Philip Delaporte
Encyclopedia
Reverend Philip Adam Delaporte was a German born American Protestant missionary who translated numerous texts from German
into Nauruan
. Delaporte was sent to Nauru
with his family in November 1899, and returned to America in 1917.
, sent by Central Union Church of Honolulu. They had travelled from Hawaii
via Kusaie.
The missionary in Nauru, founded by a Gilbertese pastor
named Tabuia approximately 10 years before Delaporte's arrival, contained the only formal educational institute on the island at the time.
During this time, both Delaporte and his wife translated many religious texts including the New Testament
, stories from the Old Testament
, a catechism
, a hymn book, a history of the Christian
Church and a book designed for use in the school.
, Delaporte published his pocket German-Nauruan dictionary
(Taschenwörterbuch Deutsch-Nauru), some of which is relicated in the table below.
The dictionary is small, measuring about 4" x 5" (10.5 cm x 14 cm) in size. The book was of nearly 100 pages, with 65 devoted to a glossary and a dozen to alphabetically arranged phrases in German and Nauruan. Some 1650 German words appear in the dictionary, along with about 1300 'unique' Nauruan forms (excluding diacritical marks).
was used, consisting of 32 characters in total:
There is no explanatory section to the dictionary: the phonetic values for the symbols are left to the reader's devices.
The text shows three types of "a", four of "o" and four of "u", along with one "i" and "e". With the exception of "ò" and "ù", the marked vowels account for a relatively small percentage of the vowel inventory, as can be seen in the distribution chart. This suggests that Delaporte's system may actually be representing only two forms each for "a", "o", and "u". This is supported by frequent examples of the same word spelled with different vowel markings in the dictionary and Delaporte's Nauruan translation of the Bible
, including Delaporte's New Testament, which shows only two vowel forms, one marked (with a tilde "~ "), and one unmarked. It is possible that the missionary's press font set did not include tilded forms, and so umlauted and accented forms were substituted as necessary.
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
into Nauruan
Nauruan
Nauruan may refer to:* Something of, from, or related to the country of Nauru* Nauruan people, persons from Nauru, or of Nauruan descent. For more information see Demographics of Nauru and Culture of Nauru. For specific persons, see List of Nauruans....
. Delaporte was sent to Nauru
Nauru
Nauru , officially the Republic of Nauru and formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country in Micronesia in the South Pacific. Its nearest neighbour is Banaba Island in Kiribati, to the east. Nauru is the world's smallest republic, covering just...
with his family in November 1899, and returned to America in 1917.
Missionary
Delaporte and his family, including his wife, Samole (also a missionary), arrived in Nauru under the auspices of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign MissionsAmerican Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions
The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions was the first American Christian foreign mission agency. It was proposed in 1810 by recent graduates of Williams College and officially chartered in 1812. In 1961 it merged with other societies to form the United Church Board for World...
, sent by Central Union Church of Honolulu. They had travelled from Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
via Kusaie.
The missionary in Nauru, founded by a Gilbertese pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
named Tabuia approximately 10 years before Delaporte's arrival, contained the only formal educational institute on the island at the time.
During this time, both Delaporte and his wife translated many religious texts including the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
, stories from the Old Testament
Old Testament
The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
, a catechism
Catechism
A catechism , i.e. to indoctrinate) is a summary or exposition of doctrine, traditionally used in Christian religious teaching from New Testament times to the present...
, a hymn book, a history of the Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
Church and a book designed for use in the school.
German-Nauran dictionary
In 1907, still living in NauruNauru
Nauru , officially the Republic of Nauru and formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country in Micronesia in the South Pacific. Its nearest neighbour is Banaba Island in Kiribati, to the east. Nauru is the world's smallest republic, covering just...
, Delaporte published his pocket German-Nauruan dictionary
Dictionary
A dictionary is a collection of words in one or more specific languages, often listed alphabetically, with usage information, definitions, etymologies, phonetics, pronunciations, and other information; or a book of words in one language with their equivalents in another, also known as a lexicon...
(Taschenwörterbuch Deutsch-Nauru), some of which is relicated in the table below.
The dictionary is small, measuring about 4" x 5" (10.5 cm x 14 cm) in size. The book was of nearly 100 pages, with 65 devoted to a glossary and a dozen to alphabetically arranged phrases in German and Nauruan. Some 1650 German words appear in the dictionary, along with about 1300 'unique' Nauruan forms (excluding diacritical marks).
Use of the dictionary
In Delaporte's Taschenwörterbuch Deutsch-Nauru (German-Nauruan Dictionary), an orthographyOrthography
The orthography of a language specifies a standardized way of using a specific writing system to write the language. Where more than one writing system is used for a language, for example Kurdish, Uyghur, Serbian or Inuktitut, there can be more than one orthography...
was used, consisting of 32 characters in total:
b p d t g k q j r w m n ñ
c f h l s z
i e a à â o ò ô ö u ù û ü
There is no explanatory section to the dictionary: the phonetic values for the symbols are left to the reader's devices.
The text shows three types of "a", four of "o" and four of "u", along with one "i" and "e". With the exception of "ò" and "ù", the marked vowels account for a relatively small percentage of the vowel inventory, as can be seen in the distribution chart. This suggests that Delaporte's system may actually be representing only two forms each for "a", "o", and "u". This is supported by frequent examples of the same word spelled with different vowel markings in the dictionary and Delaporte's Nauruan translation of the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
, including Delaporte's New Testament, which shows only two vowel forms, one marked (with a tilde "