COMPARISONS of LANGUAGES INVOLVED
in the translation of the MAALAN AARUM

INTRODUCTION
3.1 Mound Land
3.1
When the waves were calm
in the land they left,
the decent people
lived together there
in strong hollow houses
with thick roofs
3.2 Freezing
3:2

They lived where it snowed.
They lived where it stormed.
They lived where it was always winter.

3.3 Dream
3:3

While still in their cold land
They remembered longingly
the mild weather,
the many deer,
and also foxes

HUNTERS GO EVERYWHERE
3.4 Split
3:4

The poor, lonely, but tough men
became hunters and
left those living
in strong houses.

Maalan Aarum Algonquin Old Norse

chitanes-sin
powalessin
peyachik
wikhichik
pokwihil

tschitannessin
pāwanniw sin
peshik
wikiwakpoquihilleu

stinnadra
by vanr sin
berr sik
viigi-ak
braaka vera

Arrow   Arrow
As they journeyed
some being strong
some rich
(into) hunters
(and) house builders
they separated
left pointing arrow
original English
translation
right pointing arrow
translation
of Old Norse
?no recorded sounds?
(They) hardened
Being poor
only self
(from) stronghold land
(they) be breaking

WORD (PHRASE) BY WORD (PHRASE) DECIPHERMENT
(All references are to Sherwin’s eight volumes of the Viking and the Red Man)

Original English As they journeyed  
Recorded sounds ?no recorded sounds?  
Algonquin words    
Old Norse    
Norse/English    
     
Original English some being strong  
Recorded sounds   chitanes-sin 1*
Algonquin words tschitannessin v. 7 p. 135
Old Norse      Stinnadra (sin) 2*
Norse/English (they) hardened  
     
Original English some rich  
Recorded sounds powales    sin  
Algonquin words pāwanniw sin v. 3 p 105
Old Norse by vanr   sin  
Norse/English being poor 3*
     
Original English (into) hunters 4*
Recorded sounds peyachik  
Algonquin words pe  shik v. 4 p. 23
Old Norse berr   sik  
Norse/English only self Lonely?
     
Original English (and) house builders 4*
Recorded sounds wikhichik  
Algonquin words wikiwak v. 1 p. 238
Old Norse viigi-ak  
Norse/English (from) stronghold land  
     
Original English they separated  
Recorded sounds pokwi     hil  
Algonquin words poqui    hilleu V. 4 p. 115
Old Norse braaka  vera  
Norse/English (they) be breaking  
Notes
1* Once again, it appears that the ending “a” morphed into an “n” over space and time.
2* The Norse word ending is unexpected. Sherwin may have had good reasons to leave out the reflexive “sin” which seems to be used by Algonquins and the MA creators. But the Algonquin and MA creators may have been using a word where “sin” had already merged into “rdasin” and then the “rda” was dropped for ease of pronunciations. Dropping syllables from the middle of a long word was a common Norse trait.

3* The Algonquin/Old Norse words give an opposite meaning from the original English version. “Hardened, lean, and alone” might better describe young men who leave home than “strong and rich.” A variation of the Algonquin word for “hardened” can mean, “strong.”

4* The Maalan AarumEnglish order of hunter and house builder is reversed. This reversal is indicative of a Historian, Recorder, and Editor who may not have known what each memorized MA words meant. The Historian may have memorized the meaning of the verse. Somewhere in the memory process the order of hunter and house builder became reversed.

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3.5 Mighty Hunters
3:5

Separated from home
like breasts on the same body
the hunters became tougher
extremely good and
they reached for the sky.

3.6 Explored All
3:6

The hunters camped
in the north, east,
south and west.

CHRIST TRUMPS ODIN
3.7 Mound Man
3.7

The man, who ruled
in that old, northern land
that they all left,
was baptized to be pure.

3.8 Soccers
3.8
The discouraged people
were worried about
worn out land
they had to abandon.
The priest said,
"We decent people
should go somewhere else."

3.9 Akomen
3.9
The common people
in the east stole away
the brothers
abandoned all
with great discouragement
and again discouragement

3.10 Driven

3.10
In a short while
the weeping, weak, dirty.
needy (people from)
the burnt land
saved themselves and
rested on the other side
3.11 Free Men
3.11
After moving down
from the snowy land
and discreetly leaving
the cousins separated
through out all the land
3.12 Open Water
3.12

Where there was little
pack ice in heaped ice
with a lot of snow drifts,
the white geese ruled
and the white bear ruled

3.13 Rich Father
3.13
Floating up the streams
in their canoes,
our fathers were rich.
They were in the light
when they were at these Islands.
THE DECISION
3.14Agreement
3.14

"Head Beaver and Big Bird
said 'Let us go to Akomen'"

3.15 All Will Go
3.15

All say they will go along,
All who are free to go.

3.16North East
3.16

Those of the north agreed.
Those of the east agreed.
Over the waters
Over the frozen sea
They went to enjoy it

THE MIGRATION
3.17 Stone hard
3.17

On the wonderful slippery water,
On the stone hard water, all went
On the great tidal sea,
Over the [puckered pack ice]

3.18 Big Mob
3.18

[I tell you it was a big mob]
In the darkness,
all in one darkness
To Akomen, to the [west],
In the darkness
They walk and walk,
all of them

3.19 men
3.19

The men from the north,
the east, the south,
The eagle clan, the beaver clan
the wolf clan,
The best men, the rich men,
the head men
Those with wives,
Those with daughters,
Those with dogs

3.20 They All Come
3.20

They all come.
They tarry at the land
Of the spruce pines,
Those from the east
Some with hesitation.
Esteeming highly their
Old home at the mound land