Martial Arts

1. I gat wan boksing klab long ples ia?

   I gat wan bok-sing klab long ples ia?

   Is there a boxing club around here?

   Usage

   Vanuatu has almost no standing martial arts gyms; sport is organised through village and community clubs in Port Vila and through church youth groups. Small boxing or taekwondo clubs come and go, so asking whether one exists at all is the realistic first move

   Grammar Note

   "I gat" is the set existential. The marker "ia" follows a noun to point it out, doing the work of English "this"

2. Mi save joen long trening blong tede?

   Mi sa-ve jo-en long tre-ning blong te-de?

   May I join today's training?

   Usage

   Asking about a drop-in. Clubs in Vanuatu have no formal joining procedure — speaking to the coach or organiser directly is usually enough. Sunday belongs to church, so aim for a weekday or Saturday

   Grammar Note

   "Save" is the modal for ability or habit and precedes the verb. Bislama runs on two core prepositions: "long" for place and time, and "blong" for possession and purpose

3. Mi save lukluk nomo long trening?

   Mi sa-ve luk-luk no-mo long tre-ning?

   May I just watch the training?

   Usage

   Asking to observe. Always ask separately before filming. Many villages in Vanuatu have strict rules about photographing or entering anything connected with "kastom" (customary practice), so never act unannounced

   Grammar Note

   "Nomo" follows a verb or noun to limit it to "only". "Lukluk" reduplicates "luk" to express sustained watching

4. Hamas mane blong wan trening?

   Ha-mas ma-ne blong wan tre-ning?

   How much does one session cost?

   Usage

   Asking the price. The currency is the vatu (VUV). Community clubs usually run on small subscriptions or donations and may have no per-session rate; offering a modest contribution is well received

   Grammar Note

   The question word "hamas" comes from English "how much" and covers both quantity and price. Bislama has no copula, so the sentence is complete without a verb

5. Mi niufala olgeta long boksing.

   Mi niu-fa-la ol-ge-ta long bok-sing.

   I am completely new to boxing.

   Usage

   Flagging that you are a beginner. Clubs in Vanuatu post no skill levels, so saying it aloud is the only way to be placed sensibly — otherwise you may end up in the same drills as experienced members

   Grammar Note

   The suffix "-fala" turns an adjective into a modifier of a noun (niu → niufala). "Olgeta" means "all" and, after an adjective, works as the intensifier "completely"

6. Plis, yu mekem isi isi.

   Plis, yu me-kem i-si i-si.

   Please, take it easy.

   Usage

   For asking a partner to lower the intensity. "Isi isi" means "slowly, gently" and is everyday vocabulary used for driving, handling objects and much else. Saying it plainly is the safe choice

   Grammar Note

   The suffix "-em" marks a verb as transitive and appears when it takes an object (mek → mekem, luk → lukum). Repeating "isi" softens the manner rather than intensifying it

7. Leg blong mi i soa, mi no save kikim.

   Leg blong mi i so-a, mi no sa-ve ki-kim.

   My leg hurts, so I cannot kick.

   Usage

   Declaring an injury. Clubs use no intake form, so speaking up is the only channel. Swap "leg" for "sol blong han" (shoulder) or "baksaed" (back). Medical facilities on the outer islands are very limited, so caution comes first

   Grammar Note

   The particle "i" is a predicate marker appearing before a verb or adjective with a third-person subject. Possession follows the order "noun + blong + possessor": "leg blong mi" = my leg

8. I gat gluv we mi save yusum?

   I gat gluv we mi sa-ve yu-sum?

   Are there gloves I can use?

   Usage

   Checking on equipment. Clubs in Vanuatu work with very limited kit and usually rotate a shared set of gloves. Bring your own wraps and mouthguard — they are hard to find locally

   Grammar Note

   "We" introduces a relative clause and sits immediately after the noun it modifies: "gluv we mi save yusum" = gloves that I can use. It corresponds to English "that / which" and is central to Bislama's complex sentences

9. Wanem taem trening i stat?

   Wa-nem taem tre-ning i stat?

   What time does the training start?

   Usage

   Asking about the timetable. Clubs train mostly in the late afternoon to avoid the heat, and schedules travel by word of mouth. Late starts are routine, so allow some slack

   Grammar Note

   The question word "wanem" (what) precedes a noun to form "which X": "wanem taem" (what time), "wanem samting" (what thing). Fronting it leaves the rest of the order unchanged

10. Yu save tijim mi long samting ia?

    Yu sa-ve ti-jim mi long sam-ting ia?

    Could you teach me this?

    Usage

    Asking to be taught a move. Always say "Tangkiu tumas" once you have been shown. Vanuatu has over a hundred languages and Bislama serves as the lingua franca, though English and French are both widely used in town

    Grammar Note

    Questions keep the statement word order and are signalled by rising intonation alone. "Tijim" is English "teach" plus the transitivising "-im"

11. I gat ples blong waswas long ples ia?

    I gat ples blong was-was long ples ia?

    Is there somewhere to wash here?

    Usage

    Checking for washing facilities. Clubs and community halls in Vanuatu do not always have showers; a tap, a river or the sea may be what is on offer. Bring your own towel and a change of clothes

    Grammar Note

    "Ples blong + verb" forms a noun phrase meaning "place for doing X". "Waswas" reduplicates English "wash" and is the everyday word for bathing

12. I gat wan kastom fasin blong faet long Vanuatu?

    I gat wan kas-tom fa-sin blong faet long Va-nu-a-tu?

    Is there a traditional fighting practice in Vanuatu?

    Usage

    Asking about cultural background. There is no reliable record of a codified traditional martial art in Vanuatu; spears and clubs belong to ceremony and hunting. The famous land diving of Pentecost Island (nagol) is a rite of passage, not a fighting system. "No" is a perfectly normal answer — do not press for a style name

    Grammar Note

    "Kastom" is a key Bislama word covering far more than "custom": it means the whole inherited body of land rights, ceremony and ancestral practice. "Fasin" derives from English "fashion" and means a way of doing things

13. Leftemap tufala han blong yu, lukluk long ae blong narafala man.

    Lef-te-map tu-fa-la han blong yu, luk-luk long ae blong na-ra-fa-la man.

    Get both hands up, look at the other person's eyes.

    Usage

    Said by the coach. One of the most frequent cues during pad work and sparring — reading the eyes rather than the hands tells you what is coming. The clipped imperative carries no harshness

    Grammar Note

    "Tufala" is the numeral "two" used for counting paired items. "Leftemap" takes the English phrase "lift up" as a single unanalysed verb

14. Kikim strong tumas, no holem bak.

    Ki-kim strong tu-mas, no ho-lem bak.

    Kick it really hard, do not hold back.

    Usage

    Said by the coach. The call from the pad holder when they want full commitment. Half-hearted contact is the more likely way to hurt yourself, so this doubles as permission to kick at full power

    Grammar Note

    "Tumas" comes from English "too much" but carries no negative sense in Bislama — it simply means "very". A prohibition needs only "no" before the verb

15. Spel faef minit, mo dring wota.

    Spel faef mi-nit, mo dring wo-ta.

    Rest for five minutes and drink some water.

    Usage

    Said by the coach between rounds. Vanuatu is hot and humid and training often happens in semi-open venues under a roof, so water breaks come often. Tap water is not drinkable everywhere, so bring bottled water

    Grammar Note

    "Spel" comes from English "spell" (a period of time) and functions in Bislama as the verb "to rest". "Mo" is the coordinating conjunction "and"

16. Hemia i naf blong tede. Yu mekem gud.

    He-mia i naf blong te-de. Yu me-kem gud.

    That is enough for today. You did well.

    Usage

    Said by the coach to close the session. Clubs in Vanuatu often finish with a short prayer, reflecting how deeply Christianity is embedded in daily life. "Tangkiu tumas" is the natural reply to the coach

    Grammar Note

    "Hemia" combines "hem" (it) with the marker "ia" and can point back at a whole situation, as here. Bislama has no tense inflection; time comes from context and adverbs

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