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Definition 2024

nātū

natu

I (first-person singular subject pronoun)

Natu, nunupawi.
I [myself] saw it.

Katsa inyaunpei? Natu.
Q: Who is it? A: It is I. (It's me.)

Aitsa natu.
Not I. (Count me out, I'm not interested, I object, I disagree.)

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]
[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]
me (first-person singular direct object pronoun)

Kamani pinyanka natu?
Why did you blab [about] me?

Onupajota natu.
[He] is staring at me.
my (possessive determiner)
Hauke neke natu, akamawiu natu mama.
When I was still an infant, my mother died.
mine (first-person possessive pronoun)
Natupei?
[Can it be] mine? [May I have it?]

In the excerpt above that begins "Walama okapojala," the rising young chief Walama twice uses natu as a subject pronoun to emphasize the distinction between himself and his rival: "Let me be chief, I won't be lazy (I won't be like that other guy)." Normally the subject performing an action is indicated by a prefix to the verb root, not by a pronoun. However, the pronoun natu can be used in combination with a verb to emphasize the subject. Compare:

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 the Aruta could have used instead (opukenejo, inyaunaun), but he chose to use a dash of Portuguese in this statement.