Not too long ago as I was working on my yard, a group of high school students passed by while arguing what Ngerbuns meant. Some said it might be the name of some kind of taro patches and others maintained that it could be the name of an island somewhere south of Koror. Highly curious, I asked the youngsters why they were arguing about the name, and they told me that some elderly people have told them that it was the name of a State in Palau but that couldn’t be right because they said they knew all the 16 states of Palau and none is called Ngerbuns. They may know the present names of all the 16 states of the republic, but most certainly the majority of them do no know the historical names of these areas, which they should know because they are parts of their historical and cultural heritages as Palauans.
As the youngsters left I began to wonder if our educational system has in its curriculum a section devoted to Palau culture, history, geography, and legends. There was a time in the sixties and the seventies when these subjects were actually taught at Palau High School. I remember Rengulbai from Melekeok, whose traditional title was Olikong, and Kodeb, the famous composer of many Palauan songs from Ngarchelong, taught these subjects. It appeared that when these two experts retired, the entire program went out with them and has never been revived by later educational officials. WHY? Why are Palauan youngsters being taught many details about foreign countries and not given important information about their own country?Our Educational system should be reviewed thoroughly so that those subject and information for our young people, who would lead the country in the years ahead, would know as much as possible about their country. They should know the original names for the sixteen states of the Republic of Palau. They should know that Ngerbuns is the ancient name fore the State of Aimeliik and that Imeyuns is Ngaremlengui. On this side of Babeldaob Errenguul is Koror and Blias is Airai while Odsangel is Peleliu. There are other states that have very interesting sounding-names, and these, too, should be very familiar with all the young people of PalauGrowing up boys should be familiar with, at the very least, the names of the reefs and the shallow waters inside the reefs of their villages. Young men should know the name of fishes, which are preferred as food sources. They also should be familiar with the names of important trees and the designations of prominent hills and mountains in their states.Young girls should learn the names of the various plant species in Palau that are used as food and for medicinal purposes. There are different kinds of swamp taros and sweet taros in Palau, which all women in Palau should know their names by heart. The same is true with sweet potatoes and tapiocas. They also should be familiar with medicinal plants, particularly those that are used in after-birth ceremonies. When a Palauan girl grows up, there will be occasions where she, herself, would be the subject of the birth ceremony or will participate in the occasion as a relative of a new mother. She must know what to do during these occasions.
