Alfred Cort Haddon (1855-1940) was a highly influential British anthropologist and ethnologist who was instrumental in the foundation of a school of anthropology at Cambridge University. During 1898 and 1899, Haddon led an expedition which conducted ethnographical research in the Torres Strait, New Guinea, and Borneo. The main results of this expedition were compiled in a series of volumes, written by various contributors. Originally published in 1907, this is the third in that series. It was written entirely by Sidney H. Ray (1858-1939), a prominent member of the expedition and a renowned scholar of Melanesian languages. The text contains information on a broad variety of languages from the region, including grammatical guides and vocabularies. This is a fascinating book that will be of value to anyone with an interest in linguistics, anthropology, or ethnology.
