Ahuia in later years at Kilakila (courtesy of Eric Johns, PNG History Through Stories Vol.2) The emergence of indigenous literary traditions across Oceania goes far back to the early introduction of European technologies, ideas, writing instruments, literacy, and print media in the 1880s. Reverend W. G. Lawes, who settled with his family in Hanuabada in 1874 translated the four gospels in Motu. The translation of the gospels was completed in 1885. Lawes held the view that to establish the Christian church it was important to develop the abilities of people to read Christian literature. By 1920s a reasonable number of Motu Koitabuans knew enough English to communicate with the missionaries and the administration officials. Many Papuans, however, were uninterested in using English to capture their experiences or to express themselves in writing. The English language was viewed as an uncultured language with the power to corrupt the cultural and social fabric of the Papuan so
Chronicles the stories of education, books, writing, and reading in the life of Steven Edmund Winduo, PNG writer extraordinaire, literacy advocate, social literary activist, literary scholar, & teacher. Fern Ridge is a translation of Safla Rama, where home is for SEW.