~Federico Fellini
Happy Poetry Friday! I recently bought the anthology Poems from the Edge of Extinction: An Anthology of Poetry in Endangered Languages.
The scoop:
Each poem appears in its original form, alongside an English translation, and is accompanied by a commentary about the language, the poet and the poem - in a vibrant celebration of life, diversity, language, and the enduring power of poetry.A poem by Diné poet Laura Tohe:
One language is falling silent every two weeks. Half of the 7,000 languages spoken in the world today will be lost by the end of this century. With the loss of these languages, we also lose the unique poetic traditions of their speakers and writers.
Languages included in the book: Assyrian; Belarusian; Chimiini; Irish Gaelic; Maori; Navajo; Patua; Rotuman; Saami; Scottish Gaelic; Welsh; Yiddish; Zoque...
Map Songs of the Sandhill Cranes
by Laura Tohe
in Mexico
they laid open the maps again
written for them in the 2nd world
in blue light spoken with blue voices
they learned songs that would guide them through all the worlds to come
songs they placed in the spiral of their throats and called them maps
in the blue world they danced with Wind
who liked these feathered beings
so Wind molded and formed their bodies
and taught them to ride on its breath
when the fights and quarrels broke the blue world apart
the cranes gathered their songs and dances and maps
and flew towards the stars...
read the rest here (scroll down to "Featured Poems")
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I also read a poem by Albanian poet Luljeta Lleshanaku. That poem is not available online, but here is another juicy one by Ms. Lleshanaku called "Acupuncture." I'm intrigued by her concept that "The universe functions as a single body." Her poem made me think about climate crisis, and the interconnectedness of us all.
Acupuncture
By Luljeta Lleshanaku
Translated by Ani Gjika
Among the personal objects inside a 2100-year-old Chinese tomb,
archaeologists found nine acupuncture needles,
four gold and five silver.
Long before knowing why,
ancient doctors knew that pain
must be fought with pain.
It’s quite simple: an array of needles pricking your arm
for a properly functioning heart and lungs.
Needles in the feet to ease insomnia and stress.
Needles between your eyes to fight infertility.
A little pain here,
and the effect is felt elsewhere
Once, a group of explorers set out to plant a flag on the South Pole,
a needle at the heel of the globe, in the middle of nowhere.
But before the mission was completed
a new world war had begun.
The impact of the needle was felt in the world’s brain...
read the rest here
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Nix the Comfort Zone has the Poetry Friday round-up. Thanks, Molly!
Endangered Language resources
oh, my. 'Acupuncture' I have to have a copy of that poem in my notebook. It's a healing kind of poem in itself. Fight pain with pain...that thought too. Wow, Tabatha. This whole post is a poetry Rx for me. I'm going to take this with me today. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad to think that languages were fading away so quickly. Thank you for sharing this book and these thought-provoking poems. I love these phrases from Sandhill Crane, “where a grandmother sprinkles corn pollen for their return each year,” “in the month of The Eagle's Young,” and “they learned songs that would guide them through all the worlds to come.”
ReplyDeleteSuch powerful and gorgeous and quite different poems - but not in the sense that everything is connected. What a wonderful anthology. Thank you for sharing these voices, Tabatha, and the stark accounting of disappearing languages. I knew it was bad but didn't realize how quickly we are losing them.
ReplyDeleteTabatha, you so often share new books and new ideas with us. The poems are special to our world today as we face many challenges. I enjoyed Laura Tohe's poem, the image of "so Wind molded and formed their bodies/and taught them to ride on its breath" very much. I've spent time with my students visiting the Navajo, learning some of their ways and with Parks and Wildlife services studying sandhill cranes, very special memories. Then that connecting metaphor of needles. I won't look at stars the same way again! Thanks for the 'full of riches' post!
ReplyDeleteSo much to think about here! How each language contributes to what we know and how everything is interconnected. These poems need to be reread. Thank you for sharing them and the book title, Tabatha.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like an exquisite book, Tabatha! Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteOne every two weeks! That's astonishing. Thanks for introducing me to this anthology, Tabatha.
ReplyDeleteWhoa. I hate thinking of lost languages. Did you read THE LOST LANGUAGE https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56547108-the-lost-language? I don't think I got through it, but of course I have to mention it. And isn't interesting that I'm featuring a book called Dear Human at the Edge of Time, while yours is the Edge of Extinction? We are surrounded by edges rushing towards us. I want to hear these poems in their native language.
ReplyDeleteWow, Tabatha! This post is so rich and dense. I'm deeply saddened by the loss of all these languages and had no idea of the pace involved. I'm fascinated by the poem "Acupuncture" and the idea that "pain must be fought with pain." That echoes something I've been reading in Maggie Smith's memoir. I was also deeply moved by the poem "Meeting the Spirit of Water" that was on the linked site for Laura Tohe. Such powerful words and ideas you've shared today! Thank you.
ReplyDeleteSo much to think about. The idea of losing languages is something I never knew or thought about. what else, I wonder, is becoming extinct? Copying down this title.
ReplyDeleteIt's heartbreaking that some people are so cavalier with English while other languages with rich histories and traditions are disappearing. The imagery in "Map Songs of the Sandhill Cranes" is stunning. I love the same lines Linda B. mentioned. Thank you for sharing these two powerful poems.
ReplyDeleteAs a former schoolwide director of ELA and ESL, I understand the importance of diversity and languages. It is sad to hear that so many languages "will be lost by the end of the century". I had a small group of ESL students (150 children) who spoke 17 different languages at home. Thank you for sharing dramatic poems from "Edge of Extinction" anthology.
ReplyDeleteTabatha, wow, Acupuncture is a great poem about the interconnectedness of all. I like how she really conveys that through so many good examples of body acupuncture and metaphorically of the earth's acupuncture and then ending with how the acupuncture pain her teacher's mispronunciation of her name gave her clearer vision of poetry. Beautiful. Thanks for sharing this gem. The Edge of Extinction collection is sad, but important.
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ReplyDeleteLove the vastness of the blue in the crane poem, and the ending lines of "Acupuncture"
ReplyDelete"I saw poetry,
the perfect disguise."
Thanks for sharing both of these poets from "Poems from the Edge of Extinction" what a rich and timely collection!
So much to think about and absorb here. My brain has definitely been pricked. Where will the effect be felt or found?
ReplyDeleteOof-
ReplyDelete"A little pain here,
and the effect is felt elsewhere"
yep
Oh! I saw this book somewhere and I put it on my list. Now that you've mentioned it, I need to get a copy.
ReplyDelete