kapojai

Wauja

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ka.pɨˈʐaɪ/

Noun

kapojai

1. A type of traditional Wauja song, performed during certain sacred ceremonies, in which people are encouraged to voice their grievances and complaints, be they personal or political.

   Meeneke kisuawakiya yetsopikitsa, kapojai yakapai.

   Tomorrow at dawn, the kapojai ceremony will be going on.

   Kejo poukeneu, kapojai yakawe yeetsopoa.

   At the new moon, the kapojai ceremony will be going on.

   ...Walama okapojala. Kapaipiyapai ipitsi amunaunki. Meyeityapai tumapai ulepe, meyeityapai tumapai usityui pessoalnaun ou. Oukaka Walama akapojatene inyaun wi: "Natu amunaunpei, maka aitsa natu numeiyeitya. Maka Arawi keyeityapai tumapai ulepe, usityui." En, umapai okapojala katahan...[sings]

   This is the kapojai song that Walama sang [before he became chief]. [The old chief at that time] had grown weary of his chiefly responsibilities. He no longer bothered to make bread [to distribute as a ceremonial sponsor]; nor did he bother to make manioc porridge to give his people to drink. So Walama [who was a young rising chief at that time] sang [about the other chief] in his kapojai song: "Let me be chief; I won't be lazy. My wife Arawi is industrious; she'll make plenty of manioc bread and porridge." Eh, here’s how his song goes… [sings]

Usage notes

• Note that Aruta tosses in a noun borrowed from Portuguese ("pessoal," people, followers), but he adds the Wauja plural suffix –naun, so that it becomes pessoalnaun (all the people). The Wauja have several words Aruta could have used instead (opukenejo, inyaunaun), but he chose to use a dash of Portuguese in this particular instance.

Related terms

• akapojatapai (sings a kapwojai song directed at a person or problem)

References

• "Walama opkapojala" utterance from Aruta, storyteller and elder, recounting Wauja history in the presence of his son and nephew. Recorded in Piyulaga village by E. Ireland, 4/25/96, transcript, page 26.
• Remaining utterances from E. Ireland field notes. Need to be checked by native speaker.