ABSTRACT This project will examine the realtionship between language and rank on the island of Pohnepi in Micronesia, to discover how social hierarchies are reflected in and at the same time reconstituted through language structure and use. The study will focus on the use of honorific forms, particularly during the daily ceremonial practice of kava preparation and consumption (kava is non-alcoholic, soporific beverage made from the pounded root of the piper methysticum plant and water). Although enthnographers have noted the importance of kava rituals throughout Oceania and their role in sustaining structures of prestige, very little is known about the use of language in these contexts. Preliminary investigation by the doctoral student has shown kava settings to be particularly rich in the range of participants and linguistic choices. Through the observation and video-recording of spontaneous kava events, this study will investigate: a) how honorific forms are actually used by Pohnpeians in daily practice and how the presence of honorific words affects other aspects of the language, b) the relationship between lexical choices and the exploitation of the social space in which verbal interaction take place, and c) the range of competence in honorific use across generations and how such competence is acquired.
