Kili Kilij bwebwenato

Interior of Lae Island, Lae Atoll

“Mānuial ak kilij eo ilo Kili Island”

Lizard of the Marshall Islands

Ar wōr juōn mānuial (Kilij) Kileplep ar bed im joke ion Kili Island (armij in Bikininromrejmjoke miemkio). Eo im ejab etolok mjān aelōn̄ in Ebon Atollitutin lok Mōneak Island. Ear wōr juōn Iroojlaplap ar bed ilo enin im joke ie iben armij ro an. Ilo tōre kein ar kanuij in lōn̄ ni ilo enin Mōneak, im Irooj in ar ilik “jabwi” kein kōkbāāl ilo kajojo ni koi lo enin. Unin an likit “jabwi” kein en ejelok en ej bwiki ni ko leen ni kein a ken e wōt.
Mānuial ak Kilij kileplep in ilo Kili ar kōnan ebōk ni jen ni kein ilo Mōneak lok n̄an Kili kōn men in ear lōmnak enaaj kejkan an ebōk? “ MōneaK elap an lōn̄ ni ie, ak enaj kōjkan aō ebōk ke emōj an Irooj en ilik jabwi ilo ni kan” ear ba iben make. “ Men eo imaron̄ kōmane de in kooti im biki tok n̄an Kili.”
Kōn menin ear jerak jen Kili n̄an Mōneak bon̄ōn eo ilo an marok jilōn̄lōn̄. Ewōr jikin bo koi lo Mōneak ilo tuiōn̄ turear in enen tulik. Etan jikin kein Mōnkilej iōn̄ im Monkilej jerōk. Ke Mōnuial eo ej tōbar lok Mōneak, ej kebellok al eo an:

Ij itok jen l̗ojet n̄an bārijet in Kilejiōn ak Kilejrōk
Iar lōmnak ewōr en ear kadtok iō ilo marok ak iar jab lel
Iar bōk jibuki im ribuki iep rar bool kōn ni

Elkin ear jeblak n̄an Kili. Jibon̄inin raan eo juōn, armijro rar lo bwe ebool ni rar jako, emōj kooti. Wōn in ear koot? Lale mōk ni kane! Juōn ne ear kooti!
Kiō armij ro mrar jino aer waje e neo ilo bon̄. Irooj eo im armij ro rar kanuij in inebata kōn aer kooti ni ko.

Translated by Langinbo Frank

Read the story in English

Bwebwenato in lowa, Ri-komanman eo

Bwebwenato in ej kon lowa, eo im ekar kommane lal in. lowa ekar wanlaltak jan lan nan lalin bwe en komanman ane, ak ejjelok ejela ia eo ekar kommane mokta. Ekar ba, ” aolep ane ren komman.” Innem ekar kûr nan wojke ko bwe ren eddok im jabdewot men ko jej loe ioon bwidej im lojet üe. Elkin an lowa rool nan lan, ekar jilkintok eman emmaan laltak bwe ren lale lal in nan e. Ekar jilkinlok juon nan reeaar, juon nan rak, juon nan ralik, im juon nan ean.
Irooj Irilik, irooj eo an ralik, lowa ekar lelok bwe en joke ilo ralik ilo ane eo etan Eep. Jerbal eo an ej lale jabdewot men ioon lalin rej tûmoon im orlok ak kalle. Kar maron in lelok juon kajoor eo elap nan an maron in kadedeiklok jerbal eo an. Ej make wot iaan loma rein eman kar maron in üa etan king. Aolep menin eddok,menin mour, im armej, raar maron in orlok im naje jan ralik in Eep, im lelok in irooj irilik. Ro im watok er bwe re-molele bwebwe in aelon kein rej ba bwe Ebon raar bok etan jan Eep, konke keinikkan ko ilo Epoon elap aer kalle kon mona.
loma ro jet im letok in lowa ear jilkintok er nan lale lalin rej: lajibwineameü, eo im mweo imon ekar pad ituion im jerbal eo an ej lale jabdewot men ko rej mij ekoba armej ro rej mij. lakamran, eo im ej jokwe ilo reeaar, jerbal eo an ej lale bwe ilo an bon en ejjelok menin kakkure ej walok, im ej lale bwe tak in al im tulok in al ron jokkier wot juon. lorok, mweo imon ekar pad rak, im jerbal eo an kar maron in lelok bwe en bok eddo in koto ko. Kiio lalin ekar wor aolep men ko aikuiji.

Eo
Kiio ke armej rej jokwe ippan men ko rej mour ioon lalin, lowa ekar bar jilkinlaltak ruo emmaan ro jan lan etaeir rej Lewoj im laneej. loma rein raar boktok eo nan lalin. Eo ekar komman bwe en oktak moran menin komanman menin mour ko ainwot ek, bao, im aolep men ekoba armej. Uno ko unokan ek, kein, bao, kein jan doon, kilij, kijdik, im menin mour ko jet reoktak jan doon itok jan jerbal ko an lomarein. Eo ekar barainwot nan armej. Ilo tore ko etto, armej in àajol ejjelok ballier ak rejjab nuknuk, rekon eoik aolepan anbwinnier. Eo ko rej kwalok kadkad in armej ak emmaan ro elane rej king(irooj) ak rijerbal, bwidak, ritel ilo jowi eo. (Irooj ro rellap er wot rej eoik mejair.)
Ke Lewoj im laneej erro ar itok jan lan nan lalin raar etal nan Aelonlaplap Atoll ilo Buwoj, iturok in jikin diwoj delon eo an wa. Raar wotlok jan lan im jok kon jimwin ne erro. Elane kwonaaj etal nan Buwoj rainin kwonaaj loe ron kein jenkwan nerro ke raar wotlok. Etan bukwon in rej ba ” Jimwinne”. Erro ar jino aerro eoik aolep menin eddok ko bwe jen maron in kile ukooktak ko aeer jan doon.

Waan Ejjerakrok
Âlkin an aolep menin komanman ko eo, lowa ekar bar jilkinlaltak ruo emmaan jan lan, ro im raar jok ilo Nam ilo aelon in Bikini. loma rein ruo raar boktok ippaerro waween jonak nan waan ejjerakrok ko ainwot korkor ko, ko im jonak kein aer kar kepooji ilan kadede. Elane eaar jab jonak kein innem eban kar wor im komman korkor ko. Etan lomarein rej lewa im lomtol. Mokta jan lomarein, ekar ejjelok korkor ioon lalin. Ilo Bikini ijo raar joke wa eo jinointata ie, raar loor wot jonak ko raar bûkitok jan lan. Ilo tore in, waan ejjerakrok kein ekar ejjelok wojlaier, im ejjelok jobwe kein aoüooü. Wa ko kar joki rej ito-itak wot kon ek ainwot ba ek ko rej kojeraki wa ko ioon wot lain eo an dan maan im itulokan, ko im komman bwe korkor eo en emman an dibuk dan. Ak kiio emoj an jako. Rainin aolep wa ko waan rimajol, itulokan im itumaan ikkijen lain eo an dan, ej jidik koob rej üaetan “iik”.
Ilo tore eo im ekar dedelok wa eo, lewa im lomtal erro ar door aolep menin komanman ko im rej mour ioon Bikini üa ioon wa eo– armej ro im kijidik armej ro im armej ro im jokjok in kilij im aolep-raar jino aer etal nan Aelonlaplap nan aeer eo ippan lewoj im lanej. Raar ilok im toparlok Wotto, ek ko raar ainwot bikbik in wa ko waer, eaar wor juon men kijonjon eaar walok im kakkuri wa ko im man iik ko. Ke ej mij iik ko, aolep raar jino aeer aoüooü nan aeer maron tobraklok Buwoj nan aer eo. Om im baru ko raar kij kapin wa eo bwe ren maron in aoüooü im komman ettal ilo wa ko.
Raar tobraklok ilo Aelonlaplap ilo to en ilo Aerok konke wa eo eaar ettein kon dan im raar likiti ioon bok iarin Aerok ilo juon wato etan àonkiden. Aolep ino ko ilo wa eo im nanin tûm, im ke rej toparlok ioon bedbed wa eo ekar jino an bool kon dan.

The Lizard of Kili Island

Interior of Lae Island, Lae Atoll

Lizard of the Marshall Islands

There once lived a great lizard on Kili Island (now home of the people from Bikini). Not very far away, on Moneak island in Ebon atoll, lived a high chief and his people. There were very many coconuts on Moneak, but the high chief had put a “jabwi” (taboo) on all the coconut trees. They were not to be touched by anybody but himself.
The big lizard on Kili Island wanted to get some nuts from Moneak Island to take back to Kili. But how could he get the coconuts? “Moneak has many coconuts, but the high chief has put a jabwi on those nuts,” he said to himself. “The only thing I can do is steal the nuts from Moneak and bring them here.”

So he left Kili and sailed to Moneak in the darkness. There are two places to land on Moneak on the northeastern part of the island on the ocean side. Those are called Monkilejeion and Monkilejirok. When the lizard got to Moneak, he sang:

I come from the sea to the shore of
Kilejeion or Kilekejeirok
I thought in the dark that someone threw a stone,
but hit nothing
I took one hundred and two hundred large baskets
full of coconuts

Then he went back to Kili.
The next morning, the people of Moneak saw that many coconuts were stolen. “Who did it? Look at the trees! Someone has stolen many nuts!”

Then the people began to watch the island at night. The chief and the people were very angry about the stolen nuts. They knew the nuts had been taken, but they could not guess who had taken them. The chief made sure that a careful watch was set. Some people hid under the coconut leaves and some in the bushes. They had stones ready to hit the thief, even spears and other weapons.

The next night, the lizard came again, and so the people knew that it had been the lizard from Kili who had stolen their nuts. They leaped out and caught him, struck him with stones, and spears. Then, they cut him into many small pieces, and each piece turned into a small lizard.
Thus, this is the reason why there are so many small lizards on the coconut trees today.

As told by M. James Milne

Read the story in Marshalese

Folktales, legends

Man this reef

A translated autobiography of a storyteller.
159 pages, Gerald Knight, Micronitor Press, Marshall Islands, 1992.

$20.00

Bwebwenaaton Etto

– A collection of Marshallese Legends and Traditions –
a compilation of stories and legends, which have appeared scattered in a variety of publications and for the first time, have now been published into a book. The major themes of the stories cover the topics of creation, the origin of islands and places, social customs, animal tales, oral history, and stories of the famous Marshallese trickster “Letao”. 188 pages, Jane Dawning, Dirk H.R. Spennemann, and Margaret Bennett. RMI Historic Preservation Office, 1992.

Out-of-print, please inquire

From the mouth of the monster eel

Introduces 6 stories from Micronesia (Marshalls, Guam, Yap), with appropriate reading level for children (7-8th grade). 53 pages with some illustrations in black and white, Bo Flood, Fulcrum Publishing, 1996.

Out-of-print, please inquire

Inon in Majel

-Marshallese Folktales-
is a collective work on old Marshallese folktales and oral histories, which have not been published in a book form. Also, this book was written in both English and Marshallese language in one book for the first time. 134pages, Terry Mote, Donna K. Stone, Kinuko Kowata and Bernice Joash. Alele Museum, 1999.

Out-of-print, please inquire

Note: out-of-print books are available in consultation at the library