webPulaaku

Amadou Hampâté Bâ
Kaïdara

Translated by Daniel Whitman
With “Kings, Sages, Rogues: The Historical Writings of Amadou Hampâté Bâ”

Washington, D.C. Three Continents Press. 1988.

       Table des matieres      

Kaydara — Strophes 1-10

To Leydi Kaydara kaawoyniindi
— Taalol taalaangol taaltee… 1
— A ngoongoto na?
— So to baddi pijooji ley leeleeje jamma,
taalol am yo seekata aadi janta.
Tuma jammaaji dabbunde pooɗii njuuti, 5
taw mottooɓe wakkati jaange catti,
jantam oo yo taalol wela heɗaade.
So taw ɗum nyaaɗa-waare e tekka-teppe,
yo nii taalol yo soobee pinndinoowol.
Gaajotoo min nafoowo mi pinndinoowo. 10
— Tallu wara …

In the mysterious country of Kaydara
— Tale told, tale to tell…
— Will you be truthful?
— For the little ones who play at night by the light of the moon,
my tale is merely a fantastic story.
When the nights of the cool season stretch and lengthen,
at the late hour when the spinners grow weary,
my account is more: a pleasant story to listen to.
Yet for the hairy-chins and rough-heels who have traveled far,
it is a truthful story that has much to teach.
Thus I am futile, useful, instructive.
— Unfold it then, on with it …