Hiri Motu

Key takeaways

Hiri Motu belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Hiri Motu to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Hiri Motu from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of its capital city, Port Moresby. It is a simplified version of Motu, from the Austronesian language family. Although it is strictly neither a pidgin nor a creole, it possesses some features from both language types. Phonological and grammatical differences make Hiri Motu not mutually intelligible with Motu. The languages are lexically very similar, and retain a common, albeit simplified, Austronesian syntactical basis. It has also been influenced to some degree by Tok Pisin. Even in the areas where it was once well established as a lingua franca, the use of Hiri Motu has been declining in favour of Tok Pisin and English for many years. The language has some statutory recognition.

Origins

The term hiri is the name for the traditional trade voyages that created a culture and style of living for the Motu people. Hiri Motu became a common language for a police force known as Police Motu. The name Hiri Motu was conceptualised in the early 1970s during a conference held by the Department of Information and Extension Services. During the conference, the committee recommended the name Hiri Motu for several reasons.

The language's history is older than the name Police Motu implies. That was recommended because it was simplified from the language of the Motu people, which was the language used when they traded goods with their customers. Police Motu was then never used as a language of trade or social contact. Since the unity of New Guinea Police Force in 1946, Police Motu had lost most of its functions in police work. Pidgin was adopted at the time and was used with the majority of the police force. The committee thought that the new name should have some meaning behind it. Instead of associating a language with the police, they thought the language should reflect the legacy of the language and how it is used in everyday life.

Motu people The Motu people are native inhabitants of Papua New Guinea who live along the southern coastal line of their country. They typically live in dry areas, on the leeward side of the mountain, where dry seasons are harsh on the people who live there. Traditional Hiri voyages carried prized treasures to the people of the Gulf of Papua.

Dialects Hiri Motu has two dialects: "Austronesian" and "Papuan". Both dialects are Austronesian in both grammar and vocabulary due to their derivation from Motu; the dialect names refer to the first languages spoken by users of this lingua franca. The "Papuan" dialect (also called "non-central") was more widely spoken and was used as the standard for official publications since around 1964. The "Austronesian" (or "central") dialect is closer to Motu in grammar and phonology, and its vocabulary is both more extensive and closer to the original language. It was the prestige dialect, which was regarded by speakers as being more "correct". The distinction between Motu and its "pidgin" dialects has been described as blurred. They form a continuum from the original "pure" language, through the established creoles, to what some writers have suggested constitutes a form of "Hiri Motu–based pidgin" used as a contact language with people who had not fully acquired Hiri Motu, such as Eleman and Koriki speakers.

Phonology

Syntax

Personal pronouns In the Hiri Motu language, the distinction between "inclusive" and "exclusive" forms of 'we' is very important. In the former case, 'we' applies to the speaker and listener while in the latter case 'we' does not include the listener.

Possessives egu 'my' emai 'our (inclusive)' eda 'our (exclusive)' emu 'your (singular)' emui 'your (plural)' ena 'her/his/its/their' (singular)' edia 'their (plural)'

For example, in the table above, lau-egu is placed before the noun, such as lau-egu boroma ('my pig'). The first half of the word (lau, oi) may be taken out of the word. For example, lau-egu boroma can be shortened to egu boroma.

Postpositions Hiri Motu uses postpositions. A standard postposition is ai, which can mean 'in', 'on', or 'at'. For example, maua ai means 'in the box', pata ai means 'on the table', and Konedobu ai means 'at Konedobu (a location in Papua)'. Because Hiri Motu does not allow double vowels, ai will often fuse with the word. Some examples:

lalo-na-ai → lalonai – 'in, inside' lata-na-ai → latanai – 'on, on top of'

Word order There are two word orders in Hiri Motu: subject–object–verb (SOV) and object-subject-verb (OSV), both of which can be used interchangeably (OSV is more common in Hiri Motu). These sentence structures either start with a subject which is followed by an object, or vice versa start with an object which is followed by a subject, and both end with a verb. The sentence always ends with a verb regardless of the word order. As word order can be arbitrarily chosen, ambiguity may arise in some cases. For example, Inai mero boroma badana ia alaia can either mean 'This boy killed a big pig' or 'A big pig killed this boy'. To solve this, a subject marker can be used. In Hiri Motu, the subject marker is ese, which is placed immediately after the subject of the sentence. With it, the sentence reads: Inai mero ese boroma badana ia alaia (literally, 'This boy <subject marker>, a big pig he killed.') - 'This boy killed a big pig.' The subject marker should only be used in cases where ambiguity occurs. Subject markers are never used in sentences with intransitive verbs.

Interrogatives

Edana is sometimes spelt and pronounced edena. Hida always follows the noun it is referring to, while edana always follows it. Questions should be asked affirmatively, as otherwise some of the answers received can be confusing. For example, receiving the reply oibe ('yes') to the question la mai lasi? ('hasn't he come?') can mean 'Yes, he hasn't come yet'. If the person has arrived, the answer would be: Lasi, ia mai ('No, he has come').

Conjunctions

Examples:

Oi raka namonamo, oi keto garina. ('Walk carefully, lest you fall.') Sinavai dekenai ia lao, haoda totona. ('He went to the river (in order) to catch fish.')

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Hiri Motu

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Hiri Motu claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Hiri Motu before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Hiri Motu ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Hiri Motu

In research: Hiri Motu appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Hiri Motu in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Hiri Motu is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Languages of Papua New Guinea, Law enforcement in Papua New Guinea, Pidgins and creoles, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Hiri Motu outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study Hiri Motu in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Hiri Motu means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Hiri Motu out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Hiri Motu in simple terms?

Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of its capital city, Port Moresby. It is a simplified version of Motu, from the Austronesian language family.

Why does Hiri Motu matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Hiri Motu?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Hiri Motu.