Jospa kuolisin kotini
In the SKVR edition: Parikkala? Honkakylä. Haalman? 16. 90. Maria Hakkarainen, 87 v. Juho Tiaisen leski.
SKVR textEnglish
1Jospa kuolisin kotini,If only I'd die at my home,
2Rikolleni riukeneisin!May my corpse rot away!
3Ei oo kurjalla kotia,The wretched have no home,
4Katalalla kartanoa.The treacherous no manor.
5Ei sure minun sukuni,My kin does not mourn,
6Ei emoni ensinkää.Nor my mother ever.
7Tulin mie tähän talohon,I came to this household,
8Tulin kuin tulikipuna,Came like a fire's ember,
9Vierin kuin vesipisara.Rolled like a water droplet.
10Appi haukku ahkioksi,Father-in-law called me a sledge,
11Anoppi kylän akaksi,Mother-in-law the village crone,
12Kyty kynnyspersiksi.Sister-in-law a threshold beam.
13Ei oo ilta kuin en itke,No evening without my weeping,
14Ei o viikko kuin en viere,No week without my lying low,
15Ei oo kuu kuin en kujerra.No month without my wailing.
16Olisi voinut miun emoni,Had my mother only been able,
17Muata mamma kultaseniTo die, my golden mother,
18Ennenkuin minua tuuti, -Before she rocked me,
19Ennen tuuti turpehia,Before she rocked the peat,
20Kapaloija kartusia,Swaddles into coffins,
21Tälle suurelle surulle,For this great sorrow,
22Huolen alle hoitajalle.To the nurse of worries.
23Ei ole sitä sisärtä,There's no sister,
24Ei sitä emosen lasta,No mother's child,
25Jolle haastaisin haluni,To whom I'd tell my yearnings,
26Pakajaisin mielpahani.Vent my heart's distress.
27Haastan haavan lehtisille,I tell the aspen's leaves,
28Pakajan pajun vesalle.Confide in willow's waters.
29Vaan ei kuulu kuitenkanaYet no echo returns,
30Kulle kuulua pitäisi:To whom it should resound:
31Muamolleni muan rakohon,To my mother in earth's cavity,
32Taatolleni taivahaasen.To my father in heaven's dome.
33Jos olisin minä rikas,If I were wealthy,
34Niin ystävii ois monta,Friends would be many,
35Vaan olen köyhä ja orpo,But I'm poor and orphaned,
36Niin kaikilta oon halpa.So all hold me worthless.
37Emosen miun elätti,My mother raised me,
38Kuin elätti, niin erottiYet as she raised, she cast out,
39Eres muista lapsistansaApart from her other children,
40Tuulen puolelle tuvasta,To the windy side of the house,
41Pohjoispuolelle mäkeäNorth side of the hill,
42Pohjantuulta tuntemaane,To sense the north wind's bite,
43Ärjentä älyämääne.Roars beyond understanding.
44Tunnen tuulen, tunnen tyynen,I know wind, know calm,
45Tunnen ainoisen ahavan,Know the lone dry breeze,
46Tunnen vainen vastarinnan.Know faint resistance.
47Tuuli tuuli mistä tuuli,Wind, wind, from where blow you,
48Se aina minua kohti,Always blowing toward me,
49Paisto päivä mistä paisto,Sun, sun, from where shine you,
50Se aina sivu minusta.Always aside from me.
51Aijan soppi suojanani,Burdock leaves my shelter,
52Varokas on varjonani.Caution is my shadow.
53Sijan tiesin, jossa synnyn,I knew where I was born,
54Ajan kaiken, jossa kasvon;All time where I grew;
55En tiijä sitä sijasta,I know not the place
56Kuhun kuoleman pitääpi.Where death must take me.
57Kuolnen korppien kotine,I'll die to ravens' homes,
58Variksien vainiolle,To crows' harvested fields,
59Muihen lintujen lijolle.To birds' muddy grounds.
60Niin on kolkko minun kotiniSo bleak is my home
61Kuin on kolkko korven reuna;As the forest's bleak edge;
62Niin on pitkät miun pihaniSo long are my yards
63Kuin on pitkät pilven laijat.As long as cloud banks.
English translations by DeepSeek R1, provided by Lidia Pivovarova (University of Helsinki). AI-generated translations may contain inaccuracies.
The text is that of the SKVR digital edition of the Finnish Literature Society (SKS), with these changes:
- The edition’s line numbers are replaced by a number on every verse, counted as in the poem reader.
Source
Text: SKVR (Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot), the digital edition of the Finnish Literature Society (SKS), licensed under CC BY 4.0.
Permanent address of this poem at SKS: http://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:sks-kvr-073622 · Read at SKS ↗
Added by RunoVerse: the English translations, the song types, the verse numbers and the links.