Birtalan Ágnes: Kalmyk Folklore and Folk Culture in the Mid-19th Century: Philological Studies on the Basis of Gábor Bálint of Szentkatolna’s Kalmyk Texts.
FOLKLORE GENRES
- Wife, are you here? I will kill you! - [He] said. The queen threw the message letter on the flap of his robe. The khan read and saw that it was written "Do this way!"; it was similar to his own writing. Thereafter the khan asked the official: - Where did you get this boy from? - Thereupon the official said: - I found this boy on the ground. - For that matter, this boy was the one who fell out of that certain old woman's belly. Thereafter the khan said: - A man cannot overcome the predestined fate. - He said and lived on [in peace]. The official's son married the khan's daughter and they lived peacefully in joy. FOURTH TALE (Bálint 4. Utu ÍM//) 59 1 [46] Once there lived an old man and an old woman, and they had a yellow spotted cow. 5" 2 That old woman and old man prepared food from the milk of their yellow spotted cow. One day that yellow spotted cow went grazing and did not come back in three days. The old man left to look for the cow. While going [he found] the cow grazing but there was a something yellow in colour beside it. As the old man came closer to the cow, [he saw] that there was a big snake that would not let the cow go. The old man became frightened and did not move. The snake said: - Father, please do not be afraid, take your cow! 5' 1' - Thereupon the old man took his cow and left. Upon leaving, the snake said: - Father, I will come to your place at night. - The old man went home and said to the old woman: - Next 5' 4 night a big snake will come [to us], - Upon hearing the old man's words the old woman was close to dying. 5' 5 Thereafter the old woman and old man were very much frightened and lay hiding among the goods on the honoured place. 5'"' The snake arrived and said: - Father and mother, why are you frightened? - Thereupon the old woman and the old man stood up and the snake got into their bed. [47] Thereafter in the morning the snake said: - Father, go to the khan's daughter and [propose to her] for me! - The old man mounted one of his poor fallow horses and rode away. Upon arriving at the khan's he stood in front 5" of the khan. - Khan, khan, your daughter and my son ... - He said and ran away. Thereafter the khan said: - Bring that old man to me: let me kill him! - Many young men pursued the old man and catching him brought him back. Thereafter the old man said to the khan: - A snake came to my yurt and told me [to propose] for him to the khan's daughter. - The khan became frightened and decided to give 59 8 his daughter. Thereafter he said to the old man: - In order to be able to take my daughter, make a golden bridge, a silver bridge, a copper bridge and a brazen bridge from your yurt's door up to my yurt[palace]! Further, grow_fruit trees on both sides of the bridge so that a rider going over the bridge could taste it quietly to his heart's content! 59 9 59 1 Manuscript pp 46-50. This text is the variant of the Kalmyk tale Moyä köwün "Snake-lad", on its genre typology and motifs cf. Gorjajeva. Baira Basangovna: Sjuzetnyj sostav i hudozestvenno-stilevaja struktura kalmyckoj volsebnoj skazki (Dissertacija) Elista 2006 (manuscript) pp. 52, 112. 59 2 Kalm. iikr means "cow", cf. Khal. üné "id.", "yurwnas ülü nasta kükn bod mal; korova" (Pürbän p. 73). 59 1 Bálint ükränyaboji ab-ton read ükrän abojiyabtan, Kalm. ükrän awcyawtn. 59 4 Bálint caőin 7 read caéin ' from cä- "far side, next, coming" + -cin ' (demonstrative particle). 59 5 Bálint äiji ükiin aldaba, Kalm. äj ükn aldw. Cf. öwgn ükn aldäd irwä "der Greis war schon halbtot od. beinahe tot" (R. 6). 59 6 Bálint baränän'i suyundu , Kalm. baränän suyünd is a usual motif-element in folk tales, the place where the hero hides or is hidden from the enemy or an undesirable encounter Kalm. barän "Pelze, Filze und anders, was in der Jurte unter den Kisten (abdr) zusammengefaltet liegt; die beste Stelle. Ehrenstellc des Hauses (in der Nähe der burxan), Vermögen, Reichtum des Hauses" (R. 33). Kalm. suyü "Winkel od die Stelle zwischen dem Kasten und dem Bette; derin iuyü id., syn. baräne könde ' (R. 367). 3, 7 Bálint nädu biyedün 7. Kalm näd bid n 'lit. "on this side [= nearer to the agent]". 39 8 Bálint ökü, read ökkü ögkü, Kalm. ögx. 59 9 Bálint tabärän, Kalm lawärän "to one s wish, desire, in comfort". 91
