Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
[PP: 144-150]
Khishigsuren Dorj
International University of Ulaanbaatar
Mongolia
ABSTRACT
The paper explores the translation of Mongolian shamanic poetry into English. Many scholars, foreign
and native alike, consider shamanic poems one of the early sources of Mongolian oral literature. Translating
ancient poems presents linguistic and cultural challenges along with issues of varying poetic meters of source
language and target language. Therefore, the study attempted to explore what the most frequent translation error
types are in published works, and if those translations could convey uniqueness of original poems in lexical and
lyrical competences. By analyzing eight published works and comparing the selected three translations of a
Mongolian shamanic praise, attempt was done to hypothesize a methodology for translation of Mongolian
shamanic poetry. Based on the findings, and in correspondence of the methodology drafted, the author’s
translation of the praise of Darhad shamaness Ch.Batbayar of Sharnuud clan is also presented.
Keywords: Mongolian shamanic poetry, head rhyme, cultural equivalence, oral literature, cultural
challenges
ARTICLE The paper received on: 28/10/2016 Reviewed on: 25/11/2016 Accepted after revisions on: 31/12/2016
INFO
Suggested citation:
Dorj, K. (2016). Translation of Mongolian Shamanic Praises- A Study of most Frequent Errors. International Journal
of English Language & Translation Studies. 4(4), 144-150. Retrieved from www.eltsjournal.org
translations greatly. The results of the the Protector of Livestock and Property”
contrastive analysis of the shamanic poetry also has some errors such as “the border and
translations are provided in the following the collar of your garment were sewn by a
sections. girl” instead of saying: “the hem and collar
2. Literary Review of your garment”; “represented on a
A number of research works has measure of cotton cloth”, which does not
been published on Mongolian shamanic express creating of the deity by
rituals and poetry but translations of consecrating. There are some descriptive
shamanic poetry are limited and reviews are translations like “He stands majestic on the
nonexistent. Therefore, the corpus used in peak of the ice-covered mountain” where it
the study consisted of eight translation can be said as “He stands majestic on the
works of foreign and Mongolian scholars. summit” so that it matches the original
The investigation included a thorough poem with line-length and rhythm (Chiodo,
analysis of texts in terms of linguistic 2009).
features in an attempt to identify linguistic Agnes Birtalan translated “An
errors, seemingly resulting from translation Invocation to Dayan Derx” that has a few
procedures. errors where misconception of words
Judith Hangartner included some occurs and redundancy of words and lines
shamanic poetry translations in her PhD also distorts the original poem (Birtalan,
dissertation (Hangartner, 2007). These 2005).
translations reveal that lack of knowledge of I beg you
shamanic concepts and misunderstanding Bestow us to live in peace,
Guard and protect our whole hearth
of context of shamanic poems lead to poor Fore one year from now forward
quality translations. For example: Ensure living in health and many other things!
Hii hiisver biyetenguud min' gej hairhduud Here “I beg you” is added on and
My aerial-bodied benevolent ones
Hiisver uulen damjalgatanguud min' gej
that does not match with original, and
hairhduudMy aerial-transmitting benevolent ones “many other things” is redundant because of
Hui salhi shig hiisverten min' the misconception. There are other errors
My tornado like aired beings like “hawk” where it should say
Serveej bиren haragtai “backbone”; “tent” for “Mongolian ger”;
Of completely outstanding appearance
Sertiij bиren chanartai
“infants” where it should be “children”;
Of completely protruding capability “Let the cattle in the open-air Pasture
The word ‘haragtai’ means without the danger of fear…”, where fear
‘haragtun’ in a Buryat dialect, which is an concerns people not the cattle in the original
imperative verb ‘look!’, and it was poem; “Khans, hillock-protectors” and
translated incorrectly due to the “Khangai territory”, which are not correct
misconception of the dialect. The word in translations; “Merciful spirits of Ur” where
the last line was recorded erroneously as “ur” means child/offspring, and therefore,
‘chanartai’, which should be ‘chagnagtii’, the translation is incomplete since the
meaning ‘listen!’, and because of that author did not identify the entity as a spirit
misspelling it was translated incorrectly as protecting children. An idiomatic
well. Some similar errors are repeated in the expression “Ogtorgön dolön Burхad” is
next translations. translated as “The seven Buddhas of the
Elisabetta Chiodo’s translation in Heaven!”, where there is nothing related to
“Songs of Khorchin Shamans to Jayagachi, the Buddhist religion or the saint of Buddha
International Journal of English Language & Translation Studies ISSN:2308-5460
Volume: 04 Issue: 04 October-December, 2016
Page | 145
International Journal of English Language & Translation Studies ISSN:2308-5460
Volume: 04 Issue: 04 October-December, 2016
in the original poem. Mongolians call the “…By narrating 81 praises of life stories
Big Dipper as the Seven Deities. By oblation of 81 sacrifices and offerings …
We summon the safeguarding for us…”
Kara Gyorgy’s “Garbal: A western
Another example of wrong-word-
Buryat shaman song” is a meticulous
choice: “…Fateful spirits guides with watery eyes
translation of a shamanic incantation with a Savior beings of red lives”
buryat dialect, nevertheless, the word büte Because of word-by-word
in “exe büte garbal” means translation the idiomatic expressions are not
whole/complete, the same in “esege büte genuinely delivered and it expresses
udxa”, but the translation reads “Mother- opposite meanings from the original poem.
like ancestry” and “Father-like descent”. His translation tends to borrow words from
The actual meaning of this expression is other religions (naga v kings, heaven, hell,
complete lineage without interruption holy, relics, talisman etc.) to depict
(Gyorgy, 2016). shamanic expressions and that alters the
John Hangin Gombojav translated uniqueness of shamanic poetry.
“Invocation to Dayan Degerekiii” :
Oh hoary Khan Darkhaniii, father of mine!
Bum-Ochir Dulam included a short
You who have thirty-three bay-colored steeds translation of shamanic poems in his book
Straddling Mt. Üüriin Khairkhaniv, “Mongolian shamanic rituals”, and the
Making the Sacred Pass your throne, translation of two specific terms for
Drinking the water from the River Agar. worshiping entities are not consistent in that
You who come with your back-bow nocked
And your front-bow drawn!
one of them “Hairhad” (a propitiatory title
Khan Darkhan, hoary father of mine, for revered mountains) was transcribed as it
Deign to watch over and help us is with a footnote but the other one
For our ten white merits “Tenger” (the highest worshipping entity in
This translation is well done in Mongolian shamanic culture) was
terms of lexical choice, but in translated as “heavens”, which is not a
morphological terms there is an error where direct cultural or description equivalent
the subject “you” in the 2nd line is not (Dulam, 2010).
properly connected with a verb, except Purvee Gurbadar translated the
defining gerunds in the following three book of Otgon Purev’s “Mongolian
lines, while the next subject “you” in the 6th Shamanism” that includes shamanic poems
line takes a verb “deign”. (Gurbadar, 2006). Through analysis of the
Degii Sodbaatar translated translations the following lexical and
invocations of the shaman Byambadorj in phonetical errors were found:
the form of word-by-word translation that When the Great Sun Ocean was a pool
contains numbers of lexical and structural When the Great Sumber Mountain was a hill
errors (Sodbaatar, 2014). E.g.: When the first tree was at its youngest,
“…I’m singing your ninety-nine prayerful songs When the Adult Lord was a baby one
I’m lifting your ninety-nine float boats When the Dayan Deerh was a monastery boy …
And I’m performing my ritual …” In original text “Sün” was the
There is no boat mentioned in the legendary name of an ocean but transcribing
original song, but presumably, printing it as “Sun” leads to the misconception of the
errors as “sal” (boat) instead of “sačal” Sun in the sky. Also “adult lord” and “baby
(oblation) caused his misinterpretation, one” are incorrect translations that do not
thus, he translated it improperly. The match the original poem. The following
correct version would have been: expressions from his translations are also
Cite this article as: Dorj, K. (2016). Translation of Mongolian Shamanic Praises- A Study of most Frequent
Errors. International Journal of English Language & Translation Studies. 4(4), 144-150. Retrieved from
www.eltsjournal.org
Page | 146
Translation of Mongolian Shamanic Praises- A Study of most Frequent Errors … Dorj Khishigsuren.
i
The Main worshipping Deity by Mongolian vol.40. Wiesbaden: Asiatische
shamanism Forschungen, p.89.
ii
Dayan Degereki, the most sacred shamanist shrine Chiodo, Elisabetta. (2009). Songs of Khorchin
in Mongolia, is located in the Khovsgol area. Shamans to Jayagachi, the Protector of
iii
While Khan means “king” or “emperor” in
Livestock and Property. Germany:
Mongolian, it also frequently serves as an epithet fro
a sacred mountain. Darkhan is an honored title Verlag Ferdinand Schöningh,
conferred by the emperor and makes the bearer free Paderbron.
from corvée and other government duties and taxes. Dulam Bumochir. (2010). Degrees of
When applied to a topographic feature, it has the Ritualization: Language use in
meaning of “sacred” or “forbidden”. Mongolian Shamanic Ritual, Shaman
iv
Khairkhan is a reverential reference for a high Journal for the International Society of
mountain. Academic RESEARCH on shamanism.
v
Indian word for snake/cobra Hungary: Molnar & Kelemen Oriental
vi
Publishers.
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Tengr
Gurbadar, Purvee. (2006). Mongolian
iis
vii
Chanting for Mongolian shamanic spirits shamanism. Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia:
Munkhiin useg
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Cite this article as: Dorj, K. (2016). Translation of Mongolian Shamanic Praises- A Study of most Frequent
Errors. International Journal of English Language & Translation Studies. 4(4), 144-150. Retrieved from
www.eltsjournal.org
Page | 150