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. Hee-kon kue 'e-la hoo-le'-mo-nee nee-kee chyue 'o gookw, kwe-see kue 'o'-ro-wee' kem 'o gookwch'.
    Once upon a time the inhabitants of the earth were all gambling, and the dove too was gambling.
  2. Kwe-see 'ok'w 'ue-pee-cho-wos.
    He had a grandfather.
  3. 'O noo-wo'r kue 'ee nue 'er'-gerp 'we-go-lek', Kwe-lekw keet mar-ke-wech' kue me-wee-mor.
    A messenger ran up saying, The old man is going to die.
  4. 'O ga'm 'o'-ro-wee', To' kee kem ko gookw-chek', 'ohl-kue-mee keech rew-pe'n.
    The dove said, I will gamble again, for he was winning.
  5. Kwe-see kem 'o noo-wo'r 'we-go-yek', Kwe-lekw cho hee-moo-rey-yo-wo'm! Kwe-lekw keet mar-ke-wech' kue k'e-pee-cho-wos.
    And again someone ran up telling him, Well, hurry! Your grandfather is going to die.
  6. Kem 'ee ye'm 'o'-ro-wee', To' kee kem ko hookw-chek'; mo-cho kem kee 'ap ne-wook' keech 'ue-mar-ke-we-chek', kem kee weet 'o so-no-wok'.
    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-'o-mue'n k'ee 'wes-'o-nah, kee noohl me-gey-kwe-le'-weyk'.
    So long as the heavens endure, then I will mourn.
  8. Tue' wee'shk'oh 'e-nue-mee wee' so'n.
    And today that is just what he is doing.
  9. Mo-cho kee ko'l ko'-mo-yo'm 'o key 'o'-ro-wee', ko ko'-mo-yo'm ko-lo wo-ken 'o mey-kwe-le'-we'y.
    If somewhere you hear the dove as he sits there, you will hear him as it were mourning.
  10. Nue-mee sku'y soo wo-ken 'o ge'm, Weee puue puue.
    Very well he says, Wee poo poo.
  11. Tue' so'n keet-kwo 'ue me-gey wee'shk'oh.
    And so it is that he still mourns today.