Fairion felehta (The grotto of the Fairies) - updated with more lines August 28, 2010

I have started some time ago to transform a Swiss legend from the Canton of Jura into a poem with rhyming couplets, because when reading it I realised that we have practically all the necessary vocabulary. I shall post it in bits and pieces as it is going to be fairly long.
Source: Meinrad Lienert, Schweizer Sagen und Heldengeschichten

Comments and corrections most welcome.

Yá andanéya fairi en ranner
palúrenna ar marintar carner
nu falmar hya mi haure felehtar
nurtala – queni sanner – harmantar,
tauri Sírenando nér i vehte
andave túrienwa ló melehte
máre, írime, saile nission;
arvanime anente ilyaron.
Lírente ómainen elmendie,
findelentar nér analaurie.
Fenna felehtanto úne muina
mal né úcarinwa lelya minna
ar úne avatyarinwa ullume
hequa vinyamollo mine lúme.
Fírimonnar cénime anente
otsolar airissen, quie vantanente
tere i aldarembina imbe
peryanwa ló síre silma ar limbe.
« Lossewendi » né i nission esse
ten ánienwa ló Atani ostosse,
an nassentar i larmar fantaner
i mi lossea talmanna lantaner.

Yá urda loa i nórena úvane,
min’ imbi Lossewendi tulyane
máma morna ter nando taurea,
i ninque tenge loa almárea.
Yá i endesse lómeo, wende
luttien imbi nénur lorne lende,
nende varyanwa né ló narmo atta
querien queni nissello arata.

Yá hríve vaitane nóre quanda
lórenen lossea, ringa, anda,
Lossewendi túler i ostonna
lómissen cestien náreo anna,
*lautien inte ara lauca ruimen
mi tamino quie né lusta i men.
Nó Anar eccoitane i tamor,
i Vanimar, úcénime ló fírimor,
felehtannar nanwenner lintie,
ve andafind’eleni coirie
an vaina, ananda findilenta
tyárienwa né hlapu ló norienta.

updated July 22, 2010
Lintatalaite né i winyamo
ar sinwa ve leptafinya tamo
yeo verie ar víne se sahtaner
ar vanya arinesse se tyarner
langa i felehto more fenda.
Ter i mardi vantanes andave,
yassen yéni pa yéni, oiave,
nén cantane, fintane mi ondor,
únótime vanye Fairerondor.
Caima salqueva ar lassíva tá hirnes,
allumba i vantanen tanome caines.
Yá anes ata cuiva, arse tarne nís
ar ómarya né linda, quettaryar ve lís :

Update August 28, 2010

« Annawe, à lemya mi felcanyar
tere yéni mine, óni ar nésanyar.
Istyalmallo ranta samuvalye.
Site laimaron asie paruvalye
ar i maitale mirwe tincoinen,
yando nauval arimaite mírelínen.
I márie nolweye yar camuvalye
oiala vandalyanen atantuvalye:
ual cestuva ni mir mardanya,
cenuvanyel ire nás nirmenya.
Na vorosanya ar colc’ atta laurie
quantuvan annainen ilaurie:
malta poica ar marilla mine
rá ilya auren mir felcar sine.”
Sín, Annawe hande máriesse
sinta lumen vanya Náriesse.
Ilya omentie as Lossewen
endesse aureo né ve meren.
Tyávea apsa ar indo merya,
yé mána ma náne coivierya.

Here is the literal translation:

When once upon a time Spirits still wandered
upon the Earth and built their homes
under waves or in large caves
hiding – people thought – their treasures,
the woods of Vallorbe were the haunt,
long governed by the might
of good, lovely, wise women;
the most beautiful they were of all.
They sang with wonderful voices,
their tresses were very much like gold.
The door of their cave was not secret,
but it was wrong done to go inside
and was not forgiven ever
except for a youngster once.
To Mortals they were visible
on holy weeks, when they wandered
through the treetangled vale
divided by a river silver shining and swift.
“White Maiden” was the women’s name
given by the Mortals in town,
for their true beings the raiment veiled
which in white fell to the ground.
When a difficult year drew near to the country,
one of the White Maiden led
a black sheep through the forested vale,
a white one indicated a blessed year.
When at midnight a maiden went
to swim among the sleeping water-lillies,
the pool was protected by two wolves
to turn people from the noble woman.
When winter wraped the whole country
in snow-white dream, cold, long,
White Women came to the town
in the night to search the gift of the fire,
to warm themselves beside the warm hearth
in the forge whenever the place was empty.
Before the Sun woke the smiths,
the Beautiful Ones, unseen by mortals,
returned to the caves with swiftness,
like living comets (Long-haired stars)
for their blond, very long hair
was caused to fly by their running.

updated July 22, 2010
Swift-footed was the youngster
and known as a clever smith
whose boldness and youth tempted him
and on a bright morning caused him
to cross the cave’s dark threshold.
Through the halls he wandered long,
where years after years, eternally,
water had shaped and decorated into rocks
uncountable beautiful fay-caves.
A bed of grass and leaves he then found,
very tired from walking he there lay down.
When he was awake again, beside him stood a woman.
Her voice was melodious and her words like honey:

Update August 28, 2010

“Donat, stay in my cave
through one long year with me and my sisters.
From our knowledge you will have a part.
Of this sort you will learn the comfort of plants
and the artful working with precious metals,
you will also be very skilled with jewels.
The goodness and wisdom which you will receive,
with your everlasting oath you will pay back:
you will not seek me in my dwelling,
I shall see you when it is my will.
Abide by the rules and two golden-shining boxes
I shall fill with daily gifts:
pure gold and one pearl
for every day in these caves.”
Now, Donat stayed in happiness
for a short time in fair June.
Every meeting with the White Woman
at noon (middle of the day) was like a feast.
Tasty food and festive mood,
what a good thing was his life.

Comments

oreramar:

The name of the young smith is "Donat" which means the "Given". I have translated it as "Gift-Person". Has anyone a better idea?

Aran:

Maybe *Antano in analogy to nehtano (PE17:167)? Also, m. anto, fem. ante 'giver' are attested, although this is obviously not the same as 'given'.

oreramar:

Thanks Aran, but "giver" does not fit the character of Donat. Maybe, something turns up till the story is finished.

oreramar:

I have revised my text a bit and made use of simple past passive participles described in PE17:68. I would appreciate some feedback in this, as I am not sure whether I understood this passage correctly in PE17.
Thanks in advance.

Aran:

Is **avatyainwa a typo for *avatyarinwa?
*Antainwa looks strange to me - as I understand PE17:68 you can form a past participle passive from the aorist stem (kari-nwa) or from the unaugmented perfect stem (kárie-nwa) with the same meaning. For anna- therefore either *annanwa or *ánienwa '(was) given'. And shouldn't the preceding pronoun be ten 'to them'?
Otherwise it seems all okay.

oreramar:

Thank you Aran, I was not quite sure whether the two forms had exactly the same meaning, one forme simply being rarely employed.

It is of course avatyarinwa (was forgiven) and ten. I changed "anta-" into ánienwa. Why annanwa, from the aorist it would be antanwa, wouldn't it?. Could you explain where anna- is from?

Thanks again.

Aran:

Of course *antanwa. I've got a little Sindarin mixed in, looks like my Quenya is getting rusty...

Yes, I do believe that the forms have the same meaning. If karinwa is a valid past participle passive, then the whole ending -nwa must already convey that notion, because the verbal root kari- doesn't. It can just be made more explicit by actually being appended to a past tense root of a verb.

admin:

I think I'll never 'warm to' the idea of using an allative in constructions like 'ranyane palúrenna'... Other than that, a very interesting piece, will have to read through it a couple of times to see if I've got any questions.

Thanks for sharing it!

oreramar:

I remember we had this difference already in a Tanka 2 years ago! I am very much attached to this "mouvement upon something" but I have to think it over.

admin:

Who knows, it may very well be perfect Quenya as far as Tolkien would be concerned. It's quite possible that I'm just projecting my real-life language-sense to the way I 'operate' in Eldarin tongues.