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What’s with this “Wren” thing?
The oldest extant version of the fable
we
are presenting here appeared in 1913 in the first volume of a two-volume anthology
of Low
Saxon folktales (Plattdeutsche
Volksmärchen “Low German Folktales”)
collected by Wilhelm Wisser (1843–1935). Read
more ...
Sahsisk
Old Saxon
Listen to this translation
narrated with hypothetical pronunciation:
Language information: Old Saxon is the primary ancestor of Low Saxon (“Low German”) and one of the main ancestors
of English. Its original region is Northern Albingia, an area north of the
Lower Elbe. Old Saxon was used from Southern Schleswig in the north to the
Harz Mountains in the south, from close to the Ijssel Sea in the west to about
Kiel and Lauenburg in the east. In some western and northern border regions
it overlapped with Frisian, Low Franconian, Anglish and Jutish, in southern
regions with German and in eastern regions with Western Slavonic. In more recent
times, Old Saxon has been referred to as “Old Low German” (Altniederdeutsch) in Germany, the more accurate name “Old Saxon” (Altsächsisch) being confined to certain academic circles [Click here for more.]
The
wrendilo havda is nest in themu waganseli. Wârun thê eldiron ênes bêđia ûtgifaran,
willeandi gihalôn hwat te quecôn for iro jungon, endi haβdun alaênfarlâtan thê
luttike.
Efto bikeride fadar wrendilo. »Hwat is hêr giwurđan?« quađ hê. »Hwê haβda giu
lêđ gisidôn, barn? Gî sindun all sô âcuman!«
»Wenk, fadar,« quâdun siu, »ên mikil unholdo is hêr an ûs farlîsan! Allsô grimmlîk endi forhtlîk was is andbâri! Hê starroda an ûs neste innan mid mikilum ôgum. Bithiu sindun wî nû sô undarbâdôn.«
»Wel,« quađ the aldiro, »hwarod is hê nû gigangan?«
»Thar,« quâdun siu, »hê is tharod gigangan.«
»Bîdađ!« quađ fadar wrendilo, »ik scal imu fulgangan. Ne wesađ blôđi, barn! Ik
scal ina wel fâhan.« Efto fôr hê imu bihindan.
Allsô hê umbi thia eggia quam, was that the leo, the thar hliop.
Ac the wrendilo was ni âcuman. Fôr hê an thes lêwes bak niđar endi deda âhebbian
te skeldan. »Hwêo cumis thû tô mînemu hûse,« quađ hê, »endi undarbâdôs mîne barn?«
Ni rôkida the leo thes ac geng forđ.
That
macoda thes luttilan wîgandes ôbult noh starkora. »Neowiht haβes thû thar te
sôkian, seggiu ik thî. Endi quemes thû wîđar,« quađ hê, »sô werđes thû sehan.
Thoh nek williu that sôđfast dôn,« quađ hê endi efto gihôf ên fan is bên, »ac
ik sculi mid ênera trada tebrekan thîn bak.«
Efto fôr hê wîđar tô is neste.
»Thar, barn,« quađ hê, »themu hebbiu ik êna lêra gigevan. Nio scal hê ni wîđar
cuman.«