Reconstructions

Note

The meaning of this term and its possible relationship to other etyma of the shape *buat or *buhat remains unclear. Tentatively I assume that *buat referred to the harvesting of fruits, as opposed to the harvesting of grains (*aRani). However, the meanings of the Sangir, Wolio, and especially the Puluwat words suggest a relationship to *buhat_₃ (in the sense of ‘bring, carry; cargo’). The glosses of Sulawesian forms such as Sangir _maḷa-wuaʔ and Wolio buat-aka further raise the possibility that *buat referred to the offering of first fruits.