This post is based on Practical Marshallese by Peter Rudiak-Gould, a freely distributed, full-length textbook for learning the native language of the Marshall Islands. It has been used since 2004 as the official language manual for all volunteers in the WorldTeach Marshall Islands program, and it has formed the basis of language classes for Americans at Kwajalein Atoll. The 102 short lessons describe the grammar of the language in practical and familiar terms, and a glossary presents 1500 useful words.
There is a very useful word in Marshallese, ‘ri,’ which means ‘person of,’ ‘person who,’ or ‘person who is.’ (In some words it becomes ‘rū.’) It never appears by itself, but rather is put right before an adjective, noun, or verb. Before an adjective, it means ‘person who is’ or ‘people who are’:
| ri + nañinmej = | rinañinmej = | person who is-sick | = sick person/people |
| ri + kilmeej = | rikilmeej = | person who is-black | = black person/people |
– Sometimes the word that results is one we would translate differently in English:
| ri + utiej = | riutiej = | person who is-high | = high person => honored person, VIP |
| ri + nana = | rinana = | person who is-bad | = bad person => criminal, outcast, delinquent |
– Before nouns, ‘ri’ means ‘person of’ or ‘people of.’ This can be used to make words for nationalities as well as other words:
| ri + ṃajeḷ = | riṃajeḷ = | person of-Marshall | = Marshallese person/people |
| ri + Amedka= | riAmedka = | person of-America | = American person/people |
| ri + Jaina = | riJaina = | person of-China | = Chinese person/people |
| ri + Jaluit = | riJaluit = | person of-Jaluit | = Person/people of Jaluit |
| ri + kalibuuj = | rikalibuuj = | person of-jail | = Person/people of jail => inmate |
| ri + jikuuḷ = | rijikuuḷ = | person of-school | = Person/people of school => student |
– Before verbs, ‘ri’ means ‘person who,’ ‘people who’:
| ri + kọọt = | rikọọt = | person who-steal | = person who steals => thief |
| ri + jerbal = | rijerbal = | person who-work | = person who works => worker, employee, commoner |
| ri + tariṇae = | rūttariṇae= | person who-fight in war | = person who fights in a war => soldier |
| ri + eọñōd = | rieọñōd = | person who-fish | = person who fishes => fisherman |
| ri + lo + tok = | rilotok = | person who-visit-to here | = person who visits here => visitor (to here) |
| ri + lo + ḷọk = | riloḷọk = | person who-visit-to there | = person who visits there => visitor (to there) |
(Notice that ‘ri’ is sometimes equivalent to the -er ending in English.)
Vocabulary
| ekkañ(E: sometimes kōkañ) | sharp |
| ekkōb(E: sometimes kōkōb) | dull |
| jāntōj (from English) | sentence |
| kọuwōtata | dangerous |
| ḷoñ | ant |
| ḷọñ | fly (the insect) |
| mejānwōd (E: jenọ) | medium-sized clam with very brightly-colored inside, lives on coral |
| piit (from English ‘beat’) | dance (Western style), common type of dancing to Western music for holiday celebrations |
| tipi (from English) | TV, television, TB, tuberculosis |
| pārōn (from English) | parent (used only in the context of PTA meetings, school, etc.) |
Pronunciation Practice
‘t’ again
There is a habit that English speakers have that you should get rid of when you speak Marshallese. Say English ‘writer’ and ‘rider.’ If you say these words naturally, without thinking too hard about it, both the ‘t’ of ‘writer’ and ‘d’ of ‘rider’ become the same sound. This happens whenever English ‘t’ and ‘d’ are right between two vowels. This sound is produced by tapping the tongue very quickly against the top of the mouth, and is equivalent to a Spanish unrolled ‘r’ and close to Marshallese ‘r.’ You should resist the temptation to do the same in Marshallese. Remember that a Marshallese ‘t’ between vowels is pronounced like an English ‘d,’ not the light tapping sound in ‘writer’ or ‘rider,’ which sounds like a Marshallese ‘r.’ Consciously practice keeping this sound like an English ‘d’ instead of turning it into the light tapping sound.
Here are some words to practice with:
| tutu | ‘wet’ | katakin | ‘teach’ |
| tata | ‘-est’ | jota | ‘evening’ |
| katak | ‘learn’ | letok | ‘give to me’ |
Practical Marshallese
- Glossary of Useful Words from Practical Marshallese
- Lesson 1: The letters and sounds of Marshallese
- Lesson 2: Beginning Marshallese Phrases
- Lesson 3: Numbers, time, age, and price
- Lesson 4: Marshallese Words from English
- Lesson 5: Marshallese Subject Pronouns
- Lesson 6: Verbs that work like adjectives
- Lesson 7: The present tense
- Lesson 8: The Past Tense
- Lesson 9: The future tense
- Lesson 10: Near future tense
- Lesson 11: Location
- Lesson 12: Object pronouns
- Lesson 13: The emphatic pronouns
- Lesson 14: Negatives
- Lesson 15: Wrapping up pronouns and tenses
- Lesson 16: Yes/No questions
- Lesson 17: Do you know?, Yes I know, No I don’t know
- Lesson 18: Can you?, Yes I can, No I can’t
- Lesson 19: Wh-questions
- Lesson 20: More about wh-questions
- Lesson 21: Definite and Indefinite Articles, and Plurals
- Lesson 22: Possessives
- Lesson 23: House of, time of, place of
- Lesson 24: With
- Lesson 25: I like, I don’t like
- Lesson 26: There is, there are, there are many
- Lesson 27: I have, you have, I don’t have, you don’t have
- Lesson 28: I have a pencil with me
- Lesson 29: I have one, I have two, I have many
- Lesson 30: Do you have?
- Lesson 31: Not yet and never
- Lesson 32: Perfect Past
- Lesson 33: Negative Perfect Past
- Lesson 34: Perfect Past Questions
- Lesson 35: Adverbs
- Lesson 36: Comparatives in Marshallese
- Lesson 37: After, before
- Lesson 38: More about questions
- Lesson 39: Which fish, what kind of fish, you and who else?
- Lesson 40: Conditionals in Marshallese
- Lesson 41: Directionals
- Lesson 42: Comparatives and superlatives
- Lesson 43: Again, back, also, else
- Lesson 44: Another coconut, the other coconut, the other coconuts
- Lesson 45: I want you to go, let me go (The subjunctive)
- Lesson 46: Go, please go, let’s go (Commands, requests, and suggestions)
- Lesson 47: I know that you are playing, it is good that you are playing
- Lesson 48: I am partying, you are coffeeing
- Lesson 49: Hunting for crabs, looking for shells (The ka- prefix)
- Lesson 50: Make you happy, make you sad (The ka- prefix again)
- Lesson 51: Person of, person who (The ri- prefix)
- Practical Marshallese