Here is a translation of part of Chapter 4 of the originally French novel by Stendahl into SinPlatt. It is possibly not perfect yet. I started out by tweaking my Frenkisch translation into a SinPlatt-like form. Later I decided that a fresh look was needed.
I'd be interested how intelligible it is to speakers of German, Dutch and English -- the source languages of SinPlatt
De Kartuse FAN Parma
fan Stendahl
KAPITEL 4
Nejts kond him wekken, nejt de musketten nåj de karr geschoten oder de traf fan de perden, dat de merketantin med all hire kraft pitschde. Dat regiment, angefallen unferwajted fan swarmen fan prüüssische kavalleri, after si all de dag in de seg gelöövd hadden, tiejden snell toorügg oder egenlik flooen too de richting fan Frankriek.
De kolonell, ene elegante junge mann, good antwikkeld, dat Macon
“Ferdammd,” brüllde hi too siene soldaten, “in de tied fan de Republik, wajteden wi antoo wi gedreven fan de fiend wåren for wi weg rannen. Ferdedig eelke lapp fan terrän, and werd gedöded!” hi riep hin an and scheldede hin uut. “Et is de grund fan dat Faderland dat dese prüüssen nu infallen wollen!”
De kleine karr stoppde; Fabrice wekkde plütslik. De sonn hadd allreid lang gesunken; hi was gansch estonärd too sejen dat et nåjgenoog dunker was. De soldaten liepen hen and toorügg med ene ferwerring dat unsere held seer overraschde; Si såjen ferlegen uut, hi dacht.
“Wat geschejt?” frågde hi de merketantin.
“Absolut nejts. Bloot dat wi in diepe möje sien, miene junge; Dår is de prüüssische kavalleri, dat uns dood höwen, nejts meer. De idiotische general dacht eerst dat si unser wåren. Kom snell, help mi Cocotte hire toom reparären; et is kaput.”
Een par schotten wåren tejn schreden ferr geschoten. Unsere held, frekk and sorgloos, seggde too sikk: “Doch werklik, hebb ik de hele dag nejt alssulk gestridden; Ik hebb bloot ene general begeleided.” “Ik moot gån and strieden” fertellde hi de merketantin.
“Mak kene sorg, du sallst strieden, and meer als du willst! Wi sien ferloren”
“Aubry, miene kerl,” riep si too ene forbiekomende korporal uut, “bewak immer wår de kleine karr fan tied too tied is.”
“Sollt ji strieden?” frågde Frabrice Aubry.
“Ach nee, Ik kleid mi miene pantoffels um too gån too de ball!”
“Ik sall jü folgen.”
“Ik pries de lüttele husar an,” riep de merketantin. “De junge bürger heft ene modig hert.” Korporal Aubry marschärde forbie uten seggen een word. Acht oder tejn soldaten liepen fort and kåmen med him toosamen. Hi leidede hin toorügg ene grote eek, umgegeven med dornen. Wan kam hi dår, hi settede hin fort de rand fan de busch, noch uten seggen een word, an ene wied gestrekkde front, eelke stond toomindest tejn schreden af siene nåjbuur.
“Ach so männen”, seggde de koporal, hi sprak för de eerst mål, “schiet nejt antoo ik et befel: bedenk, ji hebbt enig drie patronen eelk.”
“Doch, wat geschejt dan?” frågde Frabrice sikk. Endlik, wan fand hi sikk alleen med de korporal, hi seggde too him: “Ik hebb kene muskett.”
“Eersts, hald diene tung. Gå fort dår
Fabrice rann fort and kam toorügg straks med ene muskett and ene rancel.
“Lad diene muskett and sett di hinden jeen boom, in dat besunder, schiet nejt for de befel dat ik geven sall… Genådeloos God!”, riep de korporal underbroken uut, “hi kann nejt alssulk siene wåpen laden!”. (Hi halp Fabrice des too dooen, fortgåend med siene updragen.) “Infall mag ene fiendlike rieder an di galopären um di too hakken, dråj sikk um diene boom, and schiet nejt antoo hi in nåje reikwiedde is, wan diene rieder drie schreden af di is: wajt antoo diene bajonett nåjgenoog siene uniform trefft.”
“Smiet diene grote sabel weg,” schriede de korporal. “Willst du fan him fallen, in Gods nam? Sulke soldaten sien wi nu gegeven!”
Als hi sprak, hi nam de sabel and warp him weg böös.
“Du, wisch de füürsteen fan diene muskett med dien dook. Hast du emål ene muskett geschoten?”
“Ik bin ene jager.”
“Dank God!” seggde de korporal med ene diepe süft. “In dat besunder, schiet nejt for de befel dat ik jü geven sall.”
And hi ging weg.
Fabrice was gansch früdig. “Endlik sall ik werklik strieden,” seggde hi too sikk, “and ene fiend döden. Desmorgen warpen si an uns kanonkugels, and ik dääd nejts uten stell mi bloot too gedöded werden; Dat werk fan idioten.” Hi blikkde sikk um, seer niewsgirig. After ene kurte tied, plütslik höörde hi seven oder acht muskettschotten temlik nåj him. Doch hi höörde kene befelen too schieten, allso stond hi still hinden siene boom.
Hi David !
ReplyDeleteIs this "genomem" or "genomen" ?
If sinplatt is supposed to be a kind of Low German dialect, I wonder whether it should have no preterit tense (except for a few verbs) and used the composed past (to be or to have + past participle) instead. Afrikaans uses this system too.
Olivier, you're right *genomem is a mistake --now fixed.
ReplyDeleteSinPlatt is a "synthesized" Low German language. It's not based on actual Low German dialects at all. It's based on linguistic features that are common to at least 2 of English, German and Dutch. The grammar and vocabulary and presence of such irregularities as mann/männen, is based on their presence in the majority of those 3 languages. Most Low German dialects don't form the past participle with "ge-", but Dutch and German do, which is the reason for its existance in SinPlatt.
The most Low German thing about it, is that the form of words are based on Old Saxon proto-types. And the forms and phonology have evolved to something generally similar to modern Low German dialects. For example, long vowels haven't become diphthongs, and Old Saxon *â has evolved to å [O:]
SinPlatt is really just a synthesis of English, German and Dutch with a superficial pseudo-Low German skin.
If Low German mainly doesn't have preterit tense, then it's a lot like spoken High German and spoken Dutch -- they also tend to use the preterit a lot less in spoken language. But perhaps that's because Low German is mostly spoken and not written, so it has even less usage of literary registers. Lots of people speak some form of Low German, but they don't read or write it, because it was never taught to them in school. SinPlatt doesn't have that restriction -- it exists so far only in literary form -- and it's not strictly a real Low German language at all.