otowo
Wauja
editPronunciation
editNoun
editotowo
- his/her/its head (of a person or animal)
- Otowo oneputakua.
- On [the] top of its head.
- Au ha wani yiu, mata onutai yiu. Nutai, tirijijiji. Iya okanu wi. Okahiga aantepenejo. Maniu, umapai ipitsi. Hoona! umapai. Akamapai yiu. Oho! Aakataitsueneu. Kata okaho isityiu, otowo isitya.
- [Storyteller:] [When that] was done, he fastened [one end of his] hammock cord [to a rafter in the men's house]. [He dropped the other end of the] rope [into the open grave]. Tirijijiji! [sound of the rope unfurling as it fell] [He] approached her [lowering himself into the grave]. [He] would pull [her] out with [that cord]. "Come," [he] said [to her]. "All right!," [she] said [weakly]. [She] was surely dying. [What a] foul smell! [She] had defecated everywhere. [She] was all smeared with feces here [indicates her body], [even her] head was covered in feces.
- his/her hair (on a person's head)
- Iyakone otowotseepu wiu, au ha wi.
- The ends of her hair were taken [trimmed], [and] it was done.
- Uuntsataihapai yiu. Pohokapai otowo. Aitsa katowopai.... Aitsa kehejua otowo. Ukuapai otowo yiu.
- [She] was dripping with sweat. Her hair was falling out; she was just about bald.... Her hair was not strong. Her hair was rotting.
Derived terms
edit- otowokaho (“head hair”)
See also
edit- omapo (“body hair, fur, feathers, fuzz”)
References
edit- "Au ha wani yiu" (transcript pp. 14), "Uuntsataihapai yiu" (p. 15), and "Iyakone otowotseepu" (p. 20) uttered by Itsautaku, storyteller and elder, recounting the traditional Wauja tale of the "Man Who Drowned in Honey" Paisityawalu), in the presence of his adolescent son Mayuri, adult daughter Mukura, and others. Recorded in Piyulaga village by E. Ireland, December 1989.
- "Otowo oneputakua" (transcript p. 25) uttered by Aruta, storyteller and elder, and members of his audience, as he recounted the traditional tale, "The Caiman Spirit" (Yakaojokuma). Recorded in Piyulaga village in the presence of assembled elders and others, November 1989.