I-Kiribati Song
Listen to this.
Aio rongorongo -n
DET story -GEN
This
is the story of
Aba
-u ae e bati
n tangira
-ki
Country -1.S.POSS REL it much
LINK love -PASS
My
country which is much loved
Ti maiu i- buako -n te roo
We
live
PREP- midst -PREP DET darkness
We
lived long ago in the darkness
Imwain roko -n te ota
before arrival
-GEN DET light
Before
the arrival of the light
Ae ota -n ana kaibangaki
REL
light -GEN His
cross
Which
is the light of His cross
Kaibangaki Kristo
cross Christ
Christ’s
cross
Ai kakawa -ra o
INTJ
pity -INTJ NTJ
Oh!
What a pity!
Maiu -ia ara bakatibu
life -3.P.POSS 1.P.POSS ancestor
The
lives of our ancestors
A maiu ma
te tiritiri
They live
CONJ DET
murder
They
lived with murder
I- buakon kaubwai -ia
PREP- among treasure -3.P.POSS
Among
their treasure
Bon akea te tangira
EMPH none DET love
Certainly
no love
I- marena -ia baronga
PREP- between -3.P.POSS tribe
Between
their tribes
A buaka n eka nako
3.P
wage.war PREP go.against against
They
waged war by going against
Rao -ia
ake tabeman
Friend -3.P.POSS which separate
Their
friends from separate tribes
A tuai n ataa tua
-n te
3P
not.yet LINK know
commandment -GEN DET
They
did not yet know the commandments of
Tua
-n
te tangira
commandment
-GEN DET love
The
commandments of love
Ai kakawa -ra o
INTJ
pity -INTJ NTJ
Oh!
What a pity!
Maiu -ia ara bakatibu
life -3.P.POSS 1.P.POSS ancestor
The
lives of our ancestors
A maiu ma
te tiritiri
They live
CONJ DET
murder
They
lived with murder
I- buakon kaubwai -ia
PREP- among treasure -3.P.POSS
Among
their treasure