Kwaraʼae love poem
Tae' irōirō
Nunum sae-anā irō-irō
Nia na' ne' Tarī-hual-hang lea dangol mal auk,
Boerēma nia ail ail go'ka an-an-noa.
Taru is di-ia na "Mantauk teo na aum
' sharp sound letter, - silent sound letter
Thanks to Abanaraham A Kwalagau
Other version
Na Tae'e iorior
Na nunum saen tae'e iorior
Nia'a na siliia into'oa nau,
Ma boerr an mak ailail nia'a noaan.
Nia'a na ru iss nau, nauk kwaima'a aum
→ French poem ←
Kwaraʼae language and people
Translation of my love poem into Kwaraʼae (Fiu, Kwaraqae, Qara'ae, Kwarae, Fui), a language spoken on the island of Malaita in the Solomon Islands.
Kwaraʼae is an Austronesian, Oceanic, Southeast Solomonic, North-Central Mailata language spoken by 35,000 people. It is one of the fifteen languages of Malaita.
Apart from Pijin, it is the largest indigenous vernacular language of the Solomon Islands.
Oral tradition tells us that Kwara'ae arrived from the western side of Malaita, and settled in the highlands, in the center of the island.
They cleared the forest to build their homes, and became the inland people (to'a ni tolo).
Farming, pig farming, and whatever the forest could provide ensured their subsistence.
Some stories say that many of the peoples of Malaita are descendants of these arrivals who dispersed across the island.