#samegiella

[tulunnguaq]

Challenge!

This is the cover and front page of the Greenlandic novel “Bussimi Naapinneq” (A Meeting on the Bus - which I previously discussed here and here), translated into North Sámi as Katrine Muitalus (Katrine’s Story)!

So the challenge for you language aficionados is this: is there a published novel translation which has a fewer number of combined speakers than this one, based on [original language speakers + target language speakers]?.

Based on Wikipedia’s upper bounds for both languages I think the above translation comes in at a combined 82,000 speakers. Give me your suggestions!

[tulunnguaq]

Onnellisuus ja sitten pettymys. 

Happiness and then disappointment.

[tulunnguaq]

Greenlandic-Skolt Saami phrase list

Hopefully all you Greenlanders/Nigerians found my previous Kalaallisut (Greenlandic)-Yorùbá phrase list useful, although with a combined total of 30 million speakers it’s probably a bit mainstream, so I thought I’d offer up a short Greenlandic-Skolt Saami phrase list to commemorate another recent trip I took.  Combined speakers of both languages are about 57,500 (sadly in a ratio of about 115:1), but unlike the last list there are probably a few more things culturally in common between these groups in terms of lifestyle, given their common Northern latitudes.

Greenlandic (Kalaallisut) - Skolt Saami (Nuõrttsäämas) phrase list

Ippernaq ataaseq qasulerpoq.      Õhtt čuõškk levvji. 

Sivisuumik angalavoq.   Mäˊtǩǩ leäi kuˊǩǩ.

Arsarnerit tuttut nerisimavaat.     Kuuskõõzz leˊjje ääld poorrâm. 

Aputeqaqaaq.      Jõnn muõtt lij.

Uinngiarneq inerteqqutaavoq.    Njorggam jiâ sååvaž sij.

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The sentences are:

A. The journey was long.

B. There is a lot of snow.

C.  One mosquito grew weary.

D. They do not allow whistling.*

(* I should imagine.) 

E. The Northern Lights had eaten the reindeer.

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All very useful phrases! But they are not in the same order as the Greenlandic - Skolt Saami phrase list above. A special mention to anyone who can solve the challenge and put A-E in the right order!

Note also that the second language on the border sign is Skolt Saami, and it is also the third language on the map. The second language on the map is probably Inari Sami (Anarâš) - I believe Inari Sami has a double “á” but North Sami does not, but would probably need someone else to confirm this.  

(Skolt Saami phrases taken from: A Grammar of Skolt Saami, Feist, T. (2010).    It’s a recommended read!)