1895: “Chinook Hymns” in Chinuk Pipa (Part 2: “A New Song for Christmas”)
Calling all readers! Do you know what Christmas carol this Jargon version is based on?
(Here’s a link to all installments in this mini-series.)
Image credit: Redbubble
Today’s item from the little book “Chinook Hymns” (6th edition, 1895, Kamloops) isn’t familiar to me, immediately.
I assume it’s most likely from France, because most of the missionary priests who created these Chinuk Wawa songs in southern British Columbia came from that country. (And most of the rest were from other French-speaking places.)
The refrain “Gloria In Excelsis Deo” in Latin does bring up the carol I know as “Angels We Have Heard On High“. What do you think, though?
Our first installment was presented as an “old” Christmas song, and this as a “new” one. Does that just mean that the first one was taught to local Native people earlier?
[Updating to add: there seems to be comfortable agreement that the tune of what you see below could easily have been “Les Anges Dans Nos Campagnes” / “Angels We Have Heard On High”.]
Here’s what we find on page [i], that is, the page before page [1]:
< -1- >
Drit aias tlus naika tomtom
‘I was joyful’
Pus ShK chako tanas
‘When Jesus Christ was born.’
Naika shanti kakwa lisash
‘I sang like an angel’
Ankati Krismas pulakli
‘Long ago on Christmas night.’
Gloria in iksilsis Dio
‘Gloria in exceslsis Deo’
Gloria in iksilsis Dio.< -2- >
Lisash wawa kopa shipirtz
‘An angel told some shepherds,’
Mamuk yutl msaika tomtom
‘Be glad,’
Naika lolo tlus siisim
‘I bring good news’
Kopa kanawi tilikom.
‘To everyone.’
Gloria…< -3- >
Msaika taii chako tanas
‘Your chief is born,’
Tiki mamuk tlus msaika
‘Wanting to heal you folks,’
Kuli kopa musmus haws
‘Travel to a barn,’
Iawa msaika nanich iaka
‘There you’ll see him.’
Gloria…< -4- >
Aiak shipirtz klaska kuli
‘The shepherds hurried,’
Klaska nanich tanas Shisyu
‘They saw little Jesus,’
Iaka aias klahawiam
‘He was very pitiful,’
Kanamokst Mari pi Shosif
‘Along with Mary and Joseph.’
Gloria…< -5- >
Shipirtz wawa kopa Shisyu
‘The shepherds told Jesus,’
Mirsi o ST
‘Thank you oh God,’
Maika chako iakwa ilihi
‘You came to this place,’
Mamuk klahawiam nsaika
‘To have pity on us.’
Gloria…< -6- >
Wiht nsaika wawa maika
‘We also say to you’
Mirsi mirsi tlus ShK
‘Thank you, thank you, good Jesus Christ,’
Chi wiht maika chako iakwa
‘You also come here right now’
Ipsut kopa ⊕.
‘Hidden in the eucharist.’
Gloria…
