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Bair

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 Bair has three meanings.  The first is a stick or piece of iron rod used to husk dry coconut (lama) or fresh coconut (kulau). The second meaning is to plough soil in preparation for planting food crop. The third meaning is given in the following story titled 'Uva ra Bair'. 'Uva ra Bair'. One Saturday, during my high school days, we were cutting grass at Topu, Vunagamata village, located along the North Coast Road of East New Britain. We did a very good job, using bush knives. We cleared the bush because there were young cocoa trees growing and about to begin bearing.  We took a break before returning home. As we were resting, Uncle ToBata arrived and inspected our work. In a satisfied and happy mood he thanked us for a good job. He shared betelnut (buai) and mustard (daka) with us and we chewed. ToBata began talking about cocoa harvesting and the need for a good vehicle to transport harvested cocoa to fermentery and sale.  One of us responded in support and said som...
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Kakulai.

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 Kakulai was used in traditional feasts or ceremonies.  Today i have yet to see the practice. It appears it has been permanently replaced by daka, the common mustard.  Above is a photo of kakulai vine on a tree that i planted. Participants in a feast were welcomed with buai and kakulai before the actual feast began.  Today I see the distribution of buai and daka. Part of a cultural practice is changing. Perhaps there is something undesirable about kakulai that I have yet to identify.  (Ismael K Isikel 13th August 2026)
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Nest of the track

 Po nanga is a Kuanua Metaphor, a figure of speech that means a statement, Information, or message is baseless. Po means nest and nanga on the footpath. Po nanga translated to English is Nest of the track, a bird's nest on a footpath. Instead of refuting a statement as, 'that is a lie', one says, Nam a po nanga.  It is a polite and diplomatic way of responding to a statement that is baseless. Waongo is the everyday word for lie or untruthful. In TokPisin waongo is giaman.  I am just beginning to identify Kuanua metaphors. The first one is U Mavoko and Po nanga is the second. Will add more later as I identify them. Boina tuna. Ismael K Isikel 13th August 2026.
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U MAVOKO

 Ancient to Present: Synopsis on U Mavoko. Wiping off dew is the literal meaning of U Mavoko. U means wipe and mavoko means dew. It is a Kuanua metaphor. The word mavoko (dew) stands for tears. Culturally,  it is the practice of ending the mourning period over a dead relative. The place of mourning is usually decorated with bird feathers and leaves, and may include one or two pal na pidik. The pal na pidik is a sacred house connecting the living and past ancestors. This weekend a U Mavoko was conducted at Pilapila village, ending the mourning period for a relative,  ToPilak, who passed on some months ago.   Ismael K Isikel, 9th August 2026.
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Changing Church Denomination at Rakotop village

  Chang ing Church Denomination: An observation of Rakotop Village.   Ismael K Isikel   Introdu ction This article is based o n my personal observation of people changing from one church denomination to another at Rakotop village.  It is focused especially on people moving from one church denomination to another within the Christian faith.  This observation is based on where I live where over 40 years ago it was predominantly United Church with a minority portion of Catholics.  A brief historical background is provided as a prelude to my observation. This is followed by the various church denominations that are currently in existence at Rakotop village. Next is the main focus of this observation which gives some detail and thoughts on changing or moving from one denomination to another. Rivalry and discrimination between the various denominations exists and forms part of the final part of this observation. Conclusions based on this observation is...
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Cooking Styles

 Ancient to Present Cooking Styles in East New Britain: A Synopsis of Styles & Related Vocabulary in Kuanua. By Ismael K. Isikel  Nian is food. Pait nian is cooking or making food. Tutun is roast over the fire. Tunia is roast it over the fire. Tunutun is the art of roasting over a fire. Kukulubai is cover with leaves and cook over a fire . Kulube is roast it over a fire. Igir (aigir) is cooking using heated stones. Parapara is cooking using an ubu of ground oven. Pare is cook it in an ubu. Pipitai is making ku, which is heated coconut 'milk'. Pipite is squeeze scraped coconut. Kokolomoi is the practice of eating raw food. Kolome is eat it raw. And take care when cooking because humans do not prefer imur, overcooked, food. Polo is soup. Polapolo is watery. Your evaluation of food taste may be kalami such as sweet, juicy, or delicious. Gogol is used to describe half cooked banana or tuber. Maur is satisfied and minaur is satisfaction. Mao is cooked. Also used to describe r...
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Chicken 'operation'

 Traditional Life Observation. Cutting a chicken was/is a traditional method of finding out the cause of illness in the body of a sick person. The chicken is caught, plucked, and cut open while it is still alive. It is not killed before cutting. It is cut open and examined for any signs that indicate sickness. For example, a sore inside the body. If a sore is found, it tells that the sick human has a sore in his/her body. Traditional remedy is prescribed or prepared and given to the sick human as treatment. I don't know, but I think traditional magic is involved. This year, 2025, is the second or third time in my entire life I have heard and observed, from a distance, this type of chicken operation. 
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