[Mihalic] sik muruk

[Robin Hide]

Bryant suggests that sik muruk reference in relation to epileptic seizures 
"is used because the fit is similar to what a cassowary does when it is hit 
with an arrow and thrashes about as it dies".

However, other aspects of cassowary behaviour may be more relevant.

For instance, Brian Coates (The Birds of Papua New Guinea Vol 1 1985, pp. 
57-8) describes the display of the Double Wattled Cassowary as including, 
"the body trembles with the effort of producing the (deep booming) sound", 
and similarly for the Dwarf Cassowary.

I also asked two seasoned observers of cassowaries, Andy Mack (AM) and 
Debra Wright (DW), for their experience of possibly relevant muruk 
behaviours, and they responded:

"
 we have seen a small chick with what seemed like a neurological disorder 
where it got very tipsy and uncoordinated and died a few days afterwards." DW

"...in both captive birds and wild ones, I have seen them running around in 
a frenzy, kicking trees and bashing into things.  Could be a conceptual 
link to epilepsy... " AM

"And ours would jump into the air and come down into somersaults!..  They 
are nutty when they are adolescents!" DW

So on the face of it there seems to be certain muruk behavioural traits, 
other that their death throes, that may be what sik muruk is referring to 
in the context of epilepsy.

Two other points:

1. The description of epilepsy in East New Britain by Hoskin and colleagues 
in (Hoskin, J. O., et al.  (1969). “Epilepsy and guria: the shaking 
syndromes of New Guinea.” Social Science and Medicine 3: 39-48. makes no 
mention of sik muruk.

2. The two firm accounts (Bryant A and Rick S),  other than the 
Post-Courier one, so far originate from the one region of Maprik-Dreikikir 
in East Sepik  - is the term restricted to that part of PNG?

And- a final query to John Lynch re: The Bislama equivalent is "sik blong 
faol" (faol = chicken - we dopnlt have cassowaries in Vanuatu!).
Does "faol" include other species, for instance megapodes? (as in wail paul 
in tok pisin?)


Robin Hide



At 12:27 PM 18/10/2006, you wrote:
>I heard this at Tumam (Dreikikir, East Sepik) in 1971-72, where there were 
>two male maternal cousins (mothers were sisters) who had severe epilepsy 
>to the point where they were badly burned and severely brain damaged. At 
>first I thought it was a reference to a 'spirit' cassowary who was causing 
>the fit doing bad things deep in the forest, but later I realized it is 
>used because the fit is similar to what a cassowary does when it is hit 
>with an arrow and thrashes about as it dies. I have not heard "sik muruk" 
>used anywhere else, but then I have not had too many conversations about 
>epilepsy either.
>B
>
>
>At 12:05 PM 18/10/2006 +1000, you wrote:
>>    1. sik muruk = epilepsy (Robin Hide)
>
>Dr Bryant Allen
>Senior Fellow
>Land Management Group
>Department of Human Geography
>Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies
>The Australian National University
>ACT 0200 Australia
>
>ANU CRICOS Provider Number is 00120C
>
>
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