosses in a noun borrowed from Portuguese (pessoal (“people, followers”)), but he adds the Wauja plural suffix –naun, so that it becomes pessoalnaun ("all the people"). The Wauja have several words Aruta could have used instead (opukenejo, inyaunaun), but he chose to use a dash of Portuguese in this statement.

See also

• halutaapa (“fancy manioc griddle cakes dusted with extra flour”)
• usityui (“manioc porridge”)
• halutaapa (“thin crispy manioc griddle cakes”)

References

• "...Walama okapojala" uttered by Aruta, storyteller and elder, recounting Wauja history in the presence of his son and nephew. Recorded in Piyulaga village by E. Ireland, 4/25/96, transcript page 26.
• "Muntoyakiya, tonejunaun" (transcript, p. 54) and "Tuma ulepiu" (p. 57) uttered by Aruta, storyteller and elder, as he recounted the traditional tale, "The Caiman Spirit" (Yakaojokuma). Recorded in Piyulaga village in the presence of assembled elders and others, November 1989.