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2X. Toki Pona by John Clifford

Texts | Explanation | Interlinear | Notes
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Toki Pona

"kiwen toki"

tenpo suno pini la mi tawa noka lon poka pi telo suli. mi tawa noka lon kiwen toki. [kiwen ni li toki e nimi ni:a! ni li ike. mi kama jo e ona lon luka mi. mi toki e nimi ni tawa ona: sina kiwen toki ala toki? ona li toki sin e nimi ni: toki. mi toki e nimi ni tawa ona: tan seme la sina toki ala e nimi ni tawa mi: pakala li lon ni? ona li toki e nimi ni: tan ni: mi kiwen toki ike. tan toki ni la mi kama pi pilin ike. tan ni la, mi tawa wawa insa pi telo suli e ona. tenpo pi ni pini la mi lukin ala sin e kiwen toki.

Smooth English

"Talking Stone"

Yesterday I walked on the shore of the ocean. I walked on a talking stone. The stone said, "Ouch. That's bad." I picked it up. I said to it, "Are you a talking stone?"

It replied, "Yes."

I asked why it didn't tell me to watch out. It said, "Because I am a bad talking stone."

What it said made me angry. Therefore, I moved it vigorously into the ocean. Since then, I have not seen the talking stone again.

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Explanation

The LCC2 Relay was unveiled live during LCC2. While it was being unveiled, John Clifford decided to do a Toki Pona translation of the original smooth English translation of the relay text. He managed to do this before the unveiling of the relay had concluded, and he passed the text on to me, and so I've included it here. For information about Toki Pona, go to its website, which can be found here: http://www.tokipona.org/.

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Interlinear

In the interlinear below, you'll see little raised link numbers. Click on these numbers to go to a corresponding note on the translation below.

kiwen toki
hard talk¹
talking hard thing
Talking Stone

tenpo suno pini la mi tawa noka lon poka pi telo suli.
time sun done ] I move foot at side of water large
past day, I move by foot² on the shore of the great water
Yesterday³, I walked on the shore of the ocean⁴.

mi tawa noka lon kiwen toki.
I move by foot at stone talk
I walked⁵ on a talking stone⁶

[kiwen ni li toki e nimi ni:a! ni li ike.⁷
Stone this says [word this: oh! this ][ike
The stone said "Ouch. That's bad" ⁸]⁹

mi kama jo e ona lon luka mi.
I come have [it at hand my
I got it in my hand
I picked it up¹⁰

mi toki e nimi ni tawa ona: sina kiwen toki ala toki?
I say [word this to it: you stone talk not talk
I said to it "Are you a talking stone"¹¹

ona li toki sin¹² e nimi ni: toki.
it ][ say new [word this: toki
It replied "Yes"

mi toki e nimi ni tawa ona: tan seme la sina toki ala e nimi ni tawa mi: pakala li lon ni?
I talk [word this to it: from what] you talk not to me; ruin ][ at this
I said to it "For what reason did you not say to me 'Danger here'"
I asked why it didn't tell me to watch out.¹³

ona li toki e nimi ni: tan ni: mi kiwen toki ike.
it ][ say [word this: From this: I stone talk bad
It said "Because I am a bad talking stone"¹⁴

tan toki ni la mi kama pi pilin ike.
from talk this ] I came to¹⁵ feel bad¹⁶
What it said made me angry.

tan ni la, mi tawa wawa insa pi telo suli e ona.
from this] I move energetically inside of water big [it
Therefeore, I moved it vigorously¹⁷ into the ocean¹⁸

tenpo pi ni pini la mi lukin ala sin e kiwen toki.
time of this end ] I see not again [stone talk
Since than, I have not seen the talking stone again.

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Notes

¹ "kiwen" is "hard" or any hard thing, typically stone or metal.

² The "by" seems the best mark of the modifier relation here.

³ Any past day literally, but the latest by convention.

⁴ "telo suli" is often a lake, so "ocean" might better be "telo pi suli mute", "a very big water" or get a new idiom altogether.

⁵ Not sure how to distinguish the act of a step from the activity of walking.

⁶ I dread to think what all else a "talk stone" might be.

⁷ "pakala," good for all disasters great and small, and pain generally, might have been better.

⁸ "toki e nimi ni:" introduces direct quotes, "toki e ni:" is for indrect ones (shifted pronouns)

⁹ This sentence is not in the original but was added in transmission. It made too much sense to leave out.

¹⁰ third thoughts here suggest that this is not very good for "pick up"

mi sewi e ona kepeken luka mi
I high [it using hand my
I raised it by hand

looks better.

¹¹ "the pattern of "toki ala toki" is the stock way to ask yes/no questions. The answer i the correct one of the pair, "toki ala" (no) or "toki" (yes) Note here that the issue of its being a stone does not arise, only whether it talks.

¹² iffy construction: it means "say again" or "say anew," but I couldn't think of any way to say "say back."

¹³ Very free -- a shift from direct to indirect speech and a change of mood from informational to hortatory at the end. But clearer.

¹⁴ Not, apparently, bad at being a talking stone and cetainly not a stone bad at talking (or given to , saying bad things) but mere immoral in some sense. "jaki" would have been less confusing but seems to be more for physical grossness.

¹⁵ "to", not "of" because of doesn't join nouns here.

¹⁶ Very ambiguous, especially -- in this case -- not clear what bad feeling is involved.

¹⁷ "Throw" is probably better as "tawa luka" ("move by hand"/arm") and add "wawa" for "fling"

¹⁸ Literally, "to the inside of the ocean," complements to "tawa" are often the goal of the motion.

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