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<DIV><SPAN class=489502500-17112006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2>"Piccaninny daylight", also "piccaninny dawn, piccaninny sun" as
expressions for the earliest morning, are well attested in Australian English,
going back to the 1840s at least. I assume this is from the earlier sense of
"piccaninny" = "small", and originated in some pidgin context. However, the only
place I can find it in use today is in Torres Straits Creole, in the relexified
form "smol delait" = "dawn, early morning".</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=489502500-17112006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=489502500-17112006><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2>Ross
Clark</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
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<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=en-us dir=ltr align=left><FONT
face=Tahoma size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B>
mihalic-bounces@anu.edu.au [mailto:mihalic-bounces@anu.edu.au] <B>On Behalf Of
</B>Institute of Papua New Guinea Studies<BR><B>Sent:</B> Thursday, 16
November 2006 5:25 p.m.<BR><B>To:</B> Tok Pisin list<BR><B>Subject:</B>
[Mihalic] Piccaninny dawn<BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=093384503-16112006>In <EM>The Sky
People </EM>(1984) by John Emery, there are numerous references to "piccaninny
dawn" which I assume means something like the first light of dawn, before the
sun actually appears.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=093384503-16112006></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=093384503-16112006>Is this a version
of a normal TP expression? Has anyone heard "pikinini tulait" or something
like that? Or might it be some sort of Tok Masta?</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN
class=093384503-16112006></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=093384503-16112006>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2>Don Niles</FONT></DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2>Acting Director & Senior
Ethnomusicologist</FONT></DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2>Institute of Papua New Guinea
Studies</FONT></DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2>Box 1432</FONT></DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2>Boroko 111</FONT></DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2>PAPUA NEW GUINEA</FONT></DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2>tel.: +675 325-4644</FONT></DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2>fax: +675 325-0531</FONT></DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2>email:
ipngs@global.net.pg</FONT></DIV></SPAN></FONT></DIV><BR>
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