B15 Village Life

Nadia Aloverdova of Guylasar, Armenia in Guylasar, Armenia

⁺ʾaturayət diyyan k̭amta k̭at bəxxáyəva laxxa ʾə́tvalan ⁺buk̭ra xamuvva tavəryáy ʾərbiyyə móriša bə́ššəva ⁺buk̭ra ⁺berāš bitáyəva. tavəryatə ⁺bəxlaveva. b-de ⁺xalva bədráyəva k̭a-gané gupta. gupta꞊da ⁺raba samo bəšvak̭o k̭a-sətva k̭at ⁺dān꞊t sətva məndi ⁺xala lēl vaya, b-de gupta p̂-urxa bə́ššəna. săvi guptət məlxa ʾətlan gupta ⁺ṱumərta. mur ʾa mujjur ⁺ṱarusox gupta. tavərta ⁺bəxlavot. šaxənta šaxənta, bədrayət gavo p̂ep̂sin. ⁺maya ci-tanáxvala, ⁺maya. k̭amta ⁺maya ⁺ṱarúsuva b-⁺mayət ʾərbita. b-dayya ⁺maya ⁺ṱarúsəva. b-de marrúvvəxva … gupta gav-gupta ʾadiyya bədrayəx p̂əp̂si gu-šaxənta šaxənta ⁺xalva bədrayəx p̂əp̂si. váyəla rita dax ⁺c̭arra hənna ⁺ʾal-masta bədmáyəla. ⁺bək̭ṱayot k̭at-miyyo palṱi. b-⁺masipana ⁺masyupḗx, ⁺bəxlasəx, miyya ⁺pláṱəna. ⁺xarta bədrayəx ⁺ʾallé məlxa k̭at-k̭avini. mən-⁺bár dayən bədvak̭əx miyya məlxa miyya məlxa bədvak̭əx b-bita bitət cteta. gar xada ʾoyani k̭at bita max c̭ap̂p̂əc̭ ʾatxa mabyənnani ⁺ʾal-pata k̭at la ⁺šor ʾoyani la꞊da paxta ʾoyani gupta k̭at-lá xarva. ʾe mumləxta gupta bədrayox gu-miyya məlxa. ʾanga ⁺bayyax ʾaxnan k̭a-sətva xamaxxa, ⁺ṱumərta gupta. ʾaxnan b-⁺xalva bašuləx jajəc. ⁺xalva ⁺marduxux, ⁺davvə ⁺marduxət. ⁺xalva꞊da ⁺bək̭ṱáyələ. məlxa bədrayət gavé. ʾēn ⁺davvə, tanax ⁺davvə ⁺bək̭ṱáyəna. ʾani꞊da ⁺masyupḗx ʾani váyəna dayk̭ə. ⁺bəxvaṱḗx mən-gupta. p̂aṱp̂uṱox gupta mən-dá jajəc ⁺bəxvaṱox. mən-⁺ṱuranə mavəx … ⁺sətra. k̭eṱa gabuvvox ya ⁺sətra mabruzox. brəzta ⁺sətra ⁺bəxvaṱox gu-jajəc gu-gupta. ⁺bəxlásovax cullə gu k̭upšita. k̭upšənta bi … ⁺ṱina c-odila, mak̭k̭údona. biyyo ⁺ṱamúrona tanaxən. ʾayyá cullə ⁺bəxlaso gu-da-k̭upšənta, ⁺ʾal-pato mattuvvət julla ⁺xvara ⁺bəzzə ⁺bəzzə marəx ⁺marla. k̭amta baxtayət diyyan b-rišé ci-⁺seriva. k̭ək̭k̭ašta c-odiva, ⁺marla bint xina k̭at-ʾidé bəsyarena. mən-dó ⁺k̭əṱṱa ⁺ʾarp̂a tak̭ə vadət mattuvvot ⁺ʾal-gupta. ⁺ʾavva mattúvvəna ⁺ʾamra la məsya. k̭at-šəxtu lá-ʾazəlni ʾe julla xamúvvula. mən-⁺bár day b-xa julla xita ⁺bəsyarət. ⁺maxdurot ⁺ʾal-pummo. gu-xá duca bədrayət ⁺k̭uṱma. ⁺k̭uṱma꞊da k̭esə k̭at mak̭k̭udḗt, ʾo ⁺k̭uṱma bədrayət xá-dana k̭uxa. ya k̭upšənta ⁺maxdurot gu-⁺k̭uṱma k̭at miyyo cullə ⁺sepi. ⁺ʾamra miyya bəgrášələ. ʾēn miyya cullə ʾatxa mən-gu-gupta bəgrašelə bə́ššəna gu-⁺k̭uṱma. xada maccusot k̭upšənta palgo gar ʾoyani b-⁺k̭uṱma mcəsta k̭at ⁺hava lá-⁺ʾavərni. sətva bəptaxot. ʾēn ⁺ʾamrə ⁺šulə ⁺paluṱḗt. gupta ⁺ṱumərta ⁺raba basəmta b-dayən ⁺jamahat p̂-urxa bə́ššəla. pyáyəna ⁺lavaša. laxmət diyyan ⁺lavášələ. gu-tanuyra ci-payyaxxə. ⁺roba ganáy lena ⁺myasa lavaša páyyini. gərdeyə c-odiva. ⁺halam săvi mən-gərdeyə ʾə́tvalan bi ⁺mašə c-odívalun mu꞊ina mara? ⁺jallə pyáyəva ⁺jallə. gavé bədráyəva ⁺buslə ⁺mašə smuk̭ə. ⁺ʾal-tanuyra ci-maxívalun. ⁺roba basíməva. ʾadi ʾatxa jilət diyyan cullə munšiyyena. nanuntət diyyi c-odava harisa gu-k̭upšənta. ci-mattávala gu-nuyra, gu-tanuyra bi nuyra ci-macsávala. k̭upšənta ʾə́tvala ʾatxa k̭ərrəšk̭a maccúsova bi ṱina bəšyápova k̭at miyyo ⁺radxiva la tapxiva. xēr bəxzayət harisa b-cteta váduna bi p̂ərda váduna. p̂ərda naya ⁺bəṱrápuna ʾo-k̭alpu ⁺palúṱuna. ⁺xəṱṱə ⁺xəṱṱə mxáyəna k̭alpé ⁺pláṱələ váyəla p̂ərda naya. lēx bašulə bašulə ⁺ʾavun p̂ə́rdələ. ⁺ʾamman ʾo naya, bədraya gu-k̭upšənta mən-⁺busrət cteta, ⁺k̭aṱk̭uṱət bədraya gavo. miyya bədrayət pummo maccusut mattuvvot gu-tanuyra. bšáləla váyəla ʾatxa ⁺k̭aša. ʾatxa k̭uya váyəla xina. ʾatxa bəšk̭alət b-čamča, bəšk̭alot ʾatxa ⁺bəryáxəla. k̭a-dayya márəna harisa. ⁺raba basə́mtəla. ⁺xarta mədrə gu-k̭upšənta bašúləxva ⁺mašə smuk̭ə. ⁺mašə smuk̭ə bədráyəxva miyya b-rišé. mani꞊t ʾə́tvalə gozə, gozə ⁺mráč̭əva bədráyəva gavo. xa tica꞊da məšxa, mədrə pato maccúsova b-⁺ṱina, bəšyápova, mattuvva gu-nuyra. bi nuyra maccúsona. har ⁺bərdáxəla hənna ptáxəla xina ⁺bəddáyəxva k̭at bšíləva. ⁺paluṱēxva, mšayēxva paluṱēxva mən-gavo. ⁺xarta vádəxva ⁺ǧabama. ⁺k̭arra bəšk̭aləx gavu tammuzux. mláyəna gavu ⁺rəzza, duyša, ʾangət ⁺byáyəna bi ⁺xlita ʾodini, cəšmišə mattúvvəna gavo. pummo maccúsuna mədrə bi nuyra maccúsona. bšáləla. cullə bəgrášəla gavo váyəla pullu. ʾəttən pullu har-ʾatxa ⁺bixálona bi məšxa ʾəttən ⁺xalva bədráyəna b-rišo, ⁺bixáləna. ʾe ⁺k̭arra k̭at prámona samə sáməla. ⁺ʾal-de-sama palga váyəla ⁺rəzza ⁺bixalət, ⁺roba basə́mtəla. k̭a-dayya marəx ⁺ǧabama. lēn ⁺bəddá ʾadiyya ʾaxtoxun vádətun letun vada lēn ⁺bəddá. xina jurrə məndiyyanə tanaxən ⁺dolmət ⁺ṱarpə vadəx ʾət-⁺ʾanvə, ⁺ṱarpət ⁺ʾanvə. ⁺ṱarpət ⁺ʾanvə čarmuxəx ⁺dolma calamə꞊da ʾitən ⁺ṱarpə꞊da ʾitən. gu-⁺ṱarpə šəbbəd bədráyəna ⁺ʾamma gu-calama cullə ⁺k̭azanča꞊da ci-⁺xoṱilun ʾēn gəllalə jurrə jurrə gəllalə bədráyəna. ⁺ʾamman gu-dayya xa šəbbəd bədráyəna mən-⁺tolə məndi xina lena bədraya.

Our Assyrians who were living here before, we had cattle, they kept cattle and sheep. In the morning the herd went out and came back in the evening. They milked the cows. With this milk they produced cheese for themselves. They leave a large proportion of the cheese for winter, because in the time of winter there is nothing to eat, they make do with the cheese. Apart from salted cheese we have buried cheese. Say ‘How do we make this cheese?’ You milk the cow, while (the milk is) warm you put pepsin into it. We call it rennet, rennet. In the old days they used to make rennet with the intestine of a sheep. They made rennet with that. We used to set cheese with that. Now we put pepsin in cheese, in very warm milk we put pepsin. It sets, like butter, it resembles yoghurt. You separate it so that its water comes out. We strain it with a strainer. We squeeze it and the water comes out. Then we put salt on it , so it becomes hard. After that we take salt water, we take salt water with an egg, the egg of a chicken. It must be thus, so that the egg appears on the surface like a kopeck, so that it is not over-salted nor insipid, so that the cheese does not go bad. We put the salted cheese in salt water. If we want to keep it for the winter (we made) buried cheese. With milk we cooked jajəc. We boil the milk. You boil yoghurt buttermilk. The milk curdles. You put salt in it. The buttermilk, let’s say the buttermilk curdles. We strain it and it becomes fine. We mix it with cheese. We break up the cheese and mix it with this jajəc. We bring thyme from the mountains. We gather this thyme in the summer and dry it. We mix the dry thyme in the jajəc, in the cheese. We squeeze it all into a pot. They make the pot with clay and fire it. They bury with it, we say. Squeezing it all in this pot, you put a white cloth on its top containing holes, we say gauze. In the old days our women used to tie it on their head. They used to make it into a headscarf, gauze, a bandage with which they bind their hands. From that piece you make four folds and put it on the cheese. (On this) they put unwashed wool. The cloth prevents dirt from going in. After that, you tie it with another cloth. You turn it upside down. You put ash in a place. The ash, when you burn wood, you put the ash in a pile. You invert the pot in the ash so that all its water drains. The wool draws the water. It draws all the water in this way from the cheese and it goes into the ash. You cover the pot thus so that half of it is covered in the ash so that air does not enter. In winter you open it. You take off the wool and so forth. Buried cheese, very tasty—with this the community subsists. They bake flat bread. Our bread is flat bread. We bake it in the oven. Many people are not able to bake flat bread. They used to make loaves. Still other than loaves we used to have what they made with beans. What do they call them? ⁺jallə. They bake ⁺jallə. In these they put onions, red beans. They put them on the oven. They were very tasty. Now our young people have forgotten all these. My grandmother used to make harisa (meat with crushed boiled wheat) in a pot . She put it in the fire, in the oven. She used to cover it with fire. The pot had a lid like this, which covered it. They smeared it with mud so that the water, when it boiled, would not spill. Well, you see they make harisa with chicken and they make it with grain, with husks. They pound the raw grain and they take off its husk. Wheat, they beat wheat, its skin comes of and it becomes raw grain. We do not cook it, what we cook is the grain, but as for the raw grain, you put in some chicken meat, you chop it up and put it in it. You put in water, you cover its mouth and put it in the oven. It cooks and it becomes like porridge. It becomes thick like that. You take it in a spoon; when you take it, it stretches out like this. They call this harisa. It is very tasty. Again in the pot we used to cook red beans. As for red beans, we used to put water on them. Whoever had walnuts would crush walnuts and put them in it. A little oil, again they cover its top with soil and smear it, then put it on the fire. They cover it with fire. As soon as it boils, the thing opens and we know that it is cooked, we took them out, we scraped them out of it (the pot). Then we made ⁺ġabama. We take a pumpkin and we clear out its inside. They fill it with rice, honey, if they want to make it with something sweet, they put raisins in it. They cover its top and again cover it (and put it) on the fire. It cooks. It draws everything inside it and becomes pulp. There are some who eat the pulp with oil, there are some who put milk on it and eat it. When they cut the pumpkin, and it is in layers, in the middle part there is rice, you eat it, it is very tasty. We call this ⁺ġabama. I do not know whether you now do it or do not do it, I do not know. Well, various things, let us say we make dolmə of vine leaves, vine leaves. We roll vine leaves into a dolma, there are also cabbage as well as vine leaves. They put dill in the vine leaves, but in cabbage dolma they mix all the herbs into the pot, they put in various types of herbs. But in that one (dolma of vine leaves) they put a sprig of dill together with coriander, they do not put in anything else.