Linda Poboto Part 1

Text and Translation

Ŋasaras linda pobotoza zisirinohe. Ŋono poto liŋi, yatayatavadu lira. Poto liŋiye, muros dahidahi liŋi, morono.

Moronen muros dahidahi liŋiye, uri erenano. Liyeza naka, liyenen yiri buros nara. Koyo erenaya yiri erenanen yereme. Erenaya keruvelime. Naya ŋarunos ŋono pezes ebeno, naya ŋarunos yozos tileya ŋarahidu hape aŋaka.

You may have heard news of my sickness. I was very sick, almost to death. While I was sick, I lay on the mat, and a dream came.

With the dream, while I am lying on the mat, the wind spirits come. They grasp me and take me to the mouth of a dry wash. These spirits play with the dry wash spirits. The dry wash spirits create dust devils. They make a distant pool of water appear to you and then before you can reach it they make it fail to appear.

Interlinear and Explanation

Ŋasaras linda pobotoza zisirinohe.

You may have heard news of my sickness.

Ŋono poto liŋi, yatayatavadu lira.

I was very sick, almost to death.

Note that poto is an adjective and poboto is a derived noun. A similar pair was encountered before: zeye ‘dark’ and zeseye ‘darkness’. Also, =du marks an unattained destination, so somewhere on the path to death. Speaking of death, yalata is the adjective ‘dying’ and yatayata is the adjective ‘dead’, and death is formed from the latter by adding the nominalizing suffix -va. The word yata no longer exists.

Poto liŋiye, muros dahidahi liŋi, morono.

While I was sick, I lay on the mat, and a dream came.

Moronen muros dahidahi liŋiye, uri erenano.

With the dream, while I am lying on the mat, the wind spirits come.

I guess N N compound phrases are allowed. Usually N N is whole part, and I suppose this compound could be read that way, too—the wind’s spirits. Or maybe it is only whole part when the part is obviously a part.

Liyeza naka, liyenen yiri buros nara.

They grasp me and take me to the mouth of a dry wash.

The motion particle =ka is used with =za to convey physical possession or ownership. This is an extension of its use here, as a way to convey grasping something.

Also note that =za, =nen, and =s glom onto full pronouns only, while =nda, =du, and =ya glom onto pronominal particles.

Koyo erenaya yiri erenanen yereme.

These spirits play with the dry wash spirits.

Erenaya keruvelime.

The dry wash spirits create dust devils.

Naya ŋarunos ŋono pezes ebeno, naya ŋarunos yozos tileya ŋarahidu hape aŋaka.

They make a distant pool of water appear to you and then before you can go there they make it fail to appear.

Can you think of a better way to explain mirages?