Florence Shaughnessy

"The Mourning Dove" (1951)

Writing system: no hyphens | hyphens
Display style: paragraph | sentence | look-up

Text identifier: LA16-1
Speaker: Florence Shaughnessy
Primary documentation: R. H. Robins
Edition: R. H. Robins, The Yurok Language (1958), pp. 155-157

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  1. Heekon kue 'ela hoole'monee neekee chyue 'o gookw, kwesee kue 'o'rowee' kem 'o gookwch'.
    Once upon a time the inhabitants of the earth were all gambling, and the dove too was gambling.
  2. Kwesee 'ok'w 'ue-peechowos.
    He had a grandfather.
  3. 'O noowo'r kue 'ee nue 'er'gerp 'w-egolek', Kwelekw keet markewech' kue meweemor.
    A messenger ran up saying, The old man is going to die.
  4. 'O ga'm 'o'rowee', To' kee kem ko gookwchek', 'ohlkuemee keech rewpe'n.
    The dove said, I will gamble again, for he was winning.
  5. Kwesee kem 'o noowo'r 'w-egoyek', Kwelekw cho heemooreyowo'm! Kwelekw keet markewech' kue k'e-peechowos.
    And again someone ran up telling him, Well, hurry! Your grandfather is going to die.
  6. Kem 'ee ye'm 'o'rowee', To' kee kem ko hookwchek'; mocho kem kee 'ap newook' keech 'ue-markewechek', kem kee weet 'o sonowok'.
    The dove said, I will gamble again; and if I find him already dead when I come, this is what I will do.
  7. K'ee kwen cho kee no'omue'n k'ee 'wes'onah, kee noohl megeykwele'weyk'.
    So long as the heavens endure, then I will mourn.
  8. Tue' wee'shk'oh 'enuemee wee' so'n.
    And today that is just what he is doing.
  9. Mocho kee ko'l ko'moyo'm 'o key 'o'rowee', ko ko'moyo'm kolo woken 'o meykwele'we'y.
    If somewhere you hear the dove as he sits there, you will hear him as it were mourning.
  10. Nuemee sku'y soo woken 'o ge'm, Weee puue puue.
    Very well he says, Wee poo poo.
  11. Tue' so'n keetkwo 'ue megey wee'shk'oh.
    And so it is that he still mourns today.