Suriname folk-lore

14.

Wąn Konum bɛn dɛ. Anąnsi a go na Konum, a ɑksi Konum, ‘Mi Konu, mi Konu, lei̯ fō sɔro, sɔrtu wąn mɔro hati?’ Konu taki, ‘Sɔro mɔro hati.’ Anąnsi taki, ‘No, no, mi Konu, lei̯ mɔro hati.’

Anąnsi go na hoso, a tai̯gi hɛm pikin, tak', ‘Tamara mamɛntɛm, di yu go na Konu dɔro, dąn yu go xrotu na grɔ̨' na dɔro, dą' kɩbri dapɛ.’

Anąnsi go na Konu, a tak', ‘Mi Konu, yu wan' si fa na grɔ̨ dɛ taki?’ Konu taki, ‘Ya.’ So Konum fɔm prokoti, sɛn' kari ala tra Konu fō kɔm yere, taki grɔ̨' i taki. Nō, mamɛntɛm, Konu sɛn' kari fō ala suma kɔm yɛre fa na grɔ̨' i kɔm taki. So mamɛntɛm, ala suma den kɔm, kɔm yɛre grɔ̨' dɛ taki. Anąnsi meki hɛm p'kin

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go kɩbri na ɔndra na xrotu. Mamɛntɛm, Anąnsi kɔm nąŋga ala den makandra.

Anąnsi aksi Konu, ‘Kųkų, kųkų. Suma kųkų dia?’ 'A kųkų piki taki, ‘'A Konu kųkų.’ A taki wąn trǫ' mɔro, ‘Kųkų, kųkų, suma kųkų?’ ‘Na mi Konu kųkų.’ So Konu kɩs' so syɛm, a flau̯.

Anąnsi kɔm tamara mamɛntɛm na Konu, a haksi, ‘Mi Konu, mi no bɛn tai̯g' yu dati lei̯ hati mɔro sɔro?’ Konum taki, ‘Ya, Anąnsi, nō mi si tru-tru dati lei̯ hati mɔro sɔro.’ Ɛn so Konum a fō gi Anąnsi wąn leti-mɩndri kɔndre fō hɛm, nąŋga hɛm wei̯fi, nąŋga hɛm p'kin. Anąnsi wɩni Konu.

14. A Lie Hurts More Than a Wound.⁴

There was a King. Anansi went to the King and he asked the King, ‘My King, my King, which is more painful, a lie or a wound?’ The King said, ‘A wound is more painful.’ Anansi said, ‘No, no, my King, a lie is more painful.’

Anansi went home and he said to his child, said, ‘Tomorrow morning, when you come to the King's door, then you are to go and defecate on the ground before the door, and then hide there.’

Anansi went to the King, and he said, ‘My King, do you want to see how the earth speaks?’ The King said, ‘Yes.’ So the King beat a message [on the drum] to call all the other kings to come and hear how the earth spoke. Now in the morning, the King sent to call all the people to come and hear how the earth came to

4 Told by 13.

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speak. So in the morning all the people came to hear the earth speak. Anansi had his child go and hide underneath the excrement. In the morning Anansi came together with the others.

Anansi asked, ‘Kunkun,¹ kunkun, whose kunkun is here?’ The kunkun answered, said, ‘I am the King's kunkun.’ He said once more, ‘Kunkun, kunkun, whose kunkun?’ ‘I am the King's kunkun.’ So the King was so ashamed,² he fainted.

Anansi came to the King the next morning and he asked, ‘My King, didn't I tell you that a lie hurts more than a wound?’ The King said, ‘Yes, Anansi. Now, I see truly³ that a lie hurts more than a wound.’ And so the King had to give Anansi half of his kingdom, and his wives, and his children. Anansi won from the King.

1 Informant said it was African for excrement.

2 Lit., ‘so the King catch so shame’.

3 Lit., ‘true-true’.