How God Made The Roma /
Sar o Devel cherda e Rromen
- Readings Available
English, Romani.
Bosnian, Hungarian, and German versions are available as PDF files at http://www.romanifolktales.com/.
The English-language translation follows the original text below.
Sar o Devel cherda e Rromen
Ando dumutnipeste e Devlese phanda pe godji te cheren o manush. Vov phenda korkoro peske: "Ako cherdem o Kham thaj o Chon, shaj te cherav o manush. Sose na?" O Devel lelo o chik thaj astarda te cherel o kipo.
Kana gatisarda o kipo, vov thovda o kipo ando chiravdeste, thaj ande furnavate te peken les. Pala pekipe trubulo but sahati. O Devel djelo ande pashimata te phirel. Avri sasa but shukar, thaj o Devel bistarda o kipo. Kana avilo chere, o sasto kipo sasa kalo.
O Devel na mangla te chuden les, thaj e Devlese phanda pe godji te dija e kipese o dzuvdipe. Vov phurda leske dzuvdipeske hava ando muj, thaj gova kipo astarda te phurdel. E kipestar iklada dzuvdo manush. Gova manush sasa majpurano kalo manush.
O Devel, pale, astarda te cherel nevo manush. Vov gatisarda e chikesko kipo, thaj thovda les ando chiravdeste, thaj ande furnavate te peken les. Numaj gova drom, o Devel sasa daravdo. Na djelo avri ando phiripeste. Vov na mangla te cherel pale sar cherda angluno drom. O Devel dija but sama pala gova kipo.
"Jekh sahato si dosta pala o kipo", gndisarda o Devel. So gndisarda, gadija cherda. O Devel lelo o kipo-manush andare furnavate. Gova kipo sasa sasto parno. Pale, pherdeilehko, o Devel na mangla te chudel o kipo-manush. Vov phurda e kipese lachi dzuvdipeski hava ando muj. Gova kipo astarda te phurdel. E kipestar iklada dzuvdo manush. Gova manush sasa majpurano parno manush.
"Trinto drom — trinto baxt, mora te avel but lacho, sumnakaj bojava manush", o Devel phenda korkoro peske. Vov thovda nevo chikesko kipo-manush ando chiravdeste, thaj ande furnavate te peken les. Vov dija bari sama. Na djelo ando phiripeste. O Devel avel but azhucharno. Lesko azhucharipe cherda lachi buchi. O Devel cherda but shukar, sumnakaj bojava kipo thaj sasa but baxtalo pala gova. Vov phurda leske e dzuvdipeski hava ando muj, phurda kamipe, phurda hacharipe thaj sa Devlikano dzuvdipesko zumadipe. Thoska o Devel phenda: "Tu trubuj te aves e Rromengo majpurano manush!"
How God Made The Roma
Once upon a time, God decided to create a man. He knew that since He had already made the sun and the moon, He would now be able to make a man too.
God took some mud and made a clay statue of a man. When He was satisfied, He placed it in the oven to bake it. He thought that baking the statue would take a few hours, and when He became bored with waiting, He went for a walk to pass the time.
Since the weather was beautiful, God forgot about the statue. By the time He remembered, He came back to find that the statue had baked to a black colour. Though the statue had baked longer than intended, God breathed life into it, and this first man became the ancestor of dark skinned people.
Then God decided to create another man. He placed the finished statue in the oven to bake. This time, God stayed near the oven because He did not want to bake the clay statue too long. In His impatience, God removed this statue too soon, and it had baked to a white colour. Though the statue had baked less than intended, God breathed life into it, and this second man became the ancestor of light skinned people.
God tried for a third time, and formed a man out of clay. He placed the finished statue in the oven. This time He was very careful. He did not go for a walk and stayed close to the oven, but He was patient and careful not to remove the statue too early either.
God's patience paid off, for when He removed the clay figure from the oven, He saw a beautiful brown man. He was well pleased, and He breathed life into the statue, this time adding with his breath all his life experience and emotions. God then decided that this man would become the ancestor of the Roma.