[Multilingual Monday] Three Monks, in Cherokee
donncha22 has a wonderful site involving an old Irish anecdote about three monks translated into a myriad of languages, and a while back he asked me, "... how's your Tsalagi?"
So, without further ado, I have, behind the cut, the English and the attempt at a Cherokee translation. This HAS NOT BEEN PROOFED BY A NATIVE CHEROKEE SPEAKER YET, so there are bound to be spots where something is highly unnatural or just plain wrong.
With that in mind:
Three Monks
Three monks turned their back on the world.
They went into the wilderness to repent their sins before God.
They did not speak to one another for a year.
At the end of the year, one of them spoke up and said, “We’re doing okay.”
Another year passed in silence.
“Yes we are,” said the second man.
And so another year passed.
“I swear by my robe,” said the third man, “if you two don’t be quiet I’m out of here!”
Tsoi Analitsadohvsgi
ᏦᎢ ᎠᎾᎵᏣᏙᎲᏍᎩ
Saquu iyuwagedi tsoi analitsadohvsgi unihiyv'i wunukdv elohi.
ᏌᏊ ᎢᏳᏩᎨᏘ ᏦᎢ ᎠᎾᎵᏣᏙᎲᏍᎩ ᎤᏂᎯᏴᎢ ᏭᏅᎪᏛ ᎡᎶᎯ.
Once three priests they-left remainder world.
"Once three priests went away from the rest of the world." -- I didn't know how to state "turn their backs" without being literal (and wrong), hence the change. Oh, and there seems to be no Cherokee word for "monk".
Unisganvtsv etsidoligidi unadulvhv'i, sginh'yusd' adohihi unenvsv'i.
ᎤᏂᏍᎦᏅᏨ ᎡᏥᏙᎵᎩᏗ ᎤᎾᏚᎸᎲᎢ, ᏍᎩᏅᏳᏍᏗ ᎠᏙᎯᎯ ᎤᏁᏅᏒᎢ.
Their-sins them-to-be-forgiven they-wanted, therefore woods-in went.
"They wanted their sins to be forgiven, so they went into the woods." -- I had to use the Cherokee New Testament for this. I found "repent," which translated as "alter one's mind" (the idea being that you change who you are and then accept Jesus, yadda yadda), and is clearly not what I wanted here. Thus "forgive sins".
Sudetiyvdano hla yidanadawonisv'i.
ᏑᏕᏘᏴᏓᏃ Ꮭ ᏱᏓᎾᏓᏬᏂᏒᎢ.
One-year-and not no-they-speak-reciprocally
"And for a year they didn't speak to one another" -- Self-explanatory. The verb can be literally interpreted as "they didn't have instances of them speaking with themselves".
Nasgino na igvyi'i alitsadohvsgi "Idosda" udvhne.
ᎾᏍᎩᏃ Ꮎ ᎢᎬᏱᎢ ᎠᎵᏣᏙᎲᏍᎩ "ᎢᏙᏍᏓ" ᎤᏛᏁ.
So-and that first priest "We-good" he-said.
"And then, the first priest said, 'We're good." -- In noun-adjective present tense forms like "we're good", the adjective modifies with the pronouns to reflect a fairly non-existent present tense form of "to be".
Soino sudetiyvda akaliwohi tlonudvhna gesvi.
ᏐᎢᏃ ᏑᏕᏘᏴᏓ ᎠᎧᎵᏬᎯ ᏠᏄᏛᎿ ᎨᏒᎢ.
Other-and year completely silent was.
"And another year was silent." -- Fairly simple sentence. Note in the last three sentences that the "and" is attached to the first word of the sentence.
Nahnv taline'i "V, idosda" udvhne.
ᎾᏅ ᏔᎵᏁᎢ, "Ꭵ, ᎢᏙᏍᏓ" ᎤᏛᏁ.
That-and second "Yes, we-good" he-said.
"And the second said "Yes, we're good."
Asiqueno soi sudetiyvda tonudvhna gesvi.
ᎠᏏᏇᏃ ᏐᎢ ᏑᏕᏘᏴᏓ ᏠᏄᏛᎿ ᎨᏒᎢ.
Again-and other year silent was.
"And once again another year was silent."
"Eliquu!!" na tsoine'i udvhne.
"ᎡᎵᏊ!!" Ꮎ ᏦᎢᏁᎢ ᎤᏛᏁ.
"ENOUGH" that third he-said.
"'Enough!!' said the third."
"Eluwei aquaduliha ganigisgesdisi!"
"ᎡᎷᏪᎢ ᎠᏆᏚᎵᎭ ᎦᏂᎩᏍᎨᏍᏗᏏ!"
"Silence I-want I-am-leaving-or-else!"
"'Give me silence, or I'm leaving!!'"
Comments, corrections, questions, etc., welcome!
So, without further ado, I have, behind the cut, the English and the attempt at a Cherokee translation. This HAS NOT BEEN PROOFED BY A NATIVE CHEROKEE SPEAKER YET, so there are bound to be spots where something is highly unnatural or just plain wrong.
With that in mind:
Three Monks
Three monks turned their back on the world.
They went into the wilderness to repent their sins before God.
They did not speak to one another for a year.
At the end of the year, one of them spoke up and said, “We’re doing okay.”
Another year passed in silence.
“Yes we are,” said the second man.
And so another year passed.
“I swear by my robe,” said the third man, “if you two don’t be quiet I’m out of here!”
Tsoi Analitsadohvsgi
ᏦᎢ ᎠᎾᎵᏣᏙᎲᏍᎩ
Saquu iyuwagedi tsoi analitsadohvsgi unihiyv'i wunukdv elohi.
ᏌᏊ ᎢᏳᏩᎨᏘ ᏦᎢ ᎠᎾᎵᏣᏙᎲᏍᎩ ᎤᏂᎯᏴᎢ ᏭᏅᎪᏛ ᎡᎶᎯ.
Once three priests they-left remainder world.
"Once three priests went away from the rest of the world." -- I didn't know how to state "turn their backs" without being literal (and wrong), hence the change. Oh, and there seems to be no Cherokee word for "monk".
Unisganvtsv etsidoligidi unadulvhv'i, sginh'yusd' adohihi unenvsv'i.
ᎤᏂᏍᎦᏅᏨ ᎡᏥᏙᎵᎩᏗ ᎤᎾᏚᎸᎲᎢ, ᏍᎩᏅᏳᏍᏗ ᎠᏙᎯᎯ ᎤᏁᏅᏒᎢ.
Their-sins them-to-be-forgiven they-wanted, therefore woods-in went.
"They wanted their sins to be forgiven, so they went into the woods." -- I had to use the Cherokee New Testament for this. I found "repent," which translated as "alter one's mind" (the idea being that you change who you are and then accept Jesus, yadda yadda), and is clearly not what I wanted here. Thus "forgive sins".
Sudetiyvdano hla yidanadawonisv'i.
ᏑᏕᏘᏴᏓᏃ Ꮭ ᏱᏓᎾᏓᏬᏂᏒᎢ.
One-year-and not no-they-speak-reciprocally
"And for a year they didn't speak to one another" -- Self-explanatory. The verb can be literally interpreted as "they didn't have instances of them speaking with themselves".
Nasgino na igvyi'i alitsadohvsgi "Idosda" udvhne.
ᎾᏍᎩᏃ Ꮎ ᎢᎬᏱᎢ ᎠᎵᏣᏙᎲᏍᎩ "ᎢᏙᏍᏓ" ᎤᏛᏁ.
So-and that first priest "We-good" he-said.
"And then, the first priest said, 'We're good." -- In noun-adjective present tense forms like "we're good", the adjective modifies with the pronouns to reflect a fairly non-existent present tense form of "to be".
Soino sudetiyvda akaliwohi tlonudvhna gesvi.
ᏐᎢᏃ ᏑᏕᏘᏴᏓ ᎠᎧᎵᏬᎯ ᏠᏄᏛᎿ ᎨᏒᎢ.
Other-and year completely silent was.
"And another year was silent." -- Fairly simple sentence. Note in the last three sentences that the "and" is attached to the first word of the sentence.
Nahnv taline'i "V, idosda" udvhne.
ᎾᏅ ᏔᎵᏁᎢ, "Ꭵ, ᎢᏙᏍᏓ" ᎤᏛᏁ.
That-and second "Yes, we-good" he-said.
"And the second said "Yes, we're good."
Asiqueno soi sudetiyvda tonudvhna gesvi.
ᎠᏏᏇᏃ ᏐᎢ ᏑᏕᏘᏴᏓ ᏠᏄᏛᎿ ᎨᏒᎢ.
Again-and other year silent was.
"And once again another year was silent."
"Eliquu!!" na tsoine'i udvhne.
"ᎡᎵᏊ!!" Ꮎ ᏦᎢᏁᎢ ᎤᏛᏁ.
"ENOUGH" that third he-said.
"'Enough!!' said the third."
"Eluwei aquaduliha ganigisgesdisi!"
"ᎡᎷᏪᎢ ᎠᏆᏚᎵᎭ ᎦᏂᎩᏍᎨᏍᏗᏏ!"
"Silence I-want I-am-leaving-or-else!"
"'Give me silence, or I'm leaving!!'"
Comments, corrections, questions, etc., welcome!