Palauan Language Online: Palauan-English Dictionary

mak

, n., [From German]

fifty cents.
mak a tedobech er a chimo el kluk $1.00; mak a okeim el sengs.

me a

, conj.

and.

ma

cont.

me a

mak

cont.

me ak

maki

cont.

me aki

me

conj.

and.
me a omech a tekoi; kau me ngak me ngii, Calista me tir a mong.

meng

cont.

me ng

Examples:

A Droteo a ulemeklatk er a bechil me ng meruul a kall.

> Droteo reminded his wife to prepare the food.

Ng ngera a uchul me ng di mle kau el tang el me er tiang?

> Why did you come here all by yourself?

A delak me a reta er ngak a tirke el chad el orrenges a tekingel a Dios e oltirakl.

> My mother and brothers are those who hear the word of God and obey it.

Ngara me ke di dechor e omengur?

> Why are you standing up while eating?

Ng diak a medulel a ochim me ke di dechor.

> Why don't you sit down (lit., are you standing up because you don't have a bend in your legs)?

Proverbs:

Ng ko er a Beriber me a Chemaredong.

> It's like the case of Beriber and Chemaredong (who for a long time lived in adjacent caves unaware of each other's existence but who finally discovered each other and began to share their surpluces).

People wasting things and not sharing or cooperating as they should. Cooperative reciprocity among equals should be patterned on that exemplified by these two men. Beriber, who harvested coconut syrup, and Chemaredong, who was an expert fish trapper, lived in two small caves near the village of Oikuul in Airai (central Palau). These caves are side by side, separated by a natural wall about one foot thick. However, for a long time the neighbors did not know that the other existed. Finally, they discovered one another, and from that time on they engaged in mutually profiitable exchange of their surpluses in fish and syrup. An elder source said that this is more than a proverb (blukul a tekoi) and referred to it as ollach idnger, the "law of neighborliness."

A uel el kuk meremang el me omeklatk me ng mo uchul a klengitereng

> When the purple swamp hen appears, it brings remembrance

There is a song (Oumachas) from which this saying derives: Once there was a young couple who made love in a secluded spot in the taro garden. While they were lying together a purple swamp hen darted out of the brush startling the couple. Eventually love cooled, but thereafter whenever the girl saw a purple swamp hen while she worked in the gardens, she recalled her lover. Hence any occurrence that brings back fond memories.

Ng ko er a remechas el kerekikl er a klukl me a rames.

> Like an old woman who is cautious about coughing and breaking wind.

Among elderly women, it seems, coughing sometimes produces the unwanted effect of breaking wind. The idiom may be applied to any action that might produce an undesirable side effect, such as a hasty decision at a political meeting. As a caution, it suggests the need for leaders to consider all the consequences.

Mengar me a mecherocher.

> Bitter and salty.

The strategy of "doing things the hard way." When alternatives are available, the appropriate choice is the more difficult one. In voice, expression, and action there is a positive accent on personal ability.

Ng ko er a chad er a Ngcheangel, el di me chemed er a Ngkesol.

> Like the man of Kayangel, who procured his gifts from Keso

The saying refers to a man from the atoll of Kayangel, some twenty miles north of the main islands of Palau, who, on his way south to visit friends, stopped at an intermediate reef, Kesol, to fish for a present for his host. Refers to a person who, en route to a visit, tries to borrow a present from another guest; any person who suddenly wants to borrow money.

More Examples:

Mekong me a uriul.

> Well see you later.

Ak mechiuaiu er a iasumba e omchederrenges er a ngerel a daob el me obuu er a kederang.

> I was sleeping on the bench and listening to the waves breaking on the shore.

Ak milngerdoched a ngikel me a malk el odoim er a kebesengei.

> I fried some fish and chicken for dinner tonight.

A dentist a mildelii a ungelek me ak kmal mlo mbesaol.

> The dentist pulled my tooth so now I am drooling a lot.

A John a mle kachebangel ngii me a bechim er tia el mur.

> John was facing towards his wife during the ceremony.

omak

, v.t.

anchor, tie up; make (relationship between people) closer, (plant) send out (roots) into soil.
omak a loia okul; orebetii a ouak, mekur a bilis; omak a ert.

Palauan Language Online: Palauan-English Dictionary

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