Re: A random bit of Telona

On Sun, Apr 06, 2003 at 11:16:04PM +0200, Christian Thalmann wrote:
> --- In conlang@yahoogroups.com, Jonathan Knibb <j_knibb@H...> wrote:
>
>  > 'The eyes are blind. One must look with the heart.'
>
> Wheee!  A translation exercise!  =)
Yay!

mërèchi:

  kièn   ésöp'të  kèlipi; d'èln'da     ótylli.
  [ki'En 'esopte  'kElipi 'dElndA      'otili]
  eye:PL COP:3pPL blind   OBL:see:2pSG soul:INST

  (COP: copula; OBL: obligative mood "should"; INST: instrumental postposition)

toma heylm (speaking to a woman):

  nes   leye  ey  kaprelid; lo        delye  mi  tisanot  oseretsel  ilom.
  ['nEs 'lejE 'e  'kAprElid 'lo       'dEljE 'mi 'tisanOt o'serEtsEl 'ilOm]
  DUAL  eye   COP blind:PL  2p:SG:NOM IRR    OBL see:F    INST:heart 2p:SG:GEN

  (IRR: irrealis)

tekem (I think; grammar is tricky):

  empomkaDoskaBoSpaGo -    empomkaGol.  tomkolkaStoskaBaGoBom -     pola.
  [Em'pOmkA'DOskA'BoSpA'Go Em'pOmkA'Gol tOm'kolkAS'tOskA'BAGo'Bom - 'polA]

  empomka.toska.pos.pa.ko   empomka.kol tomkolkas.toska.pa.ko.pom      pola
  eye.perceive.NULL.AGT.COP eye.COLL    dreamsoul.perceive.AGT.COP.OBL pron:2p
  is-doing-no-eye-perceiving: the-eyes. should-be-doing-soul-perceiving: you.

  (NULL: nullar number;  COLL: collective number)

  (Note that the word for soul implies "that part which dreams", so the
  instructions come out "you should dream" rather than "you should see with
  your heart".)

Korahamla:

  itehépojt jotejtteníj.  ititehéjt johettehépoj.

  Your instrument(s)-of-seeing are unable to see.  What must be used to
  see is your instrument-of-feeling.

  (Korahamla would probably have separate words for "eye" and "heart", but
  this is what I could do with the vocabulary available.  And then again,
  it *is* a ceremonial language, so maybe they would prefer the roundabout
  phrasing...)

  itehépojt:
        téj             something/things
        téjt            to see things
        tehéjt          instrument of seeing things; what one sees with
        tehépojt        your instrument of seeing things
        itehépojt       As for your eyes...

  jotejttení:
        téj             something, things
        téjt            to see things
        tejtté          be able to see things
        tejttení        not be able to see things
        tejtteníj       that which can't see things
        jotejtteníj     ...they can't see things.

  ititehéjt:
        téj             something, things
        téjt            to see things
        títejt          must see things
        titehéjt        instrument of must-see-things; what one must use to see
        ititehéjt       As for what you must use to see...

  johettehépoj:
        téj             something, things
        ettéj           to feel things
        ettehéj         instrument of feeling things; one's heart (not literal)
        ettehépoj       your heart
        johettehépoj    ...it is your heart.

I was going to make a Vijyaonq translation (using the customary and accepted
Mad Englishman romanization), but after three days of my informant's cousin's
polite deferrals that he would be by "later", I realized he was in fact
recently departed on a three-month caravan trip.  Such is life.

Amanda

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