Nettie Ruben: "The Story of Tan Oak Acorn" (1957)
Primary participants: Nettie Ruben (speaker), William Bright (researcher)
Date: 1957
Project identifier: WB_KL-31
Publication details: William Bright, The Karok Language (1957), pp. 226-227, Text
31
Text display mode: paragraph | sentence | word | word components
[1] | yaas'ára | u-'iiníshrih-eesh |
rich.person | 3s(>3)-come.into.existence-FUT |
Mankind was about to come into existence. |
[2] | koovúra | kun-víik-vunaa | yíthuk | chí | kun-ívyiihm-eesh |
all | 3pl(>3s)-weave-PL | elsewhere | soon | 3pl(>3s)-go.to.(pl.)-FUT |
They were all weaving, they were about to go to a different place. |
[3] | kári | xás | kun-píip | chími | chêemyaach | nu-tákuk-vunaa |
then | then | 3pl(>3s)-say | soon | quickly | 1pl(>3)-clean.out.basket-PL |
And they said, "Let’s clean out our baskets quickly." |
[4] | kári | xás | kun-píip | chémi | chúvaarap |
then | then | 3pl(>3s)-say | all.right | let's.go |
And they said, "All right, let’s go!" |
[5] | kári | xás | kun-p-ithxuná-siipreen | pa-mukun-'ápxaan |
then | then | 3pl(>3s)-ITER-put.over.head-up | the-3plPOSS-cap |
And they put on their basket-caps. |
[6] | koovúra | yâamach-as | pa-mukun-'ápxaan |
all | pretty-PL | the-3plPOSS-cap |
All their caps were pretty. |
[7] | kári | xás | uum | pa-xuntápan | uum | vúra | pu-pikyáar-ara | pa-mú-pxaan |
then | then | 3.SG | the-acorn | 3.SG | Intensive | NEG-finish-NEG | the-3sPOSS-cap |
But Tan Oak Acorn didn’t finish her cap. |
[8] | kári | xás | u-pkifínmit |
then | then | 3s(>3)-turn.inside.out |
So she turned it inside out. |
[9] | kári | xás | u-p-íthxuuna-sip |
then | then | 3s(>3)-ITER-put.over.head-up |
And she put it on. |
(Bright: "The verb tákuk, translated 'to clean out' in sentence 3, refers to the process of cutting off the projecting sticks on the inside of a basket, after the actual weaving is finished. The heroine, not having time to do this, put her cap on inside out; as a result, the cups of tan oak acorns are prickly, rather than smooth.") |
[10] | kári | xás | u-píip | pa-yaas'ára | u-'iiníshrih-aak | víri | naa | pa-'avanih-ich-tâapas-heesh |
then | then | 3s(>3)-say | NOMZ-rich.person | 3s(>3)-come.into.existence-when | so | 1sg. | the-high-DIM-most-FUT |
And she said "When Mankind comes into existence, I will be the most important (lit. the highest). |
[11] | pa-hûutva | kóo | yaas'ára | u-'íina-haak | víri | naa | vúra | kích | kaná-'aam-tih-eesh | káruma | apxan-kêemich | pa-niní-pxaan |
NOMZ-somehow | as.much.as | rich.person | 3s(>3)-exist-when | so | 1sg. | Intensive | only | 3pl>1s-eat-DUR-FUT | in.fact | cap-poor | the-1sPOSS-cap |
However long Mankind exists, he will eat only me, (though) the fact is that my cap is a poor cap." |
[12] | víri | xuntápan | vaa | ú-paanik |
so | acorn | so | 3s(>3)-say.(ancient) |
Tan Oak Acorn said that. |