Kuanua Language

 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)

 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.

 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.