The Languages of the Ocean Family fall naturally into place in four principal geographical areas: Indonesia, Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia. These are found to form convenient philological divisions.
1. The Indonesian Group includes the language of Madagascar with those of the Malay Archipelago; the principal members of it are Malagasy, Malay, the various languages of the Philippine Islands, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Celebes, and of the islands eastwards towards New Guinea.
2. The Micronesian Group takes in the Caroline Islands, the Pellew, Marshall, and Gilbert Islands.
3. The Melanesian languages are those spoken by the present inhabitants of the great chain of islands which extends from the East of New Guinea to New Caledonia, including Fiji.
4. The Polynesian languages of the Eastern Pacific are well known as those of Samoa, Tonga, Hawaii, and the Maori of New Zealand.
Upon a general view of these very numerous and widespread tongues, Mr. Sidney Ray has advanced four propositions: 1. The Vocabulary throughout shews evidence of a common origin. 2. The differences which appear in the grammar are modifications of the same method rather than differences of structure. 3. The principal constructive particles are the same. 4. The languages are in various stages of condition, of which the latest is that of the Polynesian.
With reference to the Mota language in particular two points may be touched with advantage. Mr. Ray has observed that comparison of two or more lists of words brought together from very distant parts of the area occupied by the Oceanic Languages seldom fails to shew agreement; and this by no means only in the names of things which commerce would carry with it. He selects among others three words, representing the English 'leaf,' 'fish-hook,' 'fathom.' Beginning with the Malagasy and ending with the Mota forms, these words may be thus arranged — Leaf: Malagasy, ravina, Malay, dawun, Philippine, dahon, Micronesia, ra, New Hebrides, rau, Polynesian, rau, Mota, naui. Hook: Malagasy, havitra, Malay, hawit, Philippine, kait, Micronesia, kaj, New Hebrides, ngau, Mota, gau. Fathom: Malagasy, refy, Malay, depa, Sumatra, dopa, Celebes, refa, Philippine, dopa, New Guinea, rof, Mota, rova. Words that can in this way be traced across vast distances of ocean are often the names of insignificant
