[Note: this transcription was produced by an automatic OCR engine]

,kl
6 MALEKULA
7
has “ mothers ", " sisters ", etc., in clans with which he is not
directly associated.
The use of the term hula is an important instance of the
distinction for social purposes between members of a clan who
are nearly related and those who are more distantly so. It is
stated, too, that when a certain relative is said to perform a
certain function, or act, that it is always one who is of close kin,
the “ real â€ù and not the " classiï¬Åcatory â€ù relative, who is indicated.
Thus it is the own mother's own brother who gives a boy his
name, sells him the ï¬Årst grade in the Nimzmgki, etc. It is only
if the mother has no true brother or ï¬Årst cousin whom she would
call “ brother ", that a. classiï¬Åcatory maternal uncle would
perform these duties.‘
It is noticeable that no terms have been recorded for
"husband" and “wifeâ€ù. One word used for “wifeâ€ù is
tim'1/awn, but some men are ashamed of using this, since 1/mm
means " vulva â€ù. Another expression is win mama, or mamatiei,
a compound from mama, meaning woman and secondarily mother-
in-law, and the preposition nin (= " of it â€ù) or postposition tiei,
signifying “ of him" or “ of her â€ù; a similar compound m'n
aiwut, or aiwut tiei, derived from aizaut “ father-in-law â€ù, is used
for husband.
Analysing the kinship terms, we ï¬Ånd that there are certain
anomalous groupings of kindred which demand an explanation.
- (I) The classing together of the mother’s brother’s wife
and the father's sister, under the term azaei. This suggests at
ï¬Årst sight that brother~sister exchange marriage is the rule, but
to-day, although such marriages do occur, they are certainly
not enjoined, and, on closer examination, it seems doubtful
whether the use of awei for both these relatives indicates that
it was prescribed in the past. In the ï¬Årst place the husbands
of these two women are not classed together, for the mother's
brother is apap, and the father's sister’s husband is aavu.
Secondly, it is noticeable that the second and third singular
possessive forms for these two women are hinam wewei, hinm
wewei, that is “ mother were/ei â€ù. This suggests that zaei has an
adjectival quality qualifying “ mother â€ù, and it is possible that
1 Deacon adds: “VVhat the importance of classiï¬Åcatory terms as applied
to purely classiï¬Åcatoxy relatives is, 1 have still to ï¬Ånd nut."
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