Re: A Charyan Brothel Song in Teonaht

Dear people,

I'd like to offer some further particulars on the song _lamay-neranmen_.
The song belongs to the collection _Brahir laqa canun tan ryabay_,
'a thousand songs for between the wheat-stalks'. A small selection of songs
from this large collection of brothel and tavern songs has previously
been translated and published by Editions Planteur (Yundiai 1991) in a
collector's edition with several plates.

The collection itself dates from the period of the three hundred years
of the three hundred kingdoms. At that time the Charyan empire was
very fragmented and in this chaotic situation a rich tradition of
trivial literature written in the _lingua franca_, Denden[1], sprang
up. One example is this collection of trivial songs - others are the
_Garalw=FCshir_, a handbook for young courtesans. The popular novels about
scholars and heros were more often written in an easy style of Classical
Charyan, Den'wenray, though.

Not all songs in the collection are as direct as _lamay neranmen_. There
are songs that make extensive use of agricultural imagery, like the
_laqa tan klondan_, and others that are more riddle-like. Formally,
the collection is very diverse too. The song translated by Issytra
Seppelnarmyeeb has end-rhyme in Denden, but that's actually very rare.

There's not much doubt as to the authorship of the songs in the
collection: Mandein lua Radauq wasn't the author.  The authors of these
songs were simply the courtesans in the brothels or their visitors.
Making up impromptu songs about love forms a large part of 'an evening
out', and the best songs will be remembered for a long time. Whether
Mandein was the compiler of the collection is doubtful too, he is mostly
known for a large travel-guide through western Andal. Of course, the
question of the authorship is not important. As Yundiai notes in his
introduction to his translation: '... de dichters zelf bleven anoniem,
ze zongen het lied een keer, het werd vaker gezongen en tenslotte
opgeschreven. Het waren geen lange filosofische leerdichten die de naam
van de auteur moesten vereeuwigen, het ging hen om het snelvlietend
plezier onder de dainam-bomen.'

In rebus sexualibus, the Charyan people are rather unrestrained and
very free of inhibitions, presenting a marked contrast to neighbouring
ethnicities, like the Matraians or the Barushlani. In Charya, especially
in the south, the pleasure people can have together is seen as a normal,
important facet of the daily life, public as well as private (Rempt
1998, 1999).

Since the object of the exercise is to make a translation from Issytra
Seppelnarmyeeb's version, and not of the Denden original (though takers
are welcome) I present here an interlinear version of the song, with
some linguistic notes. (The Teonaht version seems to be sufficiently
original that I think I will attempt a Denden version of the Teonaht
version, myself). I hope the accents come through correctly (this
fall KDE 2.0 will come out - unicode throughout!).

lamay-neran.men
song-stroll.AMA

   The amatory attitudinal qualifier <-men> is necessary because
   of the tender relations between singer and the person sung-to
   (why isn't there something in English I can use to translate
   'bezongene' with?)
I

E.do    qoi.qoi       s=FCmzi neran.an.men
poss.1s finger.finger tipsy stroll.DELIM.AMA

   There exists a separate set of pronouns for use between lovers.
   Since that set is not used here, the relationship between the
   the 'I' of the song and 'you', must take place in a brothel -
   of course, Issytra Seppelnarmyeeb is spot on in her assumption that
   that doesn't mean that the patron doesn't love the courtesan.

S=FCs=FC-=FC.men      e.di    hod'atahl par
shake.DELIM.AMA poss.2s head'fore over

Matan     e.di    heril h=E9ya.ya.men
alognside poss.2s braid glide.DELIM.AMA

W=FCwish e.di    y=E9.yi'zu,      tirme'ar=20
dance  poss.2s dimple.DIM'LOC neck'LOC

II

Sung.men e.di    teal     ar, damba.zi
rest.AMA poss.2s shoulder LOC weight.AUG

Yuanei   tiran e.di    yanang.dir tan
pleasure grasp poss.1s breast.pl  TAN

E.do    nahak hya    tan sunane
poss.1s penis smooth TAN saunter

  _nahak_ is common word, but not coarse - neither is it refined,
  Charyans would use paraphrases and metaphors to achieve a refined
  effect. The same holds for _yenu_, below.

Nuy.nuy   nanlan bin.y     ar  anyalan=20
quick.DUP run    belly.DIM LOC navel

III

Mo   dulane, qoi.qoi       dena    altah
then waver   finger.finger stammer long_for

Raygin     penne tan naina  tupa
wheatfield dive  TAN nestle suddenly

  wheatfields, grain, cornstalks, are all very common similes.
  Another poem that makes use of related imagery is at
  http://www.xs4all.nl/~bsarempt/andal/literature/raygin.html.

IV

Xoxo  bernus musa   yaraush, bajan.hau
shake hill   stream lavish   come.IMP

E.di    yenu nanah       drai'xux,  bajan.hau
poss.2s cunt turn_around girl'lusty come.IMP

  Noteworthy in the last two lines is the variance in interpretation
  between myself and Issytra Seppelnarmyeeb. In Denden, and certainly
  in Denden poetry, it is possible that suffixes like the imperative
  <-hau> IMP apply to all verbs in the phrase. It is equally possible
  to interpret the imperative as only applying to the verb it is
  actually affixed to. Both interpretations are valid.


Notes

[1] The linguistic situation of Andal is very complex. There are a number
of vernacular dialects, like Northern Colloquial (which was the language
of the song 'Xipu, Manxuri Penerar', previously presented here). A
common language understood throughout the empire developed out of these
vernacular dialects together with important influences from the classical
language - this language was Denden. From a linguistic point of view,
describing Denden poses its own difficulties: for instance it cannot
rightly be said to possess a phonology, since every speaker used
the pronounciation he was used to from his mother tongue. See also:
http://www.xs4all.nl/~bsarempt/andal/languages/charyan_languages.html.


References

Rempt, Boudewijn. 1998. _Tiscim_.
http://www.xs4all.nl/~bsarempt/andal/literature/tiscim.html

Rempt, Boudewijn, 1999. _Sexual life in Charya_.
http://www.xs4all.nl/~bsarempt/andal/peoples_and_places/charya/sexuality.ht=
ml

Yundia. 1991. _Brahir Laqa canun tan ryabay. Duizend liedjes voor tussen
de graanhalmen. Chariaanse liefdesliedjes en bordeelzangen. Verzameld
door Manein lua Radauq', Editions Planteur, Haarlem

    (The entire collection has been published in Denden:

    http://www.xs4all.nl/~bsarempt/andal/languages/corpus/denden.html

    and partly in Dutch:=20

    http://www.xs4all.nl/~bsarempt/andal/literature/graanhalmen.html)


Boudewijn Rempt  | http://www.xs4all.nl/~bsarempt