An analyzed classical Manchu text

An analyzed classical Manchu text Andreas Hölzl University of Zurich, 2019 The following text in classical Manchu from the manju i yargiyan kooli ‘Veritable Records of the Manchus’ is used in the first lesson of the Manchu textbook by Gertraude Roth Li (2011: 37–51). This manuscript offers an additional analysis roughly based on the Leipzig Glossing Rules.1 In my experience, this analysis can proof helpful for learners of Manchu. It might also be useful for the general linguist or typologist who wants to make use of actual data from Manchu. The sentences are numbered and the punctuation marks have been modified for a better understanding. A recording of the text has also been provided online by Gertraude Roth Li.2 Personal names and titles are underlined. The analyzed text (1) juwe biya two month de DAT kūbuli-me manju change-CVB.IPFV Manchu baksi, scholar be ACC g’ag’ai PN taci-ha learn-PTCP.PFV ji-he come-PTCP.PVF taidzu first.emperor sure beile3 “monggo bithe be intelligent ruler Mongolian script ACC gisun language ara-ki” se-ci,4 write-OPT say-CVB.COND jargūci judge “nikan Chinese sa-ra know-PTCP.IPFV GEN hendu-me: (3) speak-CVB.IPFV “be 1PL.EX daha-me5 sa-mbi dere. (4) follow-CVB.IPFV know-IPFV DUB bithe script be ACC te adarame now how/why mara-me gisu-re-ci, (5) refuse-CVB.IPFV word-V-CVB.COND (6) i gurun country i GEN niyalma, person bithe script be ACC erdeni PN monggo-i bithe Mongolian-GEN script julge-ci antiquity-ABL kūbuli-bu-mbi?” change-CAUS-IPFV taidzu first.emperor (2) se-me6 say-CVB.IPFV sure beile hendu-me: intelligent ruler speak-CVB.IPFV hūla-ci, nikan read.alound-CVB.COND Chinese sa-rkū7 know-PTCP.IPFV.NEG niyalma person bithe script gemu all 1 https://www.eva.mpg.de/lingua/resources/glossing-rules.php, accessed 2019-05-14. http://nflrc.hawaii.edu/publications/view/XLT03-2/, accessed 2019-05-14. 3 taidzu sure beile refers to Nurhaci (1559-1626), cf. the Chinese temple name tàizǔ 太祖 (the first emperor of a dynasty). 4 The construction V-ki se- means ‘to want’. The following conditional -ci has a temporal function ‘when’ in this context. 5 dahame here means ‘because’. 6 seme is a quotative following direct speech, similar to colloquial English like before direct speech. 7 The negator -rkū is an irregular form of -rakū (< -rA + akū) that in classical Manchu is only attested for the verb sa- ‘to know’. The Sibe speaker of the recording also often pronounces -rakū without a. It is -qu in spoken Sibe, e.g. sa-qu ‘do not know’. 2 1 ulhi-mbi. (7) understand-IPFV monggo gurun Mongolian country sa-rkū know-PTCP.IPFV.NEG niyalma person i GEN bithe be hula-ci, bithe script ACC read.alound-CVB.COND script inu gemu ulhi-mbi kai. (8) also all understand-IPFV EMPH muse-i 1PL.IN-GEN bithe be monggo-ro-me hūla-ci, muse-i gurun script ACC Mongolian-V-CVB.IPFV read.alound-CVB.COND 1PL.IN-GEN country bithe script (9) sa-rkū know-PTCP.IPFV.NEG muse-i gurun 1PL.IN-GEN country encu different i GEN monggo gurun Mongolian country niyalma person ulhi-rakū understand-PTCP.IPFV.NEG gisun language GEN i GEN gisun language hendu-ci, (10) g’ag’ai speak-CVB.COND PN jargūci, scholar (11) “muse-i 1PL.IN-GEN GEN gurun country i i erdeni PN gisun language i GEN GEN kai. EMPH ara-ci adarame write-CVB.COND how/why adarame how/why i mangga. difficult ja” se-me easy say-CVB.IPFV baksi judge jabu-me, answer-CVB.IPFV ara-ci sain write-CVB.COND good mujangga. kūbuli-me ara-ra be me.n-i do.lo indeed change-CVB.IPFV write-PTCP.IPFV ACC 1PL.EX.OBL-GEN inside.LOC baha-na-rakū be.able-?IT-PTCP.IPFV.NEG o-fi become-CVB.PFV (12) taidzu first.emperor sure beile intelligent ruler hergen letter ‘a’ A ara. write.IMP waka=o? (14) NEG.COP=Q ‘e’ E ‘me’ sinda-ci ME put-CVB.COND gūni-me think-CVB.IPFV kai” EMPH i GEN hergen letter ‘ma’ sinda-ci MA put-CVB.COND ‘ama’ father .M ara. write.IMP feji.le beneath.LOC hūla-ra bithe read.alound-PTCP.IPFV script ‘e’ E waka=o? (15) mi.n-i NEG.COP=Q 1SG.OBL-GEN waji-ha. (16) suwe ara-me finish-PTCP.PVF 2PL write-CVB.IPFV se-me say-CVB.IPFV dere.” DUB hendu-me, (13) “‘a’ se-re speak-CVB.IPFV A say-PTCP.IPFV feji.le beneath.LOC se-re say-PTCP.IPFV ‘eme’ mother.F mara-mbi refuse-IPFV (17) emhun alone be ACC gisun language do.lo inside tuwa. look.IMP mara-me refuse-CVB.IPFV manju Manchu i GEN o-mbi become-IPFV monggo-ro-me Mongolian-V-CVB.IPFV i GEN kūbuli-bu-ha. change-CAUS-PTCP.PVF 2 (18) tere-ci that-ABL taidzu first.emperor fukjin deri-bu-fi beginning begin-CAUS-CVB.PFV sure beile intelligent ruler (19) manju Manchu manju Manchu gurun country bithe script be ACC de DAT selgiye-he. disseminate-PTCP.PVF An English translation This translation has been made by Binnick (2009: 2f.), the last two sentences (18) and (19) have been added by myself. Changes made to the translation are in braces. Beile ‘ruler’ has been capitalized. (1) In the second month, when Taizu Sure Beile wanted to write the Manchu language by changing the Mongol script, (2) Erdeni Baksi and Gagai Jarguci said, (3) “We have learned the Mongol written language, so we know it. (4) Why now change the language that has come to us from olden times?” (5) Taizu {Sure Beile} said: (6) “When the writing of the Chinese country is read aloud, the people who know the written language and those who do not know the written language all understand it. (7) When the written language of the Mongol country is read aloud, those who do not know the written language also understand. (8) When we read our written language in the Mongolian manner, the people of our country who do not know the written language do not understand. (9) Why is it difficult to write in the language of our country? And why is it easy to write in Mongolian?” (10) Gagai Jarguci and Erdeni Baksi answered: (11) “It’s good and well to write in the language of our country. But because we don’t know how to change the writing, we think it will be difficult.” (12) Taizu Sure Beile objected {said}: (13) “Write the letter a. If you put ma under the a, won’t it be ama [father]’? (14) Write the letter e. Then, if you write me under the e, won’t it be eme [mother]? (15) I have already figured it out. (16) You try to write it. It is possible.” (17) In this way, alone resisting, he had the language that was read in the Mongolian manner changed to fit the Manchu language. (18) {From that on, Taizu Sure Beile had the script created} (19) {and disseminated it in the whole country.} 3 A German Translation The following is the German translation by Stary (2006: 1f.) to which numbers corresponding to the ones above have been added. Changes made to the translation are in braces. In this version, some sentences (e.g., 17) are translated slightly differently. Baksi ‘scholar, learned man’ and Jargūci ‘judge’ have been capitalized. (1) Als im zweiten Monat [=März 1599] der Taizu Sure Beile die mongolische Schrift ändern wollte um damit in mandschurischer Sprache schreiben zu können, (2) sprachen Erdeni Baksi und G’ag’ai Jargūci ausweichend: (3) “Wir kennen die mongolische Schrift nur, weil wir diese [Sprache] gelernt haben; (4) wie sollen wir jetzt die seit alten Zeiten überlieferte Schrift ändern?“ (5) Darauf antwortete {sprach} Taizu Sure Beile: (6) “Wenn man ein Schriftstück des chinesischen Reiches [laut] liest, verstehen es jene, die die chinesische Schrift kennen, sowie auch jene, die sie nicht kennen. (7) Wenn man ein Schriftstück des mongolischen Reiches [laut] liest, verstehen es auch jene, die die Schrift nicht kennen. (8) Wenn man unsere ins Mongolische übersetzten Schriftstücke [laut] liest, verstehen es die [des Mongolischen] nicht mächtigen Leute unseres Reiches nicht. (9) Wie kann man behaupten, daß es schwer ist, in der Sprache unseres Reiches zu schreiben – aber daß es leicht ist, in der Sprache eines anderen, des mongolischen Reiches, zu schreiben?“ (10) G’ag’ai Jargūci und Erdeni Baksi sprachen {antworteten}: (11) “Es wäre wahrlich gut, wenn wir in der Sprache unseres Reiches schreiben könnten; in unserem Inneren verstehen wir jedoch nicht, wie man in einer abgeänderten Schrift schreiben könnte – und deshalb zaudern wir.“ (12) Taizu Sure Beile sprach: (13) “Schreibt den Buchstaben ‘a’; wenn man dem ‘a’ ein ‘ma’ hinzufügt – ist es dann nicht [das Wort] ‘ama’ [Vater]? (14) Schreibt den Buchstaben ‘e’; wenn man dem ‘e’ ein ‘me’ hinzufügt – ist es dann nicht [das Wort] ‘eme’ [Mutter]? (15) In meinem Innern habe ich dies alles bereits überlegt. (16) Versucht, so zu schreiben!” (17) Er selbst ließ dann die [noch] Zaudernden die mongolischen Schriftstücke ins Mandschurische umändern. (18) Von da an verbreitete sich die von Taizu Sure Beile inspirierte Schrift (19) über das ganze Mandschureich. 4 Abbreviations . / 1PL.EX 1PL.IN 1SG 2PL A E ABL ACC CAUS COND COP CVB DAT DUB EMPH F GEN IMP IPFV IT LOC M MA ME NEG OBL OPT PFV PN PTCP V old or unimportant morpheme boundary, e.g. old locative -lA in do.lo ‘inside’ morpheme boundary separates two possible readings of a lexical item first person plural exclusive first person plural inclusive first person singular second person plural the letter a the letter e ablative accusative causative (also has the function of a passive) conditional copula converb (adverbialized verb) dative (also has the function of allative, locative, and agent in passives) dubitative emphatic female gender, marked with ablaut (vowel e) in certain words, e.g. hehe ‘woman’ genitive (also has the function of an instrumental and agent in subordinate clauses) imperative imperfective (aspect), also used for the finite and dictionary ending -mbi itive locative -lA, only preserved in postpositions, e.g. feji.le ‘under’ male gender, marked with ablaut (vowel a) in certain words, e.g. haha ‘man’ the syllable ma the syllable me negation oblique form of a pronoun used with case markers, e.g. bi ‘1SG’ vs. mi.n- ‘1SG.OBL’ optative perfective (aspect) personal/proper/place name participle (adjectivized verb) verbalizer References Binnick, Robert. 2009. Altaic hypotaxis and the expression of rhetorical relations. Toronto Working Papers in Linguistics (TWPL) 34. 1–8. Norman, Jerry. 2013. A comprehensive Manchu-English dictionary. Cambridge, London: Harvard University Asia Center. Roth Li, Gertraude. 2010. Manchu: A textbook for reading documents, 2nd edn., 37–51. Honolulu: Univ. of Hawaii Press. Stary, Giovanni. 2006. Vom Alphabet zur Kunst. Illustrierte Geschichte der mandschurischen Schrift, 1–2. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz. If necessary, this unpublished manuscript can be quoted as follows: Hölzl, Andreas. 2019. An analyzed classical Manchu text. Zurich: University of Zurich, 5 pages. (Unpublished manuscript.) 5