Mota language
Encyclopedia
Mota is an Oceanic language spoken by about 750 people on Mota island
, in the Banks Islands
of Vanuatu
.
throughout areas of Oceania
included in the Melanesian Mission
, an Anglican missionary agency. Mota was used on Norfolk Island
, in religious education; on other islands with different vernacular
languages, it served as the language of liturgical prayers, hymns, and some other religious purposes.
Robert Henry Codrington
compiled the first dictionary of Mota (1896), and worked with George Sarawia and others to produce a large number of early publications in this language.
Mota (island)
Mota is an extinct volcanic island in the Banks group of Torba Province in northern Vanuatu.683 people live on Mota in coastal villages around the island. The names of the villages are Liwotqei, Lotawan, Mariu, Tasmate, Garamal, Tuqetap, and Veverao....
, in the Banks Islands
Banks Islands
The Banks Islands are a group of islands in northern Vanuatu.Together with the Torres Islands to the northwest, they make up the northernmost province of Torba. The group lies about north of Maewo, and includes Gaua and Vanua Lava, two of the 13 largest islands in Vanuatu...
of Vanuatu
Vanuatu
Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
.
History
During the period 1840-1940, Mota was used as a missionary lingua francaLingua franca
A lingua franca is a language systematically used to make communication possible between people not sharing a mother tongue, in particular when it is a third language, distinct from both mother tongues.-Characteristics:"Lingua franca" is a functionally defined term, independent of the linguistic...
throughout areas of Oceania
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
included in the Melanesian Mission
Melanesian Mission
The Melanesian Mission is an Anglican missionary agency supporting the work of local Anglican churches in Melanesia. It was established to purchase the ship Southern Cross. Today it continues to provide financial and staffing support for the Church of the Province of Melanesia, an independent...
, an Anglican missionary agency. Mota was used on Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...
, in religious education; on other islands with different vernacular
Vernacular
A vernacular is the native language or native dialect of a specific population, as opposed to a language of wider communication that is not native to the population, such as a national language or lingua franca.- Etymology :The term is not a recent one...
languages, it served as the language of liturgical prayers, hymns, and some other religious purposes.
Robert Henry Codrington
Robert Henry Codrington
Robert Henry Codrington was an Anglican priest and anthropologist who made the first study of Melanesian society and culture...
compiled the first dictionary of Mota (1896), and worked with George Sarawia and others to produce a large number of early publications in this language.
External links
- Portions of the Book of Common Prayer in Mota
- Texts in Mota from Project CanterburyProject CanterburyProject Canterbury is an online archive of material related to the history of Anglicanism. It was founded by Richard Mammana, Jr. in 1999, and is hosted by the non-profit Society of Archbishop Justus...
- Ethnologue page