PLATE LV
1. Wongapitcha man shaping a spear-thrower with an adze.
2. Aluridja man scraping a boomerang with a sharp stone flake.
Alterations in the ending of a verb indicate different moods and tenses. The verb “to come” in the Arunndta is “pitchima”; its inflections and their meanings will become apparent from the following short sentences:
- “Pitchai arrekutcha!” Come here, old woman!
- “Pitchikarrerai arrekutch’njara!” Come here, old women!
- “Arrekutcha pitchama.” The old woman is coming.
- “Arrekutcha pitchika.” The old woman came (or has come).
- “Arrekutcha pitchichinna.” The old woman will come.
If we replace the verb “pitchima” by “lama” (“to go”), the inflections, taken in the same order as above, become: “lai,” “larrirai,” “lakama,” “laka,” “litchinna.”
An adverb which finds considerable application in the Arunndta is “kalla,” indicating the completion of any deed or action. Most frequently the nearest translation would be supplied by the English word, “already.” If, therefore, we again consider one of the above sentences and interpose the word “kalla,” the meaning is strengthened considerably: “Arrekutcha kalla pitchama” then means “The old woman is already coming.” But “kalla” might further convey the sense of repletion. “Einga knullia kalla kwatche n’ dai” would mean, literally translated, “I dog enough water gave.” And finally “kalla” might express the completion of an action. A native, after losing the track of an animal, or having eaten as much as he wants, might be heard to say “kalla,” meaning “finished.” Finally “kalla” might even stand for “dead.” We have already noted a similar word in the vocabulary of the Sunday Islanders, viz. “Kaleya,” meaning “finish” or “good-bye.”
The personal pronouns are either used as separate words in a sentence, or they appear as prefixes to the principal verbs.
In the Arunndta, the following are used: