Displays of "fu!"
The videos provide a quick look at the changes in the shifting form and function of “fu!”. Traditional use of a fisted fu! in the context of counting was to mark the completion of a count of all 27 body parts (see first two videos on the right). Over historical time, new functions emerged. “Fu” became a lexical expression that indicated a doubling of a body part that preceded it, as displayed in the third video on the right. For a complete analysis of the how and why of this shift in form-function relations, see Chapter 6 of Cultural Development of Mathematical Ideas. An early version of the analysis is contained in Saxe & Esmonde (2005), Studying cognition in flux: A historical treatment of fu in the shifting structure of Oksapmin mathematics
2001. Use of "fu" in quantifying twenty-one kina (K21).
This Oksapmin man was shown twenty-one kina worth of Papua New Guinea currency and is representing that amount in the Oksapmin language. He indicates his shoulder (10) or kat(-hai) (pointing to shoulder) doubles that value with reference fu and then indicates that he places one kina coin temsi tana (flat with hole) at his neck (11), for a total of twenty-one kina.
2001. Woman's display of traditional "fu!" with fists raised.
This woman is displaying the Oksapmin 27-body part counting system (see figure at left). In the video, you will see her enumerate body part names beginning with the thumb on one hand (1) proceeding up to the nose (14) and down to the little finger on the other side of her body (27). At the end of the count, as has been standard practice, she exclaims a fists raised "tit fu!", indicating that she's completed all of the body parts of the system.* Similar 27-body part systems have been used traditionally throughout the larger Mountain-Ok region of central New Guinea (see map below). Note the direction of the count is arbitrary and meaning is linked to the act -- the woman is using a right-to-left trajectory whereas the upper left schematic shows the opposite direction. Traditionally, if people need to count beyond the 27th body part, they loop back to tan dopa (28), or the wrist on the other side (28th position). For more information, please see my book, Cultural Development of Mathematical Ideas: Papua New Guinea Studies.
1978. Elderly man (Bapu) and his use of "fu!" at 27th body part.
This is an attenuated video clip that shows a man in 1978 completing a display of counting to the 27th body part (little finger of second hand). Note his fisted use of “fu!”
2001. Use of "fu" in count of stones.
This man is counting stones in the context of an interview task described in Cultural Development of Mathematical Ideas. Note his use of “fu” in his report of the cardinal value of the stones.
2001. Use of fu in quantifying eleven kina (K11).
The man is presented with eleven kina. He examines the currency and states their value as hanen fu hama doba temsi tana. The more or less literal meaning of the expression is conversational number word 5 (hanen) double (fu) and on the wrist (6) (doba (6th body part) put the flat with hole (temsi tana, the expression for the one kina coin or the value of one kina).