forty-one Pite Sámi proverbs and sayings from Arjeplog, from Ignácz Halász, Svéd-lapp nyelv V (1893)
These are the proverbs and sayings of the Sámi of Arjeplog parish in Swedish Lapland, taken down in 1891 at Saltdalen in Norway, where the family that told them had come to live, and printed by Ignácz Halász in 1893 under the heading "Those proverbs of old". Some carry a short note in Sámi on when they are said; from the seventeenth on, most are printed a second time in a plainer spelling. They speak of fools and liars, of riches, hunger and old age, of the tongue, and of a time when the swan was not yet white.
Translation
1. He who flies too high, he in turn falls too deep.
2. He must live as a dog himself, who is to bark with the dogs.
3. You should not sell the skin off the bear before he is shot.
4. The blind leads the blind. (They say this proverb when some fool has given counsel to another fool, and then together the two of them do some foolish work.)
5. Drink the water from your own spring! (They say this if there is some man lowtēs sēkak, and his own wife vaʼidnūt.)
6. He is a jangling bell, too. (When people are tattlers.)
7. He is one thick ear. (A disobedient person.)
8. Calm water, but a deep bottom. (They say this about a person who is quiet: he looks gentle, but in his heart he is terribly wicked.)
9. Riches are not always sweet to eat. (They say this when someone has taken another for the sake of riches, as a wife or as a husband.)
10. He who lies, he also steals.
11. Listen now: the wise fox is walking round me. (This too they say when a wise and false person chatters about his fellow, and he does not understand what that wise one says.)
12. There is not one secret that would not have to be revealed.
13. He is so foolish that he cannot keep his eyes and his mouth open.
14. As the mother is, so the children are too. (This too they say when the children there get up to some mischief and the mother does not correct them.)
15. Surely I see that the branch follows the stem. (This too they say when the young go in the tracks of the old.)
16. They will surely not make a pair before they are alike.
17. A stingy person does not even copcuhte the dog.
18. Then the swan had not yet turned white, nor the raven black.
19. Idleness does much.
20. Riches, after all, would not follow anyone into the grave.
21. With lies one would not get very far.
22. You do not even understand when people laugh at you.
23. A dog truly does not eat that one's talk.
24. Riches also make men of some.
25. Hunger commands one to work.
26. Old age surely teaches one to walk slowly.
27. The poor must live lower down.
28. Surely then the cup-wood too would take.
29. With big shoe-bands, then, a cow would not bark.
30. Now you bark at me as at a dog.
31. Everyone praises himself.
32. Hold your tongue, then, in front of the teeth!
33. Surely that is a man, who whittles high axes!
34. Surely you are a fruitful field.
35. My field truly bears not a single crop from you.
36. He is truly a kɵim-ähhcēles person.
37. Do not say many things, now!
38. Now you are like an owl's head.
39. He is only an ash-head.
40. That place is open to all winds.
41. I vińikiw so fast I cannot breathe at all.
Colophon
Translated from the Pite Sámi of Ignácz Halász, Svéd-lapp nyelv V: Népköltési gyűjtemény a Pite-lappmark arjepluogi egyházkerületéből (Budapest: Magyar Tudományos Akadémia, 1893), nos. P1–P41, pp. 290–294, in the section of proverbs and sayings (section XV, headed Tai tulučī pāhkū-vāďďasa, "those proverbs of old": tulučī from Wiklund s.v. toluče- "ehemalig, einstig" and Halász IV s.v. töaloče "das frühere, ehemalige"; pāhkū-vāďďas, "word-saying", from Lindahl–Öhrling s.v. pakowaj, -wajes "proverbium, ordspråk"). Halász took these texts down in 1891 at Saltdalen from Sámi of Arjeplog parish, and printed a Hungarian translation beside them, which was not consulted: it was masked out of the page images before translation. Halász's numbers are kept on both sides. His round brackets are of two kinds: in nos. 4 to 15 they hold a short explanation in Sámi, which is translated in brackets; from no. 17 on they hold the same proverb again in a plainer spelling, which is kept in the Source Text and translated once.
Words that run through the sayings: sa, which Wilbur (Table 9.2) gives as the Pite loan of Swedish så, "so", stands after the first word of many of them and is not rendered; kale and kul are Wilbur's gal, "actually", given as "surely"; haw, hau is "truly", from Lindahl–Öhrling s.v. Hau ("certe, sannerligen"), said mostly with a negative; jis, jės is "also, again, then" (Halász IV s.v. jis); āi, ai is "also, too"; obo, obonės is Wilbur's åbbå, "quite", which with a negative is "not even, not at all"; ėlā is Wilbur's ilá, "too"; ēċ, ēčat and ēčaws are forms of the reflexive pronoun (Wilbur Table 6.5: etj, etjad, etjavs); the short word -ta, ta after a command or a negative (nos. 29, 32, 37) is read from context as "then" or "now"; talle is "then" (nos. 11, 18, 28), and tälle (no. 38) is "now" (Wiklund s.v. tal(e), "jetzt, nun"; Wilbur p. 152, dal). almača is both the nominative plural and the genitive singular of almač, "person" (Wilbur p. 93, almatja): it is "people" where it is the subject (nos. 6, 22) and "a person" after the postposition pirra, "about" (no. 8). Verbs ending in -č, -ča (kalhkač, čûvuča, pōtiča, vällṭuč, ċēlastiċa) are in what Wilbur (§8.1.3.2) calls the potential mood, marked -tj-, and are given with "would".
In the sayings: (1) hāllān is "flies", from Wiklund s.v. halane- "fliegen" and Halász IV s.v. hālānīʼt; kahhča is "falls" (Halász IV s.v. kahčet); ċēkñalit is "deep" (Halász IV s.v. kiänœls "tief", citing Lule čiekñal). (2) virhtij is "must" (Wiklund s.v. ver'tije- "müssen"); pēnan is "as a dog"; cēllat is "to bark" (Wiklund s.v. ciela- "bellen"; Friis 1887 s.v. Ciellat, "latrare", and also "to scold"). (3) pirrė is "should" (Wiklund s.v. perije- "sollen, müssen"); nāhkė is a hide, as in Lindahl–Öhrling's Biren-nakke, "björnhud", a bear's skin; vœʼbĕdēt is "to sell" (Wiklund s.v. vuobete- "verkaufen"); pērhtnast is "from the bear" (Halász IV s.v. piᵉrrnä "Bär"); owṭost is "before" (Halász IV s.v. auŏtste "vor", citing Lule oudost); vûhčam is "shot" (Halász IV s.v. wuočet "schiessen"). (4) čalᵉmētēpmē is "blind" (Halász IV s.v. čälĕmets "blind"; Lindahl–Öhrling s.v. Tjalmetebme, "caecus, blind"); läʼiṭij is "leads" (Wiklund s.v. lai'tije- "leiten, führen"); kāivas is "foolish" (Halász IV s.v. kajĕwus "töricht, albern, dumm"); oivoṭam is "has given counsel" (Wiklund s.v. oivate- "rat geben, unterrichten"). (5) āďďak is a spring: North Sámi aja, genitive agjaga (Friis 1887 s.v. Aja, "fons aquae e terra scaturientis"), Lule aja, "Quelle" (Wiklund); khuinait is read as "wife", from the Ume example mü kuinu kissok, "my wife is pregnant", that Halász IV prints under kissé. Lowtēs sēkak, said of the man, and vaʼidnūt, which follows "his own wife", are in none of these dictionaries and are kept in Sámi; vaʼidnūt may belong with Lindahl–Öhrling's waino, "desire", and wainotet, "to long for", but that is not confirmed. (6) skûllaj is "jangling", from Wiklund s.v. skuola- "klingen, klirren, rasseln", whose derivative is a "Schelle, Glocke"; pällū is a bell (Wiklund s.v. pielu- "Schelle"); skᵘœlltara is "tattlers" (here with the plural almača), from Wiklund s.v. skuoltare-, skuoltar, "Klatscherei", a loan from Old Norse skvaldr. (7) assās is "thick" (Wiklund s.v. asa- "dick"); päʼlĕjē is an ear (Wiklund s.v. pelje-); ukuluḳės is "disobedient", from Lindahl–Öhrling s.v. Kulloges, "obediens", with its compound Okulloges, "inobediens, olydig". (8) lōčċēs is "calm" (Halász IV s.v. luiččiä "stilles Wetter"); podnē is the bottom (Halász IV s.v. potnie); sāvū’tės is "quiet, silent" (Wiklund s.v. šavuohpme-, attributive -otis, "schweigsam"), and orruj is "who is", from årrot, "to be, live" (Wilbur); loďďēn is "as one gentle" (Wiklund s.v. loje-, lojes, "sanftmütig, mild"); alvūs is "terribly" (Lindahl–Öhrling s.v. Alwos, as in alwos tjälkem, an unbearable cold). (9) rīhkė is rich and riches (Halász IV s.v. reihkuo "reich; Reichtum", from Swedish rik); kaʼihka pālēn is "at every time", "always" (Halász IV kaihka, "all"; Wiklund s.v. pale- "mal", inessive palen "zur Zeit"); ńälhkuk is "sweet" (Halász IV s.v. ńālkies "wohlschmeckend, gut, süss"); tihta is "for the sake of" (Halász IV s.v. diet, tieti, "wegen, für"). (10) kēlēst is "lies" (Halász IV s.v. kieliestīʼt "lügen"); sûlāt is "steals" (Halász IV s.v. suolātīʼt "stehlen"). (11) vīsēs is "wise" (Halász IV s.v. vīᵉsies "weise"); rēpė is a fox (Halász IV s.v. riäwo "Fuchs"); falskēs is "false" (Halász IV s.v. fälskies "falsch"); rutnā is "chatters" (Wiklund s.v. rutna- "sprechen, schwatzen"); pirra mū is "round me". Kulā’, printed with an apostrophe of elision, is read from context as the bidding "listen"; it could also be "it is heard". (12) čēkūs is a secret (Wiklund s.v. čēɔkuse-, čēkus, "verborgen, geheim, heimlich"); pikūtuwwet is "to be revealed" (Wiklund s.v. pikute- "offenbaren", with the passive ending), and kalhkač is the potential of kalhk-, "shall, be to" (no. 2), so "would have to". (13) rahpūt is "open" (Wiklund s.v. rahput "offen"). (14) skēlmau is a piece of mischief (Wiklund s.v. skelma- "Schelm, Spitzbube", from Nordic skälm); tūle is "there" (Halász IV s.v. tūlie "dort"); lāḳēṭē is in none of these dictionaries and is read from context as "correct". (15) ōksē is a branch (Halász IV s.v. oąksie "Ast, Zweig"); maddaḳau is the stem (Wiklund s.v. maddake- "Stamm"; Halász IV mattaka, "Stamm; Wurzel"); čûvvū is "follows" (Wiklund s.v. čuovu- "folgen"); vûrrasī is "of the old" (Wiklund s.v. vuorase- "alt"); lûttait are tracks (Wiklund s.v. luotta- "Spur"). (16) ē is the third person plural of the negative verb (Wilbur Table 8.26, eh); pārran is "as a pair" (Wiklund s.v. para- "Paar"); mûtuka is "alike" (Lindahl–Öhrling s.v. Muotok, "similis, lik"). (17) saikēs is "stingy" (Wiklund s.v. sai'ke-, saikes, "geizig"; Lindahl–Öhrling s.v. Saige, "parcus, njugg"); copcuhte, plainly spelled såpsotte, is in none of these dictionaries and is kept in Sámi: it is something a stingy person will not do even for a dog. It may be a derivative of the verb that Wiklund gives as sopcu-, "gedeihen, aushalten" (thrive, hold out), which would give "does not even keep the dog going"; that is not confirmed. (18) ańe is "yet" (Halász IV s.v. anne "noch"); ńukča is a swan (Wiklund s.v. ńukča- "Schwan"); vēlhkuṭam is "turned white" (Halász IV s.v. velkes "weiss"); vœʼrĕhċa is a raven (Halász IV s.v. vuórhče "Rabe"); čǟhpuṭam is "turned black" (Halász IV s.v. čēps, čähps, "schwarz"). (19) kēnēsvûht, plainly genesvodt, is "idleness": Lindahl–Öhrling s.v. Kenes, "inutilis, ignavus", Swedish "doglös", with its noun Keneswuot, "inertia, ignavia, doglöshet". (20) kuit is "after all", as Wiklund's koit, "doch", under mainute-; kēwke is "anyone", Wilbur's gev, "whom" (Table 6.6), with -ke; krœptai is "into the grave" (Wiklund s.v. (k)ruopta- "Grab", from Old Norse grǫptr). (21) kēllāsina is "with lies"; kuhkās is "far" (Wiklund s.v. kuoke-, illative kuokas, "weithin"). (22) čaimaṭė is "laugh" (Wiklund s.v. čaima- "lachen"); tūste is "from you". (23) hōloit is read as "talk", from the verb hållåt, "to say" (Wilbur), and tan as "that one's" (Wilbur's demonstrative genitive dan); the sense of the saying is not certain. (24) muhtēmit is "some" (Wiklund s.v. muoteme-, plural "einige"). (25) näʼlĕḳē is hunger (Wiklund s.v. nel'ke- "Hunger"); kuhhču is "commands" (Halász IV s.v. kąhčet "befehlen", third person kuhče). (26) vûrasvûhta is old age; lēraht is "teaches" (Halász IV s.v. liäret "lehren", from Swedish lära); sɵʼibma is "slowly" (Halász IV s.v. soajĕmohka "langsam", citing Lindahl–Öhrling suoim, suoimak). (27) heďďū is "the poor" (Wiklund s.v. hejju- "arm"); vœllēkubbūn is "lower down" (Wiklund s.v. vuole- "unten"). (28) a kukse is a wooden cup or ladle (Wiklund s.v. kukse- "Becher, Kelle"; Halász IV kuksie), so kuksē-mûrra is the wood such a cup is carved from; vällṭuč is "would take", but what is taken is not said, and the sense of the saying is not clear to us. (29) vûddaina is "with shoe-bands", the long bands wound round a Sámi shoe (Wiklund s.v. vuoddage- "Schuhband"); kosō, plainly gåså, is a cow (Wiklund s.v. kusa- "Kuh", from Old Norse kussa; Lindahl–Öhrling s.v. Koss, kosa, "vacca, ko"; Friis 1887 s.v. Gussa); ċēlastiċa is read as "would bark", the bark of no. 2 with the short-action suffix -st- (Wilbur §10.2.2). This saying is among the least certain on the page. (30) cēlahta is "you bark at", from the verb of no. 2, which Friis 1887 also gives as "to scold". (31) fäʼrĕhta is "everyone" (Wiklund s.v. fart, far't, "jeder, all", and far'takača, "ein jeder"; Lindahl–Öhrling s.v. Fårta, "quisque"); mäʼidnū is "praises" (Wiklund s.v. mainute- "loben"; Friis 1887 s.v. Maidnot, "laudare"). (32) anēhtu is "hold!" (Wiklund s.v. aneɔte- "halten"; Halász IV s.v. utńetīʼt, "halten, zurückhalten, behalten", citing Lule aniehtet), its ending -u read as the milder command that Wilbur (§8.1.3.1, p. 152) reports as "imperative II"; ńœkčamaw is the tongue (Wiklund s.v. ńuokčame- "Zunge"); pǟni oʼuṭon is "in front of the teeth"; lik, in both spellings, is in none of these sources and is not rendered. (33) äksit are axes (Halász IV s.v. akša, äkšā, "Axt"); vûlaṭallā is "whittles", from Wiklund s.v. vuola- "mit dem Messer schneiden, hobeln" and Halász IV s.v. vuollat "schnitzen", with the suffix -dall- (Wilbur §10.2.4); alla is "high"; the sense of the saying is not clear to us. (34) šaddalės is "fruitful", from šaddat, "to grow"; ōhkor is a field (Wiklund s.v. åkare-, åkar, "Acker"). (35) tist is read as "from you", the plural form (Wilbur Table 6.1, dijást), though it could also be "from that" (Wilbur Table 6.3, dasste); aktawk is "not a single"; šattuit are crops; kuttē is "bears" (Wiklund s.v. kuode- "tragen"). (36) Kɵim-ähhcēles, plainly göimäceles, is in none of these dictionaries and is kept in Sámi; its first part looks like kuoibme, a companion (as kuimēs in no. 11), and its second like Halász IV's āhčielačče, "väterlich", fatherly, which would give "fatherly to his fellows"; that is not confirmed, and the dictionary has č where Halász prints c. (37) ėllu is "do not" (Wilbur Table 8.26, imperative ele, ilu); họ̄llu is "say". (38) skuglu is an owl (Lindahl–Öhrling s.v. Ija: ija juglo or ija skuglo, "noctua, nattuggla"); oʼivē is a head. (39) pära is "only" (Wilbur's ber, bar, from Swedish bara); kutnan is "of ash" (Wiklund s.v. kutna- "Asche"), and could also be read "in the ashes". (40) rapās is "open" (Wiklund s.v. rahpase-, rapas, "offen"); pēkkaiṭā is "to the winds" (Wiklund s.v. pieka- "Wind"). (41) spaʼihta is "fast" (Wiklund s.v. spai'ta "schnell"); nakā is "can manage" (Wiklund s.v. naka- "vermögen"); vɵigñat is "to breathe" (Halász IV s.v. wuéiñtīʼt "atmen", citing Lindahl–Öhrling vuoignetet); vińikiw, "I …", is in none of these dictionaries and is kept in Sámi.
Pite Sámi is close to Lule and South Sámi; where no dictionary of those languages decides a word, the reading is named here.
No English translation of this text is known to us.
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Source Text: Tai tulučī pāhkū-vāďďasa
The Pite Sámi text as printed by Halász (1893), nos. P1–P41, transcribed from the page images in his phonetic spelling.
1. tat, kuhte ėlā allaḳit hāllān, son kahhča jis ėḷā ċēkñalit.
2. tat virhtij ēċ pēnan orrūt, ku’te kalhk pētnaḳīna cēllat.
3. ih ton pirrė nāhkėp̣ vœʼbĕdēt pērhtnast, owṭost ko le’ vûhčam.
4. čalᵉmētēpmē läʼiṭij čalᵉmēhtēmiu (tāp pākū-vāďďasep̣ sija jihti, ku’ lē nākan kāivas muppėu kaiăvasau oivoṭam ja tē aktan tahkap̣a nākan kāivas parhkūw).
5. jukā čācėw ēčat āďďaḳist! (tap̣ jihti, jus le nākan olmaj lowtēs sēkak ja ēčā khuinait vaʼidnūt).
6. son lē ai akta skûllaj pällū. (kossə almača le skᵘœlltara).
7. son lē akkta assās päʼlĕjē. (ukuluḳės almač).
8. lōčċēs ċāhcē, vala ċēkñalės podnē (sāvū’tės orruj almača pirra jihti tau: loďďēn vuidnuje, vala vaimū sinne lē alvūs pahā).
9. ī lē sa rīhkė kaʼihka pālēn ńälhkuk porrot (tau jihti, kosse nākan lē vallṭam muppėu rīhki tihta ahhkan, jala olᵒbman).
10. tat, kuhte kēlēst, son āi sûlāt.
11. tē kulā’ talle, vīsēs rēpė vaʒʒa pirra mū (tau jis jihti, ku vīsēs ja falskēs almač rutnā kuimēs pirra, ja ī tāďďaṭe, mau tut vīsēs hollā).
12. ī lē aktak čēkūs, mī ī kalhkač pikūtuwwet.
13. son lē nau kāivas, āhte ī māhtē atnēt ċėlᵉmītes ja ńalmēps rahpūt.
14. kokte ädnė lē, te lē mānā’ āi (tau jės jihti, ko tūle mānā’ tihki nākan skēlmau ja ädnē ī lāḳēṭē).
15. kale vuinau, āhte ōksē čûvvū maddaḳau (tau jės jihti sija, ko nûrra minni vûrrasī lûttait).
16. ē kale pārran šattā, owṭos ko sijā lē mûtuka.
17. saikēs almač ī obonės pētnaḳaw copcuhte (saiges almač i åbånes bednakaw såpsotte).
18. ī lē talle ańe ńukča vēlhkuṭam ja vœʼrĕhċa čǟhpuṭam (i le anje njokča velkodam ja vörča čäppodam).
19. kēnēsvûht sa ētnakaw tahka (genesvodt sa ednakav daka).
20. ī sa kuit rīhkė čûvuča kēwke krœptai (i sa goidt rike ċovoča gevke gröbtai).
21. ī sa kēllāsina man kuhkās pōtiča (i sa gelasina man gokas boddiča).
22. i’ ton obo tāďďaṭe, ko almača tūste čaimaṭė (e don åbå dajjade, ko almača doste ċaimade).
23. ī haw pēna tan hōloit porō (i hav bena dan hålåit bårå).
24. rīhkė sa āi muhtēmit almačen tahkā (rike sa ai mottemit almačen daka).
25. näʼlĕḳē sa kuhhču parhkaṭėt (nälgge sa gočo barggadet).
26. vûrasvûhta sa kul lēraht sɵʼibma vaʒʒēt (vorrasvodta sa gol lerat söibma vadsedt).
27. virhtij sa heďďū vœllēkubbūn orrūt (verti sa hejo völlegobbon årrot).
28. kale kuksē-mûrra sa talle āi vällṭuč (gale gokse-mora sa dalle ai välddoč).
29. ī ta stûrēs vûddaina kosō ċēlastiċa (i ta stores voddaina gåså čellastjča).
30. tē ton cēlahta mū, naw ko pētnakaw (de don cellatta mo, naw ko bednakav).
31. fäʼrĕhta sa ēčaws mäʼidnū (färtta sa ečavs mäidno).
32. anēhtu-ta lik ńœkčamaw pǟni oʼuṭon (annedo da lik ńökċamav bäni auddon!)
33. kale lē tat olmaj, ku’te alla äksit vûlaṭallā (galle le dat olmaj, gotte alla äksit voladalla).
34. kale lē ton akt šaddalės ōhkor (gale le don akt šaddales åkår).
35. ī haw tist mū ōhkor aktawk šattuit kuttē (ī hav dest mo åkår akttavk šaddoit godde).
36. kɵim-ähhcēles almač lē hau son (göimäceles almač le hav son).
37. ėllu-ta ētnaḳasait họ̄llu! (ella da ednagasait holo).
38. tälle ton ku skuglu oʼivē. (dälle don ko skoglo åive.)
39. son lē pära kutnan oʼivē. (son le bära gonnan åive.)
40. tāt saďďē lē rapās kaik pēkkaiṭā.
41. monno vińikiw nau spaʼihta, ip̣ mon nakā obōnės vɵigñat.
Source Colophon
Ignácz Halász, Svéd-lapp nyelv V: Népköltési gyűjtemény a Pite-lappmark arjepluogi egyházkerületéből (Budapest: Magyar Tudományos Akadémia, 1893), pp. 290–294, section XV, proverbs 1–41. Public domain. Transcribed from the page images of the scan of the Library of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (REAL-EOD 4154). Halász's phonetic spelling is kept letter for letter, with his length marks, dots above and below, breves, raised vowels, ď, ń, ñ, œ, ɵ and ʒ; the thin raised stroke inside a word is written ʼ, and the curly apostrophe of elision ’, as the print keeps them apart. Line-end hyphens are joined; each proverb, with its bracket, stands as one paragraph, as in the English; Halász's brackets, both his Sámi explanations and his second, plainer spellings, are kept as printed. His Hungarian translation and his notes are not reproduced.
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