PhD graduate, Dr Laura Dimock has spent nine months cataloguing a dying Pacific language spoken by just 700 people.
Nahavaq – pronounced Na-ha-va – is spoken by residents of the isolated Vanuatu island of Malakula, and like most of Vanuatu's more than 100 languages, Nahavaq is mostly oral.
Laura has devised a spelling system to allow it to be written.
The language had not been studied since the 1920s – which Dr Dimock said made it ideal for her PhD research.
Before she began she had to learn Vanuatu's national language, Bislama, so she could converse with Nahavaq-speakers. "Nahavaq was a lot more of a mystery."
When she began her research she found that only two short stories, about 200 words and some poorly translated biblical verses had been translated.
“There was a basic spelling system established by missionaries about 100 years ago but it was inadequate for their sound system. There were quite a few sound distinctions not reflected.
"Generally it's not a very literate society, people don't read for pleasure or have access to newspapers or leave notes on people's doors when they're not in." said Dr Dimock.
Nahavaq is one of very few languages worldwide that uses a bilabial trill – a lip-flapping feature of some Pacific Island and African languages, akin to the sound people make when they are cold and Dr Dimock believed it was important to record the language as a historical record and to instil pride in Nahavaq speakers.
She encountered major challenges in creating her revised spelling system, including finding a way to denote subtle but distinct sounds for "b", "p", "m" and "v". It took her three months to recognise the sounds herself.
The other challenge was how to signal a glottal stop – where there is a pause in the word, such as in the English "uh-uh". The decision to use a "q" came after three hours of community debate.
Dr Dimock’s devised system is being taught in local kindergartens, and she hopes it will improve children's literacy success. Primary and secondary schooling is conducted in French or English, which is the first time Nahavaq speakers are introduced to literacy. "They're learning literacy at the same time as they're learning a new language."
