Chester Pepper: "Deer-hunting Medicine" (1957)
Primary participants: Chester Pepper (speaker), William Bright (researcher)
Date: 1957
Project identifier: WB_KL-53
Publication details: William Bright, The Karok Language (1957), pp. 258-259, Text 53
Additional contributor: Erik Maier (annotator)
Text display mode: paragraph | sentence | word | word components
[1] |
púufich u'ákunvareesh.
|
They were going deer-hunting. |
[2] |
xás vaa ukúphaanik páy nanu'ávahkam veekxavnamíchmiif.
|
And páy nanu'ávahkam veekxavnamíchmiif (name of an ikxaréeyav, probably "black little-wolf of the sky") did this. |
[3] |
xás vaa ukúphaanik.
|
He did this. |
[4] |
pufíchtaay kuniykáratih,
itráhyar mutúnviiv.
|
His ten sons were killing lots of deer. |
[5] |
xás uxús "
kíri kinpíychaak pamutúnviiv."
|
And he wished that his children would have bad luck. |
|
(Bright: "Literally, 'he thought 'let his children have bad luck.'' A more normal mode of expression would be with... nanitúnviiv 'he thought, 'let my children...'' The unexpected person of the possessive perhaps reflects the structure of English indirect discourse.") |
[6] |
kári xás uhravrikûunish pamuhrôoha.
|
So he copulated with his wife. |
|
(Bright: "Sexual intercourse is believed to bring bad luck in deer-hunting.") |
[7] |
xás u'av,
papúufich.
|
And he ate the deer meat. |
[8] |
xás púyava kunpákunvanva,
kúkuum.
|
Then they went hunting again. |
[9] |
púra fâat iykárat.
|
They didn't kill anything. |
[10] |
kúkuum vúra imáan kunpákunvanva.
|
The next day they went hunting again (but were still unsuccessful). |
[11] |
víri káan ník mâam kun'iruveehrímpiithva.
|
They stood around uphill there. |
[12] |
víri kôokaninay kúuk kunthítiimutih,
peekxaréeyav mukinínaasich.
|
They heard the deer (lit., "spirit's pets") everywhere. |
[13] |
fâat kúnish kun'ixáxanaatih.
|
They were sort of crying somewhat. |
[14] |
peekxaréeyav kunpiykáranaa,
ikxaréeyav mukinínaasich.
|
The (other) spirits were killing the deer. |
[15] |
kári xás kunxus, "
xâatik nupêerunpa."
|
Then they thought, "Let's die!" |
[16] |
kunkôoha pa'ahavíshkaanva.
|
They stopped hunting. |
[17] |
kári xás yítha niinamichtâapas xás upiip, "
chími nupahavíshkaanvi páy nanu'ávahkam."
|
Then the littlest one said, "Let's hunt in the sky!" |
[18] |
káan ník kunpihmáriroopithva,
páy nanu'ávahkam.
|
They ran around there in the sky. |
[19] |
vúra púra fáat.
|
(But) there was nothing (i.e., no deer). |
[20] |
ikmaháchraam kunpavyíhivrath.
|
They went back to the sweathouse. |
[21] |
kári xás pihnîichich uvôonsip,
pamukun'ákah.
|
Then the old man got up, their father. |
[22] |
ta'ítam pírish úkyav.
|
And he made medicine. |
[23] |
kári xás ta'ítam upakxuuyvávathvunaa,
pamutúnviiv.
|
Then he rubbed it on his children. |
[24] |
yáas tá kunpákunvanva.
|
Then they went hunting again. |
[25] |
peekxúrar púvaxay thivrúhish,
koovúra axupa'ithvutiharamúrax.
|
When evening hadn't (even) floated down yet, they were all doing nothing but carrying dressed deer meat. |
[26] |
kári xás uxúsaanik, "
yaas'ara'îin tá na'apúnmiikahaak,
víri yaas'ára káru vúra vaa ukupheesh."
|
Then (the father) thought, "If Mankind has learned it from me, Mankind will do this way too." |
[27] |
naa kích îin tá nu'apúnmiik.
|
I alone have learned it from you. |
[28] |
naa káru vaa nikupheesh.
|
I will do that too. |