A50 The Giant One-Eyed Demon

Sophia Danielova of Arzni, Armenia in Arzni, Armenia

ʾa sapar mara ʾətva lətva mən-ʾalaha həč məndi ⁺gura lətva. xá-dana ⁺pulad dēv gu-xá-dana ⁺zaǧa. ʾətlə xamšamma danə ʾərbə. ⁺ʾuxča xelana váyələ. máyələ ʾo čo čo čo čo čo ʾərbə bədráyələ gu-⁺zaǧa, ʾo cipa ⁺ʾav xarbúsulə k̭at-ʾərbə la ⁺palṱi. cma꞊t ʾəttən gu-dá ⁺mazrá ⁺casibə ⁺cusibə ʾərbə bəšk̭aləl bēt-ganu, ⁺bəxváṱələ mayelə. ʾaha mara, mayelə. mərrə xa dana brata ⁺pláṱəla vay ʾərbi lublelun, lublelun. lublḗl ⁺pulad dēv. bəšk̭alol brata ʾidət xela mayol bədyášolə gu-dó ⁺zaǧa. gu-dó ⁺zaǧa bətyávəla. dək̭nu pláyula. hamzúməla mənnu. máyələ, mattúyələ, ⁺bixálələ. pə́štəla ⁺tama. mərrə xa dana ⁺spay yala hona b-⁺gura sura lelə mərrə ʾana ṱ-atən k̭a-diyyax park̭ən. mərrə ⁺ʾavun ⁺ṱla dān bnūn ʾətlə. ⁺ṱúllunte mítəna. k̭atu mərrun. ⁺ʾavun ʾé-⁺danət buxčət do brunu ⁺gura ʾaha labúlolə, ʾaha bərrəššəl k̭at-parək̭la. ⁺ʾamma k̭atu mírəna xzi ʾat mən-ʾīd-⁺dáv le park̭ətta. k̭uč̭č̭a mxáyulə ⁺ʾal-⁺ʾarra gəldət k̭uč̭č̭a bəlvášulə, ziga bədráyələ b-k̭uč̭č̭a. gašúk̭ələ ʾərbə jəns ⁺mavurél k̭at-⁺tama naša lá-⁺ʾavər. múyyolə cal-nā́š gniva muyyol. hu-ču ⁺mavúrolə. mən-⁺tama ʾé-⁺danta ⁺várələ laxxa. ba-k̭atu mírəna ⁺ʾavva … dēv, ⁺ṱla danə naša yacca dēv꞊īl. bitáyələ mara ʾof rēx ⁺bar-naša bitáyələ m-axxa. mara mu ⁺dilux rēx ⁺bar-nášələ mara hi rēx ⁺bar-našəl. ganu ⁺ṱušyol gu-gəldət k̭uč̭č̭a. mara ʾita m-idi xu-lé park̭ət ʾatən. b-lelə bək̭yámələ, ʾé-⁺danət ⁺ʾav k̭at-ʾərbita muttúyolə nuyra bašli ⁺ʾaxli, b-lēl bək̭yaməl ʾaha šampur mašxúnulə bədyašul gu-⁺ʾaynu, gu-⁺ʾaynu, ʾaxči k̭at ⁺palət mən-⁺tama ʾa-brata꞊da calu labəlla. mən-dé ʾe ⁺danta mərrə m-idi le park̭ət xayya. ʾe-⁺dān tilə k̭at-cipa xurbəslə, dana, dana ʾərbu ⁺pulṱilə. ⁺ʾav ziga … b-k̭dálulə, k̭uč̭č̭əl꞊da xina. ⁺ʾavva b-k̭dalət k̭uč̭č̭u dəryəl ziga. hi k̭am-cullə bitáyələ ⁺pláṱələ ʾā꞊t k̭uč̭č̭a ⁺dav, ⁺xarta dax ṱ-atə ʾa ganu k̭amta dəryā́l. ʾa sapar mən-⁺tama k̭am-cullə ⁺pláṱələ. mərrə ba beti muxrəvlux. ⁺pliṱəl. m-idi le park̭ət, xáyya-ʾalaha. ʾan-⁺ṱlá dastət jullə ʾe calu ʾət-⁺davun, ʾət-yalu, yuvvela k̭a-dó naša ʾō꞊t tilə paruk̭o, paruk̭o. mərra k̭am-cullə ʾe-dasta ⁺gurta mattətta ṱ-azət b-rek̭ət. b-yatəv ⁺ʾal-dáy baxə, baxə hal-⁺dā́r mattila beta, mədrə ṱ-atə ⁺maṱilux. mərra ʾa sapar mattətta ʾe-dastət do brunu ṱ-⁺aralləǧ. ʾadi baxə, baxə, ⁺ʾallo ⁺raba b-ark̭əl. ṱ-atə, mərra, xač̭č̭a mazyəd ṱ-oya k̭at-mən-⁺ʾara꞊zə ⁺ʾavər, mən-⁺ʾara꞊zə ʾavər. mən-⁺tama ʾe dastət ⁺ʾallo bətyávələ jəns bə́xyələ, ⁺bəddara bitáyələ, mədrə ⁺tama cəs-dé brata. ʾa sapar mən-⁺tama mərra ʾət-dó brunu sura mattəttun jullu. ⁺ʾal-dá ⁺raba baxə k̭at-ʾát mən-⁺ʾara꞊zə ⁺ʾorət ʾazət k̭at-k̭a-diyyi park̭ət, lablət k̭at lé-⁺ʾaməs xina l-e-pāt ⁺ʾara꞊zə ⁺ʾavər. ʾe ⁺danət ʾan-jullə do sura mattuyela k̭amu xa-bəxya bə́xyələ, xina lá-⁺ʾamsan tayyan. ʾe ⁺danta ʾa bəšk̭álolə ʾe brata, mən-⁺ʾara꞊zə ⁺várələ. ⁺ʾav꞊da npaləl gu-⁺ʾara, bəxnak̭əl bənpala bəxnák̭ələ. ⁺jamahat mən ʾidət da ⁺pulad dēv k̭at prak̭əl.

Now, the story goes: there was once upon a time, there was nothing greater than God, there was a great demon in a cave. He has five hundred sheep. He is so strong. He brings the sheep, o čo čo čo čo čo, and puts them in the cave. He pushes a stone (over the entrance) so that the sheep do not escape. He takes to his home as many sheep as there are in this land of wretched paupers, brings them and mixes them together. The story goes he brings them back. He said ‘A girl is going out.’ (She says) ‘Oh, they have taken the sheep, they have taken them. The great demon has taken the sheep.’ He takes the girl. He brings the girl forcefully and squeezes her into the cave. She sits in the cave. She delouses his beard. She speaks with him. He brings (food), he puts it down and eats. She remained there. A fine young man, who who was not lacking brains, said, he said ‘I shall come and save you.’ He said ‘He (the demon) had three sons. The three of them have died.’ They said to him ‘After he takes the knapsack of his elder son, he could go to save her.’ But they said to him ‘Look, you will not save her from his hand.’ He strikes a ram on the ground. He puts on the skin of the ram and puts a bell on the ram. He (the demon) keeps a close eye on the sheep and brings them in (to the cave) so that people cannot enter. He has brought the young girl, he has kidnapped her and brought her. (Saying) ‘hu-ču’ he brings her in. Then he enters here (into the cave). But they said to him (the young man) ‘He is a demon, a huge demon the size of three men.’ Three sons (of his) have died. He (the demon) comes and says ‘Oh, there is a smell of a man here.’ She says ‘How do you know it is the smell of a man?’ He says ‘Yes, it is the smell of a man.’ He (the young man) has hidden himself in the skin of a ram. He (the demon) says ‘You will indeed not escape from my hands.’ He gets up at night. When he puts a ewe on the fire for them to cook and eat, he gets up at night, he heats a skewer, and presses it into his eye, so that he can escape from there and take the girl bride away. Then he (the demon) said ‘You will not escape from my hands.’ When he came and pushed the stone aside, he let out his sheep, one by one. He (the young man) had a bell on his neck, well he was (dressed up like) a ram. He has placed a bell on the neck of his ram. The one that is his ram comes and goes out before all the others, then when he (the young man) comes, he put himself first. Then he goes out from there before all the others. He (the demon) says ‘You have ruined my house.’ He has gone out. ‘You will not escape from my hands, as God lives.’ The bride gave three sets of clothes of his (the demon), of his children, to that man, who came to rescue her, rescue her. She said ‘First of all lay out the big set of clothes, and you will go and flee. He will sit and weep and weep over that, until he comes back and puts it in the house, then he will come again and reach you.’ She said ‘Then lay out the set of clothes of his middle son. Then he will weep and weep, and tarry a long time over it. He will come back,’ she said ‘he will increase (the gap) a little so that he can pass in between, pass in between. From there, the set of clothes over which he sits and weeps, he returns and comes back again there to the girl. ‘Then after that,’ she said ‘Lay out the clothes of his youngest son. He will weep a lot over that, so that you can go in between and save me and take me away, so that he cannot go through to the other side of the gap anymore.’ When she lays out the clothes of the young son before him, he wept bitterly, more than I can tell. Then he (the young man) takes the girl, he comes through the gap. He (the demon) falls in the gap, he is strangled. He falls and is strangled, with the result that the community is saved from the hands of the great demon.