A r t i c l e s

Drozdík, Ladislav: Place-related Identity Terms in cArar´s Love Poetry, p. 117
Magdolen, Dušan: The Seked: On Ancient Egyptian Mathematics and Astronomy, p. 134
Chen Peng-hsiang: A Mythopoetic Discourse on Modern Chinese (Taiwanese) Poems, p. 141
Slobodník, Martin: The Relations between the Chinese Ming Dynasty and the Tibetan Ruling House of Phag-mo-gru in the Years 1368-1434: Political and Religious Aspects, p. 155
Krupa, Viktor: Category of Nominal Classes in Indonesian and its Reinterpretation, p. 172
Rumánek, Ivan R. V.: Phonetic Fusions in the Language of Okinawa and a Comparison with Mainland Japanese, p. 179
Bucková, Martina: Deluge in Polynesian Mythology, p. 191
Pawliková-Vilhanová, Viera: White Fathers, Islam and Kiswahili in Nineteenth-century Uganda, p. 198
Zatkuliaková, Monika: „Mais nous avons faim!“ Quelques remarques sur la prevention du sida a Beira (Mozambique), p. 214

B o o k R e v i e w s

Di Cosmo, N.: Ancient China and Its Enemies. The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. By Martin Slobodník, p. 225
Musashi Tachikawa, Shrikant Babulkar, Madhavi Kolhatkar: Indian Fire Ritual. By Anna Rácová, p. 227
Malecková, Jitka: Úrodná puda: Zena ve sluzbách národa. By Miroslava Darnadyová, p. 228
Sorby, Karol R.: Suez 1956. Súmrak tradicného kolonializmu na Blízkom východe. By Ladislav Drozdík, p. 231

ABSTRACTS

PLACE-RELATED IDENTITY TERMS IN ARAR’S LOVE POETRY

Ladislav DROZDÍK
Institute of Oriental and African Studies, Slovak Academy of Sciences,
Klemensova 19, 813 64 Bratislava, Slovakia

Mustafa Wahbi at-Tall, better known in his homeland as Arar, lawyer, teacher, political agitator and, above all poet, is now celebrated as a pioneer of Jordanian patriotism and spokesman for his nation´ s ideals and aspirations. Rebellious patriotism in Arar´s poetry is inextricably tied to his addiction to wine and his never-ending Don Juanism. As a drunkard and lover, obsessed by the nostalgia for places that had once quenched his thirst for wine and love, Arar created a quite new type of metaphors and terms of reference to the beloved and to her place in the poet´s dream-world. Place-related identity terms referring to the poet´s beloved or her close surroundings are the subject of the following account.

THE SEKED: ON ANCIENT EGYPTIAN MATHEMATICS AND ASTRONOMY

Dušan MAGDOLEN
Institute of Oriental and African Studies, Slovak Academy of Sciences,
Klemensova 19, 813 64 Bratislava

In this article the ancient Egyptian terms expressing the slope of a pyramid and voyage of the sun god across the sky are discussed in context of ancient Egyptian mathematics, astronomy and religious iconography.

A MYTHOPOETIC DISCOURSE ON MODERN CHINESE (TAIWANESE) POEMS

Chen PENG-HSIANG
Department of English, Shih Hsin University,
1 Lane 17, Mu-cha Road, Sec. 1, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.

The aim of this article is to evaluate the works of three contemporary Taiwanese poets with the mythopoetic topic on the background of the ancient Chinese and modern European mythological theories.

THE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE CHINESE MING DYNASTY AND THE TIBETAN RULING HOUSE OF PHAG-MO-GRU IN THE YEARS 1368-1434: POLITICAL AND RELIGIOUS ASPECT

Martin SLOBODNÍK
Department of the Languages and Cultures of the Countries of East Asia, Faculty of Philosophy, Comenius University, Bratislava, Slovakia

The paper analyses the relations between the Chinese Ming Dynasty and the Tibetan ruling house Phag-mo-gru in the years 1368-1434, that is during the period between the foundation of the Ming Dynasty in 1368 and the decline of the political power of the Phag-mo-gru in Central Tibet in 1434. The paper is focused on the political and religious character of the relationship. The regular contacts had the form of exchanges of diplomatic missions and were a part of the traditional system of trade and tribute, which the Chinese dynasties had used for the regulation of their relations with foreign powers. By granting titles to the rulers of Phag-mo-gru the Ming Dynasty attempted to continue the Mongolian policy, but it did not have sufficient economic and military resources to enforce its policy in Central Tibet. The personal interest of Ming Chengzu (r. 1402-1424) in Tibetan Buddhism intensified mutual relations and he also maintained contacts with other Tibetan Buddhist dignitaries and local rulers from Eastern Tibet. The Chinese sources prove that the relationship with Tibet was not of a strategic character and the dominant role of the Phag-mo-gru in Central Tibet is not explicitly stated by these sources. For the Ming Dynasty Tibet was only one of the peripheral regions and the Ming Tibet policy represented a retreat from the previously gained Chinese position in Central Tibet.

CATEGORY OF NOMINAL CLASSES IN INDONESIAN AND ITS REINTERPRETATION

Viktor KRUPA
Institute of Oriental and African Studies, Slovak Academy of Sciences,
Klemensova 19, 813 64 Bratislava, Slovakia

In the so-called SAE (Standard Average European according to Benjamin Lee Whorf) languages we are accustomed to a certain set of grammatical categories and to a set of their properties one of which is their obligatory aplication. The grammatical categories obviously express a kind of generalized meaning the origin of which is to be looked for in the environmental, social, and cultural reality of a particular linguistic community; however, the original motivation may gradually fade away, become opaque and finally disappear or undergo the process of reinterpretation.

PHONETIC FUSIONS IN THE LANGUAGE OF OKINAWA AND A COMPARISON WITH MAINLAND JAPANESE

Ivan R. V. RUMÁNEK
Institute of Oriental and African Studies, Slovak Academy of Sciences
Klemensova 19, 813 64, Bratislava, Slovakia

The Ryukyus (generally called Ruuchuu in the local dialects) with the central island of Okinawa (Uchinaa) are inhabited by people whose tongue is a very curious idiom which some linguists regard as an extreme branch of southern Japanese dialects. It seems, however, more correct to specify it as a separate language and the only language relative to Japanese. A survey of its fusional features will serve to support this claim, as they are of a much more radical nature and interfere with the fundamental character of the language much more than is the case with mainland Japanese.

DELUGE IN POLYNESIAN MYTHOLOGY

Martina BUCKOVÁ
Institute of Oriental and African Studies, Slovak Academy of Sciences,
Klemensova 19, 813 64 Bratislava, Slovakia

Deluge is one of the most widespread mythycal motifs throughout the world although it may be lacking in some parts of the world. It may take the shape of a universal punishment of sinful peoples (just as in the Bible) and thus be a part of cosmogony or may be of a rather episodic or accidental nature. This paper discusses several instances of the motif of deluge in several parts of Polynesia.

WHITE FATHERS, ISLAM AND KISWAHILI IN NINETEENTH-CENTURY UGANDA

Viera PAWLÍKOVÁ-VILHANOVA
Institute of Oriental and African Studies, Slovak Academy of Sciences,
Klemensova 19, 813 64 Bratislava, Slovakia

Though present on the East African coast for nearly a thousand years, Islam only began its expansion into the interior in the nineteenth century. One of the most significant areas of Islamic penetration in East and Central Africa was the Kingdom of Buganda, where Islam predated the arrival of Christianity by several decades and secured a strong foothold. Buganda was won to Christianity amidst much turmoil and bitter struggle between the adherents of Islam and of two forms of Christianity, represented by Anglican Church Missionary Society and Roman Catholic White Fathers, for the dominant position in the kingdom. Despite severe defeats suffered in Buganda in the late 1880s and throughout the 1890s Islam recovered and survived as a minority religion. Hower, the latent fear of Islam influenced the language policy and ruined the prospects of Kiswahili in Uganda.

« MAIS NOUS AVONS FAIM! » QUELQUES REMARQUES SUR LA PRÉVENTION DU SIDA À BEIRA (MOYAMBIQUE)

Monika ZATKULIAKOVÁ
Institute of Oriental and African Studies, Slovak Academy of Sciences,
Klemensova 19, 813 64, Bratislava, Slovakia

This paper aims at discussing certain problems related to the effectiveness of prevention campaigns as observed during the programme against HIV/AIDS which took place among empoverished populations in a peri-urban part of Beira in Mozambique. As far as the evalution study of the programme has shown, the resistance to some messages diffused during the prevention campaings cannot be explained only in terms of vulnerability of people concerned, nor as a problem of local culture. On the contrary, there should be more concern for complex solutions to the epidemic since it represents a fait social total.

"A nossa primeira tarefa foi de convencer a gente que o sida
não é um político, um negócio, uma brincadeira."
un homme séropositif, Quelimane, le 17/7/2002