Hoose cummelled owre, bent ta watter
waa aa but faa’n
filt wi wave echoes tae rafter,
göt wi a hansel o maas
Caddy hersel, brocht her wan lamb
haem fae da hill i da mirk,
keepin her coonsel shö tholed
da gadderie o laads wi der smirks.
Set her an gret i da darkenin,
froad at her fit fae da cletts.
Reddin her hair an dan braidin –
deep gowlden coarn o her plaits.
Was hit a tirrick dat cried her?
Mönlicht a glister on swall
Licht comin an gyaain tagidder –
glinks on her necklet o döl.
Hoose cummelled owre, bent ta watter
waa aa but faa’n
filt wi wave echoes tae rafter,
göt wi a hansel o taers.
Notes on this poem
This translation was selected from our online translation workshop to feature in our Estonian poetry pamphlet.
Maarja Kangro, the Estonian poet who set the workshop and chose this poem for our digital pamphlet silencesilencesilencesilencesilcence, gives feedback on the workshop in this article. You can listen to this poem read in the original Estonian, as well as in Shetlandic, in this podcast.