Sidney Herbert Ray (1858–1939) was a gifted linguist and teacher, known in particular for his study of the languages of Melanesia and the attendant islands. In this 1928 publication, one of his most famous works, Ray does an exhaustive study of the languages spoken on each island in the region from the Loyalty Islands to the Solomon Islands, and includes a brief survey of the early records of Melanesian languages. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in the history of linguistics or the linguistics of the Pacific isles.