Here are several short translated texts in Melfwm. The Melfwm translation and the English source are shown side-by-side, and a morpheme-by-morpheme gloss of the Melfwm follows. The following symbols and abbreviations are used in the glosses:
Translation of a folktale “retold from various Eastern European sources.”
Sanymanchoech scom iellwnto wnant sciwt. Iegcsheshy shȏȃt dhe scwr ‘roam chesalpw memetw scom aichȗas iapte suifoalpw scom echebia sachpe cfa-nwn wdh’marmwadhia tagconoc oel.
In ancient days people did not die their own death. Instead, law and tradition required that they be taken into the mountains and pushed over a sacred cliff when they reached a certain age.
Mydhw̑ oel ‘pam iechȏalimesfi padhiw sciwt iaicholpia nelfie sciwt choel-sh cem wdh’scoaia pwsiw cam noarpia twftwmant nepam iegcmemetw cam aichȗas sachpe wnant.
One family could not bring themselves to depart from their old grandfather, and so when his time came, they hid him in their cellar instead of taking him to the cliff of death.
Tanpluȃ oc catedh puȏch aibes selpiab iachel tanleiem ‘rwm capeflia ifalpo noapletuȃsh aibes, siec ‘pam sifi memeto shocȃsh rom poam’noaia poam’syntan noachw̑m.
At this time there was a great famine in the land. The crops had failed, the food stores were exhausted, and indeed, no one even had grain left for seed.
Nelfiec, cam poam’siab choal pwsuant twftwmant, cam merotw mydhw̑ cam tefololfi syntan samel nȏall poan’tandhesh shwnopan dher nȏall noeltan noachw̑m shocȃsh ‘coi poam’iepaluo foch egco. Llwsmoth cam nepam cania noelto noachw̑m dhascant poam’mire llin.
The grandfather, from his hiding place in the cellar, told his kin to remove the thatched roofs from their houses and rethresh the straw for any kernels of grain that may have been missed the first time. They did as he suggested, and harvested a good measure of forgotten grain.
Nepam shwnopia ecania llwsmoth cam choel-sh oscw noach-am noeltedh sheshy pluȃ oc iecnoscolpia nomws ‘ioam silpo noachw̑m noatia piania setoetuas petw loent pesh-chant.
Acting again on the old man’s advice, they sowed the newfound grain that very day. Miraculously their crop sprouted, matured, and was ready for harvest the next morning.
Idhec cam noeltw somfen nomws oc sarmedhiolfi onoan ioam focuolpo rifw myth-ch ‘pam somperchofi iegcaniw shȏȃt dhe scwr llwrnȃs nelfie choel-sh. Idhec maremw iny myth-ch dhe sasob cam choel-sh dhoashto eshcalech focuas cam shesholpia cam romȗt shȏȃt marolfi machw pluȃ oc scoi choel-sh focuan chȏalalia uampia wnant wnant sciwt.
The king, who quickly learned of this miracle, demanded an explanation. Thus the family was forced to admit how they had violated law and tradition by sparing their old grandfather. The king, impressed by the family’s courage and by the old man’s wisdom, decreed that from that day forth old people would be allowed to live until they died their own death.
‘Why People Today Die Their Own Death’
‘In ancient days, people did not die their own death.’
‘This was not done, rather, law and tradition were such that they were taken to the mountains’
‘and pushed over a sacred cliff when they reached a certain age.’
‘One family could not bring themselves to depart from their old grandfather,’
‘When that day came, they hid him in their cellar rather than take him to the cliff of death.’
‘In those days, a great famine was in the land, the crops had failed, the food stores were exhausted,’
‘and there was nobody who had remaining grain to take seed from.’
‘The grandfather, who was in his hiding place in the cellar, spoke to his family, instructing them ’
‘to remove the straw roofs from their houses and rethresh the straw and find any seeds of grain that hadn’t been seen the first time.’
‘They did as he suggested, and harvested a good measure of forgotten grain.’
‘They again followed the old man’s suggestion, and sowed the seed that had been found, and did it on that day.’
‘Although they had just sown it, there was a miracle, and the seed sprouted, matured, and was ready the next morning for harvesting.’
‘The king soon learned of this miracle and demanded it be explained,’
‘and the family was forced to admit that they had not followed law and tradition, and had rather spared their old grandfather.’
‘The king - the family’s courage and the old man’s wisdom impressed him,’
‘and he decreed a law that from that day old people would be allowed to live until they died their own death.’
The story of the tower of Babel, from Genesis 11:1-9. Both the Melfwm and English are my translations from the original Hebrew.
Scom llif tafiach-al llif ‘om caluo nuȏt-c egc ar tanmaruedh egc. T-nim wdh’asnofȇc sielot noelto intel-t poam’iachel Shinar ar w felfoȃ. Scom cuemarfi “T-llwsh edhiȃs llemeloȇt somacnofw.” Sciefto llemeloȇt poam’chemant cfon ar niaran poam’chemant dhoabebwr. Scom cuemarfi “T-llwsh edhiȃs carmys sciwt ar lwshit poan’tansh choanofia nwnȏȃmp, t-llwsh edhiȃs dhoelw̑ sciwt, ar iegcsheshw tanllw thy oscant choanofnuo̾at tafiach-al llif.” Wstȏȃsh ‘am thy aichȃs lwro paluan carm-asc ar lwsh-at poan’scom edhiȃs, ar cuemarfi “Scom wdh’tanmel egc dhe nuȏt-c egc poan’scoi llif ar scom wdh’iesheshw sheshant oc lloashe sheshant llif poam’etfyw sheshan ioallw iesiab thy uashelwrent. T-llwsh thy aichuȃs lwra raret ininynt nuȏt-c, ar scoi wdh’soamo scoi iepasaitw nuȏt-c.” ... Wstȏȃsh‘am oscolpw t-ni w iasia aichȃs tafiach-al llif, ar ifalw edhent carm-asc. Scelt oc dhoelw̑ ro suȏ Babel, .... w wstȏȃsh dhoan t-ni raret ininynt nuȏt-c, ar wstȏȃsh‘am oscolpw t-ni w iasia aichȃs tafiach-al llif.
The whole world had one language and the same words. As they traveled from the east, they found a valley in the land of Shinar, and settled there. They said to each other, “Let’s make bricks and burn them thoroughly.” They had bricks for stone, and bitumen for mortar. And they said, “Let’s build a city for ourselves, and let’s build a tower with its top in the sky, and let’s make a name for ourselves, lest we become scattered all over the world.” God came done to see the city and the tower that the people had built, and God said, “Here’s one people with one language for all, and this is what they’ve begun to do, and now should nothing they propose to do be beyond them? Let’s go down and confuse their language, so one will not understand the language of the other.” And God scattered them from there all over the world, and they stopped building the city. Therefore it was called Babel, because there God confused the whole world’s language, and from there God scattered them all over the world.
‘The Tower of Babel’
‘Everyone in the whole world spoke one language and one (set of) words.’
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