Possession is more complicated than in the English language. There are four ways or words to show possession in the Fijian language - __qu, noqu, mequ, kequ.
The first way __qu is used as suffix in declaring possession of body parts or relationships.
- eg. My foot na yavaqu
- eg My mum na tinaqu
The second way is when the suffix pronoun (___qu) is not applied to items which is not consumed by mouth. In this possession the word
noqu will precede the noun.
- eg My car na noqu motoka
- eg My house na noqu vale
The third and fourth way of declaring possession is with regards to food or drinks.
Kequ will precede the noun when its solid and
Mequ will precede the noun when it's liquid drinks.
- eg My beer mequ bia
- eg My chicken kequ toa
It would be wrong to say 'noqu toa' if it was cooked and ready to eat. On the other hand, if the chicken was alive and not heading for pot then it's correct to say 'noqu toa'.
Thank you for your interest to learn to speak Fijian
