A Poem in Igbėbė
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1. A Poem in Igbėbė
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Wȧmmėkȧde Akȧne
Mamnena, gbet, shshâmpî mu̇mu̇nja,
Mlûlû jonj zėmmȧ, nnuju̇ shahâya,
Wȧmmėpî ndet mmȯ nnuju̇ njȧbanė,
Mmȯ nnuju̇ meffu̇, gbrė nnuju̇ kȯbanė.
Ombetî thû mamnenamȧgu̇, dȯdȧ mnėnėtî,
Nnuju̇ gbȧshėtî mlȯshetham, bėnėtî,
Jujua, plâ zėlė ndezeje gbrė mnėne,
Mlȯjȧnnė kȯshombe wȧmmėkȧde akȧne.
by Ȯtommȧ Shegbe (c. 1890)
Literal Translation
The sky, dark, it holds the moon,
White and silent, it's like a ghost.
It is very unlike the sun,
Not as hot, or as fierce.
I'm alone in the night, now I understand,
as I sit quietly, I stare.
Life, whether for animal or human,
Only about us being free.
Poetic Translation
The dark sky holds the moon,
White and silent, like a ghost,
So unlike the sun,
Not as hot or fierce.
Alone in the night, I begin to understand,
As I sit quietly and stare,
That life, whether of an animal or a human,
Is merely about freedom.
Ȯtommȧ Shegbe
Born - Ȯtommȧ Amȧnjȧ Shegbe, March 6, 1855 Igbebė Tribeland, Present Day South Sudan.
Died - January 14, 1916 (aged 70) Igbebė Tribeland
Occupation - Noblewoman, Poet
Notable works - Under The Sun (1863), God’s Songs (1877), Dreams of Different Lands (1899)
Ȯtommȧ Amȧnjȧ Shegbe (March 6, 1855 – January 14, 1960) was an Igbebė noblewoman and the first Igbebė poet to have her works published. As daughter to the then King of the Igbebė, Ȯshatė Shegbe, she was involved in the politics and running of the tribe from a very early age. She was taught to read and write by the catholic missionary and ardent linguist Rev. John Samuels, who was noted for his fluency in many languages including English, French, German, Hebrew, Greek and several of the tribal languages of Central Africa, including Igbebė. He was the first person to translate the Gospels into the language. During his tutelage of Ȯtommȧ, he would often read her poetry, particularly of Wordsworth, Longfellow and Shakespeare. Ȯtommȧ was enamoured by the imagery and language used in poetry, and began to write her own from about fifteen. In 1861, Ȯtommȧ, with help from Rev. Samuels was able to publish her first book of poetry in a collection called ‘Lines from the Distant Desert’. It was published as a parallel text in Igbebė and English (with translations later in French, German, Dutch and Spanish) along with extensive notes about Igbebė language, culture and history.
Although enamoured and curious about the land where Samuels had come from, and those of which he spoke, Ȯtommȧ felt her sole duty was to her people and her tribe, and as such, never left her ancestral homeland. Her published collection ‘Dreams of Different Lands’ (1899) was also published in parallel text form, and was a collection of verses detailing Ȯtommȧ’s thoughts and musings on other lands and other peoples. Though considered by some to be naïve and somewhat childish, it contains some of her most popular poems, including City People, The Churches of Germany, and Oceanside.
Ȯtommȧ died in 1916 of heart failure. Her last words were reported to be ‘ėbetė, ȧshȧmmïtîzi’ – Finally, I will travel. Although, this is disputed.
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