Appendix:Fijian Swadesh list

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This is a Swadesh list of words in Fijian, compared with definitions in English.

Presentation

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For further information, including the full final version of the list, read the Wikipedia article: Swadesh list.

American linguist Morris Swadesh believed that languages changed at measurable rates and that these could be determined even for languages without written precursors. Using vocabulary lists, he sought to understand not only change over time but also the relationships of extant languages. To be able to compare languages from different cultures, he based his lists on meanings he presumed would be available in as many cultures as possible. He then used the fraction of agreeing cognates between any two related languages to compute their divergence time by some (still debated) algorithms. Starting in 1950 with 165 meanings, his list grew to 215 in 1952, which was so expansive that many languages lacked native vocabulary for some terms. Subsequently, it was reduced to 207, and reduced much further to 100 meanings in 1955. A reformulated list was published posthumously in 1971.

List

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No. English Fijian
na vosa vaka Viti
1 I au (subject), o yau
2 you (singular) o (subject), o iko
3 he, she, it e (subject), o koya
4 we keirau (dual, exclusive)
keitou (paucal, exclusive)
keimami (plural, exclusive)
(e)daru, o kēdaru (dual, inclusive)
(da)tou, o kedatou (paucal, inclusive)
(e)da, o keda (plural, inclusive)
5 you (plural) (o)drau, o kemudrau (dual)
(o)dou, o kemudou (paucal)
(o), o kemunī (plural)
6 they (e)rau, o rau (dual)
(e)ratou, o iratou (paucal)
(e)ra, o ira (plural)
7 this
8 that qori (near you)
(over there)
9 here
10 there keri, qori (near you)
keā, (far from you)
11 who cei
12 what cava
13 where vei
14 when ni
15 how vakacava
16 not sega ni
17 all kece, taucoko
18 many (e) levu na
19 some (e) sō na
20 few (e) lailai na
21 other (e) dua tale (another)
o koya dua tale (other specific)
22 one dua
23 two rua
24 three tolu
25 four
26 five lima
27 big levu
28 long balavu
29 wide rāraba
rabalevu
30 thick vāvaku
31 heavy bībī
32 small lailai
33 short lekaleka
leka
34 narrow rabalailai
qīqō
35 thin lila (person)
māmare (thing)
36 woman yalewa
marama
37 man (adult male) tagane
tūraga
38 man (human being) tamata
39 child gone
40 wife wati-
41 husband wati-
42 mother tina-,
43 father tama-,
44 animal manumanu
45 fish ika
46 bird manumanu
manumanuvuka
47 dog kolī
48 louse kutu
49 snake gata
50 worm baca ni qele
51 tree kau
vunikau
52 forest veikau
53 stick kau
54 fruit vua-
vuata (fruit in general)
55 seed sore-
56 leaf drau-
57 root waka-
58 bark (of a tree) kuli-
59 flower sē-
seinikau
60 grass
61 rope wa
62 skin kuli-
63 meat lewe ni manumanu
64 blood drā
65 bone sui
66 fat (noun) uro
67 egg yaloka
68 horn leu
69 tail bui-
70 feather vuti-
71 hair drauniulu
72 head ulu-
73 ear daliga-
74 eye mata-
75 nose ucu-
76 mouth gusu-
77 tooth bati-
78 tongue (organ) yame-
79 fingernail taukuku
80 foot yava-
81 leg yava-
82 knee duru-
83 hand liga-
84 wing taba-
85 belly kete-
86 guts kete-
87 neck domo-
88 back daku-
89 breast sucu-
90 heart uto-
91 liver yate-
92 to drink gunu-va
93 to eat kana
kania
94 to bite kata
katia
95 to suck domi-ca
96 to spit kasivi-ta
97 to vomit lua-raka
98 to blow uvu-ca
99 to breathe cegu-va
100 to laugh dredre-vaka
101 to see rai-ca
102 to hear rogo-ca
103 to know kilā
104 to think nanuma (remember)
vākāsama-taka
105 to smell boi-ca
106 to fear rere-vaka
107 to sleep moce
108 to live bula-taka
109 to die mate
110 to kill vakamatea
111 to fight veivala-taka
112 to hunt vakasa
113 to hit moku-ta
114 to cut musu-ka
115 to split kavoro-taka
116 to stab coka-ta
117 to scratch mila/milā
118 to dig keli-a
119 to swim qalo-va
120 to fly vuka
121 to walk taubale
122 to come lako mai
123 to lie (as in a bed) davo
124 to sit dabe
125 to stand , tūcake
126 to turn (intransitive) gole
127 to fall lutu-ma
128 to give soli-a
129 to hold taura
130 to squeeze loba-ka
131 to rub masi/masia
tara-taka
132 to wash sava-ta
133 to wipe qusi
quisa
134 to pull drē
dreta
135 to push bili-ga
136 to throw viri-taka
137 to tie wiri-ca
138 to sew culā
139 to count wiliwili
wilika
140 to say kaya
tukuna
141 to sing laga-ta
sere-taka
142 to play qito-ra
143 to float ciri-taka
144 to flow drodro-laka
145 to freeze ceva-ta
146 to swell vuce-laka
147 sun siga
matanisiga
148 moon vula
149 star kalokalo
150 water wai
151 rain uca
152 river uciwai
153 lake drano
154 sea waitui
155 salt māsima
156 stone vatu
157 sand nuku
158 dust kuvu
159 earth qele
160 cloud ō
161 fog kabu
162 sky lomalāgi
163 wind cagi
164 snow uca cevata
165 ice aisi
waicevata
166 smoke kubou
167 fire kama
168 ash dravusa
169 to burn kama
vākamā
170 road gaunisala
171 mountain ulunivanua
172 red damudamu
173 green drokadroka
174 yellow dromodromo
175 white vulavula
176 black loaloa
177 night bogi
178 day siga
179 year yabaki
180 warm katakata toka
via katakata
181 cold liliwa, batabatā
182 full sīnai
183 new vou
184 old qase (person)
makawa (thing)
185 good vinaka
mātai (good at)
186 bad
187 rotten vuca
188 dirty duka
189 straight dodonu
190 round moqimoqili
191 sharp (as a knife) gata
192 dull (as a knife) dreli
193 smooth dravia
194 wet suasua
195 dry māmaca
196 correct donu
197 near vōleka
198 far yawa
199 right imatau
200 left imawī
201 at e, i, mai
202 in e, i, mai
203 with kei (together with)
i (using)
204 and ia (sentences)
kei (nouns)
qai (verbs)
205 if , kēvakā
206 because baleta, ni
207 name yaca-

Bibliography

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  • Gatty, R. (2009). Fijian-English dictionary: with notes on Fijian culture and natural history. Suva, Fiji: R. Gatty. →ISBN
  • Geraghty, P. (1994). Fijian phrasebook. Hawthorn, Vic., Australia Oakland, CA, USA: Lonely Planet. →ISBN
[edit]
Swadesh lists
Individual languages
Language families, family branches, and geographic groupings
Constructed languages
Reconstructed proto-languages
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