CutBank
Volume 1
Issue 27 CutBank 27/28
Article 40
Fall 1986
On translating the Nicaraguan
K. H. Anton
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Anton, K. H. (1986) "On translating the Nicaraguan," CutBank: Vol. 1: Iss. 27, Article 40.
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95
On
Translating
The
Because o f th e political situ atio n , N icaragua, an d C e n tra l A m erica in general, have
recently attracted th e a tte n tio n of U S citizens. T his a ttra c tio n stim ulated th e interest
in w hat one m ay call “th e C e n tra l A m erican ch ic,” th a t is th e general tre n d th a t focuses
in th e tragic Isthm us. In previous centuries, a passage to th e Pacific drew th e explorers;
th e m eager gold, th e conquistadores; th e coastal plains, th e English an d U S p lanters,
th e U S m arines, th e Inter-A m erican security, th e p ro te stan t m issionaries, th e souls in
th e clutches of h e a th e n Rom e. In recent lusters, all these m o tiv atio n s have given way
to a new one, th e curiosity th a t draw s political scientists an d h u m a n ita ria n sym pathizers
w ho w ant to see a new society b o rn un d er S an d in o ’s sombrero. A long w ith th e num erous
volcanoes, the recently gained literacy, the towel and toilet paper shortage, and th e swelter­
ing heat, U S travellers bring back o th e r im pressions, including th e N icarag u an s’ cordial
loquacity an d their m any poets. A m ong th e latter they may have fo u n d R uben D ario,
th e greatest Spanish poet, a M odern ista, th e p ost-M odernista Fr. A zarlas Palais, th e su r­
realist A lfonso C ortes, th e neo-R om antic Jose C oro n el U rtech o , Pablo A n to n io C u ad ra,
Fr. E rnesto C ard en al. T h e first th ree poets, now dead, do n o t p ertain to th e following
jottings because D ario c a n n o t be tra n sla ted in to English, a n d Fr. Palais an d C o rtes did
n o t w rite in th e local dialect; a few tips are addressed to those w ho m ay wish to render
into English C oronel U rtecho, P.A. C u ad ra, Fr. C ardenal, and o th er contem porary poets
w ho stress th e N icaraguan speech in th e ir verses.
Since this local language form s p a rt of C astillian , one m ust consider tw o difficulties
th a t arise u p o n tran slatin g S p an ish in to English. T h e first o n e stems from th e m any
cognates th a t b o th languages share. Since one belongs to th e N eo-L atin an d th e o th e r
to th e G erm anic, certain L atin ro o t w ords acquire in English an erudite o r affected to n e
absent from Spanish. T herefore, th e tra n sla to r should ascertain th e o rig in al’s flavor and
recreate it, preferably w ith an A n glo-S axon term , e.g., “facilidad” should becom e “ease”
ra th e r th a n “facility,” w hich m ight suggest som ething else. A n exam ple in th is regard
shows th e pitfalls cognates can cause. W h en Fr. M erto n died, Fr. C ard en al, his disciple
an d friend, w rote an elegy w herein he c o n traste d Fr. M e rto n ’s spiritual life an d death
to th e em pty existence m any people led a n d ended w ith “jubilacion en M iam i,” “retire­
m en t in M iam i.” A fam ous U S poet ren d ered it as “ju b ilatio n in M iam i,” an d missed
th e po in t entirely since th e “jubilacion” did n o t bring “ju b ilo,” “glee,” or “jo y ,” or “m erri­
m e n t,” etc. into th e poem in question. A n o th e r h in d ra n c e originates from th e Spanish
p reposition “d e,” w hich m eans “o f” or “fro m .” In English, an ap o stro p h e an d an “ ’s”
convey th e possessive genitive m eaning m ore efficiently th a n th e cum bersom e “of.”
T hese rem arks only p ertain to tran slatin g S panish in to English, an d th ey do n o t delve
in to certain idiosyncracies of th e N icaraguan dialect th a t com plicate th e ren d itio n . As
w ith o th er C e n tra l A m erican languages, except for P a n am an ian , N icaraguan has m any
archaisms, pronouns and idioms long extinct in standard Castillian. This antiquated nature
appears in th e second person. In correct S panish th ere are five, “U ste d ” an d “U sted es,”
singular and plural polite form s, “tu ” an d “v o so tro s,” singular an d plural intim ate, and
“vos,” rarely used now in stan d a rd speech an d only in addresses to popes, archbishops,
bishops, em perors, kings, an d princes. A highly form al p ro n o u n , “vos” has becom e th e
com m on inform al second person singular in A rg en tin a, Paraguay, U ruguay a n d C en tral
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America, and it has replaced “tu ”, the appropriate pronoun, cognate with English “th o u ,”
now archaic. Since th e misuse of “vos” for “tu ” has only a parallel in th e English “th ee”,
still spoken by religious groups in th e XIX century, and even th o u sounds affected now,
th e translater should find a vernacular form th a t interprets th e original tone. T h u s a
poem by th e young b ard Luis R ocha entitled “^Te acordas?” could becom e “D ’you
remember?,” even with the contraction, because the colloquial question in correct Castillian
should say “^Te acuerdas?”, addressed to “tu ”. T h e hom ey “D ’you rem em ber?”, carries
through th e shortened “ acordas” verb, keeping th e interrogative’s dem odic tone.
T h e gram m atical snags becom e less cum bersom e in time. O th e r obstacles, how ever,
keep plaguing the translator until he finds ways to overcome them . T h e m ost troublesome
originates from the lack o f a N icaraguan dialect dictionary. T h e stan d ard works, (T ana
de G am ez, Simon and Schuster International English/Spanish Spanish/English (1973) and
Edgar A llison Peers Cassell’s Spanish Dictionary (1960), do no t define N icaraguan terms,
and w hen they describe synonym s from stan d ard C astillian an d b etter know n dialects,
they provide only vague words. Therefore, o n e m ust consult Spanish lexicons and en­
cyclopaedias. T h e Diccionario de la lengua espanola by th e Real A cadem ia de la Lengua
(1922), although very th o ro u g h , does n o t register incorrect o r all dialectical term s. In
contrast, the Enciclopedia vniversal ilvstrada evropeo-americana (1903?-1933), com m only refer­
red to as the “E spasa-C alpet,” often defines th e words, lists dialectical synonym s, and,
on m any occasions, even illustrates th e item, providing th e scientific nam es o f plants
and animals th a t other sources ignore. Every good university library has an Espasa-Calpet.
In small colleges, one finds o th er encyclopaedias such as Diccionario enciclopedico Salvat
(1942), th e Enciclopedia Sopena, b o th S panish, and th e M exican U .T .E .H .A ., w hich is
invaluable for A m erican m atters, particularly for pre-C olum bian antiquities.
A m ong dialectical lexicons, Francisco J. S an tam ari’s Diccionario de mejicanismos (1974)
has helped a little to translate N icaraguan poems. U n fo rtu n ately , it delves into th e M ex­
ican dialect and in order to benefit from its definitions one m ust th e n transform th e
N ahualtl term used in Mexico to th e w ord com m on in N icaragua, where a modified
N ahualtl was spoken in th e X VI century. A m o n g o th e r differences, th e initial syllable
dropped out; th u s, th e M exican “guajolote” becam e th e N icaraguan “jolote,” (“p avo”
in S tan d ard C astillian, m eaning “tu rk ey ”). A m ong o th er changes th e x, originally p ro ­
nounced sh, becam e s o r j; th e com m on d ip h th o n g hui, p ron o u n ced wee, changed to
giii, pronounced gwee, and so on. In spite of these transform ations and th e difficulties
they cause, Santam aria provides definitions and scientific nam es th a t can lead to the
English words one needs.
In similar fashion, any dictionary of S alvadoran, H o n d u ra n and C o sta Rican term s
can prove useful to tran slate th e N icaraguan dialect. For instance, A lberto M em b ren o ’s
now classic Hondurenismos (3rd. ed., 1982) contains words used in H onduras and Nicaragua.
U nfortunately, the work is dated; it was published in 1895, reedited and enlarged in 1897,
and reprinted in 1982, unchanged. M oreover, as in th e case of M exican term s, th e H o n ­
d u ran words m utate into som ething quite different in th e N icaraguan dialect, again in
th e first syllable or syllables, notably in plan t an d bird names.
T h e flora and fauna nom enclatures effect th e hardest tran slatin g problem s to solve.
As m entioned before, th e problems result form inadequate Spanish/E nglish dictionaries.
But a little effort can lead the lexicographer into an English nam e, usually from th e British
A ntilles, th a t represents th e N icaraguan p lan t o r bird w ith an image. T his aspect can n o t
be disregarded because m any contem porary N icaraguan poets, notably P. A . C u ad ra
and Fr. C ardenal, constantly recreate th e n atu re th a t su rrounds them . V ery often th e
tropical vision evoked by th e tran slatio n may becom e accessible to th e reader w hen he
97
c an find a d e sc rip tio n in an E nglish lexicon. In spite o f th is, m an y p ro m in e n t tra n sla to rs
leave th e In do-H ispanic nam es, alluring a n d exotic to be sure, b u t useless to th e English
speaker w ho m ay w a n t to see a red-bean tree o r h e a r a p a in te d b u n tin g .
T h e fau n a, especially fowl, proves m ore difficult to tra n sla te th a n th e flora. For som e
reaso n N ic ara g u an trees a n d four-footed anim als have th e ir nam es registered in
S p a n ish /E n g lish dictionaries. T h e colorful birds, how ever, still w ait for th e N o a h th a t
labels th em before th ey can jo u rn ey to th e U S literary shores. In all fairness, th e p ro ­
blem in tra n sla tin g th e ir nam es begins w ith th e S p an ish n am es, often confusing a n d
m isleading. S om etim es o n e finds th re e nam es o r m ore for th e sam e b ird in on e c o u n try .
T h is h a p p en e d because th e explorer o r th e c o n q u e ro r e n c o u n te re d a fowl th a t rem in d ed
him o f som e S p a n ish one, a n d h e pro m p tly m isn am ed th e A m e ric an b ird w ith a P e n in ­
sular appellation. For exam ple, “g u rrio n ,” c o rru p tio n o f “g o rrio n ,” o r sparrow , was p ro ­
b ably th e first n a m e applied to th e h u m m in g b ird . T h e m isn o m er m u st have o rig in a ted
from th e sm all size b o th birds sh a re, so th a t “g o rrio n ,” o r “g u rrio n ,” served to designate
th e h u m m in g b ird . T h e second n o u n cam e in to being w h en th e c o n q u e ro r’s offspring
struck ro o ts in th e N ew W o rld, a n d w atch ed th e fow l’s h a b its a n d called it “ p icaflor,”
“flow erpecker,” a m ore descriptive a n d poetic d e n o m in a tio n . T h e th ird d esig n atio n , th e
Indian and m ost authentic, survived b o th the c onquistador’s and th e criollo’s, an d reasserted
itself w ith a m elodious ring, stressed by th e a ccen t o n th e last syllable, “c o lib n .” In view
o f th e m isleading n a tu re o f th e c o n q u e ro r’s nam es, th e tra n sla to r should follow th e criollo
o r th e n ativ e label in o rd e r to find th e a ccu rate E nglish w ord.
T o accom plish this, o n e first checks o u t th e S p an ish term in S im on a n d S c h u ste r’s
dictio n ary . If th e tra n sla te d w o rd seems to o vague, o r in ac cu ra te, o n e looks in to Santa m a ria ’s Diccionari de mejicanismos, in o rd er to secure a scientific label. If th is fails, one
proceeds to th e E spasa-C alpet, w hich w ith its general o rie n ta tio n , m ight pro v id e th e
tech n ical tag. W ith th is tag, o n e goes o n to o rn ith o lo g ical h a n d b o o k s, usually p rin te d
a n d illustrated in th e U S . L. Irby D avis’ A Field Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Central
America (A u stin , T x: U T P , 1972) w ith plates by F.P. B e n n ett Jr., has m any scientific
a n d English nam es, b u t it lacks th e co rre sp o n d in g S panish. H ugh C . L a n d ’s Birds of
Guatemala (W ynnew ood, Pa.: L ivingston P ublishing C o ., 1950), alth o u g h th o ro u g h , does
n o t index th e m an y S p a n ish n am es, a n d w ith o u t th e scientific o n e th e tra n s la to r has
to leaf th ro u g h th re e h u n d re d pages to find th e local designation. M oreover, since th e
G u a te m a la n S p a n ish dialect h a s a heavy M a y a n influence, L a n d ’s field guide does n o t
help m u ch to tra n s la te N ic ara g u an , w hich has b o rro w e d from N a h u a ltl. Because o f this,
E rnest P. E d w a rd ’s Field Guide to the Birds of Mexico (Sweet B riar, V a.: E rn est P. E d­
w ards, 1972) h a s p ro v e n th e m o st useful. In a d d itio n to illu stratio n s by M urrell B utler,
E rnest P. E dw ards, Jo h n O ’Neill, a n d D ouglas P ratt, it has S panish descriptions by Miguel
A lvarez del T o ro , a n d S p an ish nam es in th e index.
In spite o f th e in fo rm a tio n E dw ard provides, in o rd e r to tra n sla te P. A . C u a d r a ’s Siete
arboles contra el atardecer (Seven trees in the sunset), I h a d to c o n su lt a n a tu ra l scientist
o n som e b ird nam es. O rn ith o lo g ists a n d b o ta n ists, all poets at h e a rt, resp o n d w ith lively
in terest to tra n s la to rs th a t seek th eir aid. Finally, w hen th e tex ts a n d scholars m e n tio n ­
ed c a n n o t lead to th e desired E nglish term s, o n e can leave th e original w ords u n d e rlin ­
ed. Perhaps th e im aginative read er can h ear a n ono m ato p o eic so u n d in guis, p ro n o u n c ed
gwees, o r visualize a w a tch m ak e r in relojero, o r a w idow in viuda.
W ith trees th e tra n s la to r ru n s in to m o re readily solved crises. E ven so, o n e has to try
b e y o n d th e sta n d a rd lexicons, such as Simon and Schuster's International English/Spanish
Spanish/English, th a t only tra n sla te som e p la n t nam es o r describe th e trees briefly. For
in stan ce, S im on a n d S c h u ste r does n o t define elequeme. In th e E spasa-C alpet I fo u n d
98
that in Venezuela the elequeme is know n as bucare, th at its scientific label is Erythrina velurina,
th a t it gives shade to coffee plants, etc. Sim on and Schuster only defined bucare as a
“shade tree.” Since this laconic explanation could refer to a royal palm, an oak or a maple,
I consulted V ern o n H. H eyw ood’s and S tu art R. C h a n t’s Popular Encyclopaedia of Plants
(Cambridge: C U Press, 1982). In spite of an index with scientific and com m on labels,
this work did n o t list elequeme or Bucare. In dispair, I perused a few books in th e science
stacks. A m ong the dozen or so examined, two stood out: Edwin A. M einninger’s Flowering
Trees of the World for Tropics and Warm Climates (N. York: H earthside Press Inc., 1962)
had delightful photographs, and m elodious “native” nam es, b u t it did n o t register any
English ones. Fortunately, Samuel J. R ecord’s and R obert W. Hess’ Timbers of the New
World (New H aven: YUP, 1943) yielded th e desired quest. A lthough it only had a few
black and white illustrations, it more th a n com pensated this lack with a com prehensive
index nom inorum in L atin, D utch, English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish. A m ong
the latter appeared elequeme, gualiqueme in H o n d u ran dialect, next to a plethora of
denom inations from the British Antilles, Belize, and G uyana. T he search had lasted four
days but it was w orth it because a visual image could be conveyed to the reader through
the English “red-bean tree.” T his choice followed th e scientific label, E rythrina, latin­
ized word from th e G reek erythros, “red .” O n th e o th er h an d , I rem em bered th a t the
elequeme, know n also as pito, “w histle,” as well as gualiqueme was a joy to w atch at th e
end of the dry season in late A pril, w hen children plucked th e scarlet blossoms to whis­
tle through them , competing w ith the hum m ingbirds, eager to suck the blossoms’ nectar.
O ther scientific works can assist the translator in rendering into English the Nicaraguan
dialect, rich in poetry and poor in dictionaries. For instance, some years ago, a book
on the flora of the M ayan region provided names such as “golden May bloom ” and “Bar­
bados pride,” term s necessary to translate one of Fr. C ard e n a l’s poems.
In addition to these aides, th e translator needs an enduring interest in exotic birds
and plants, and patience. W hoever undertakes th e rendition must not yield to th e frustra­
tion caused by inadequate dictionaries. He must be ready to search into scientific volumes
th at may register the right term needed to render the poetic image into English. Someone
may ask why should one strain so m uch just to translate the nam e of an anim al or tree
about which th e reader m ight n o t care at all. T his attitude is exclusevely th e audience’s
right. T he translato r should only worry ab o u t producing a ren d itio n as accurate and
com prehensible as possible. If th e English speaker chooses to ignore the fowl or tree,
th a t is fine. O n th e oth er hand, th e translator has done his job, and if th e reader checks
out the English name in a W ebster or a W agnall, th en the form er can repeat w ith satisfac­
tion Pindar’s verses:
...U n d er my arm,
inside th e quiver are
M any swift darts th a t
sound loud to wise m en. (0 2.83-85)
A final observation concerning th e N icaraguan poets rem ains. Since they often cite
o th er authors w ithout quoting th e work, one also has to strive to ob tain th e original
words in order to translate them into English. W hen th e quotatio n s are from th e Bible,
the D ouay version is the safest, since th e King James and o th e r pro testan t ones do n o t
conincide w ith th e C atholic texts th a t the N icaraguan authors consult. W hen th e verses
come from P ound, called Ezra by P.A . C u ad ra, a good concordance should even out
the difficulty. In oth er instances the job becomes more dem anding due to the N icaraguan
poets idiosyncracies. For instance, Jose C oronel U rtecho started a poem in w hat ap­
peared to be an Indian Language. A fter several readings a kai led me to believe th a t C o r­
onel U rtecho had transliterated a Greek text into the Latin alphabet. After a transliteration
back into the original, I found o u t th a t the locus classicus was in the Odyssey o f H omer,
who was very fond of polysyndeton and w rote m any a kai, “a n d ,” in his epics.
P. A. C uadra only quotes N ahualtl works in th e original. Since this language, although
still spoken, lacks English translations and available dictionaries, one has to find a Romantic
anthropologist, who in the late 60’s may have picked up N ahualtl on his way to H uautla,
in order to experience th e magic m ushroom s with la Maria Sabina ... If one fails to en ­
cou nter such a helper, th e n th e N ah u altl rem ains and one should curse th e idea th a t
possessed one to translate such N icaraguan poets, w hen one could be w riting essays on
Salinger s search for the A bsolute through Zen, or “Rod M cK uen’s concern for agape."
T here are always m arkets in th e U .S. for th a t kind o f article.
K.H. Anton