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Item details
Item ID
KK1-1384
(Collection Details)
Title Wan nnan la wa ai lam (The first fire) with English translation
Description Translation (by Rita Seng Mai)
This story is about how people got fire for the first time and it happened long time ago. People used to eat raw meat many years ago. But they were getting tired of eating raw meat. So they tried to find 'fire'. Then, they saw that there was a fire on the dry wood on the island. They saw smoke as well. They thought of a plan to get that fire. Then a man called Sam Naw who was really good at swimming and climbing trees said that he would bring that fire for all people. After he had brought fire, they cooked their meals with that fire. But they couldn't bring that fire and make a fire inside their house. When they brought fire or made a fire inside their houses, their houses had caught fire. They couldn't also put that fire at dry place or where there was trash. They had to put that fire in the big pit where the wind doesn't blow. Then, they had faced many difficulties in using that fire. So they went to prophets to ask for some advice. Prophets told them if they wanted a fire that was useful and good and couldn't harm people, they had to find people called Kareng Tu Lawt and Ngang Htu But because they two could help. Then they did what prophets told and they could find Kareng Tu Lawt and Ngang Htu But. They two made wick and put it on bamboo slats, and then they started making fire by rubbing two bamboo slats roughly. They really got fire by rubbing bamboo slats. They could make a fire inside the house. They could also use fire wherever they wanted. Since that day, human could use fire well without getting any harm. So people have got fire now.

Supplementary explanation:
In the past, when an accidental fire broke out in a village, the fire used throughout the village had to be put out to drive out the fire-nat (or spirit). After that, a village man and woman named Tu ("to light the fire") and Htu ("to rub the fire") were called to kindle new fires by the friction of bamboo, rattan and chyingma (acacia wood). By doing so, they were able to use fire in the village again. See Ola Hanson's 1906 Kachin dictionary entry for "wan gang gang" (p.706).

Transcription (by Lu Awng)
Ya ngai hkai na gaw ndai moi shinggyin masha ni wan nna la wa ai ngu ai aprat na maumwi re na re. Moi shinggyin masha ni gaw katsing hkrai sa jin wa nna gaw lani mi wan tam ma ai da. Wan tam wa gaw oh hka zinglawng kaw hpundawng kaw wan wa mi chyi ai mi mu she ga oh wanhkut gaw mawng nga ai law, kaning di na wa n dai nlu la na tai ai law ngu she sam naw shabrang wa gaw hpun lung mung grai byin ai da, hka hpungyawt mung grai byin ai wa re nga e ngai sa la na re, dai wa sa la na wan dai hte she shadu lu shadu sha yang gaw nhku de nmai shawn nta hkru mat. Ndai hpa atsip hkan e mung hkraw ai shara hkan mung nmai tawn, rai nna she nam ga de she lup ra, hpun tawng kaw sha shachyi, gara kaw wan nmai wut mat na grai lang ru ai da, grai lang ru nna e nga yak nga she lani mi na ndai myi htoi bai shayu yang she myi htoi ni kaw bai gasan la yang she myi htoi ni gaw nanhte ya mahku wan ra jang gaw ndai Kareng Tu Lawt hte Ngang Htu But hpe wan gran na tam la mu ngu ai da. Kaja wa shanhte gaw ndai Kareng Tu Lawt hte Ngang Hty But hpe shan e she wan nsu mung hkut la di nna kawa chyen kaw shakap nna she wan gang gang bang nga yang dai wan gang gang dai kaw wan chyi pru wa ai da. Dai kaw na wan bai shalat la ai wan gaw n hku de mung mai wut shara magup mai lang mat wa ai dai hku re da. Dai shani kawn she shinggyin masha ni wan hte atsawm lu ganawn nna lu pra sa wa ai da. Dai ngut ai hpang she wan la ai.

Maumwi lachyum
Moi mare kaw wan hkru yang, wan nat hpe gawt kau na matu mare kaw chyi nga ai wan yawng n sat kau yang n mai ai. Ngut ai hpang Tu ("wan tu ai") hte Htu ("wan htu ai") ngu ai mying lawm ai la sha hte num sha hpe shaga la nna, kawa, ri, chyingma (acacia wood) hte wan nnan shachyi shangun ai. Dai ladat hte mare kaw wan lu lang mat ai da.
Origination date 2017-02-21
Origination date free form
Archive link https://catalog.paradisec.org.au/repository/KK1/1384
URL
Collector
Keita Kurabe
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Countries
Myanmar - MM
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Language as given Jinghpaw
Subject language(s)
Jingpho - kac
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Content language(s)
Jingpho - kac
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Dialect Standard Jinghpaw
Region / village Northern Myanmar
Originating university Tokyo University of Foreign Studies
Operator
Data Categories primary text
Data Types Sound
Discourse type narrative
Roles Keita Kurabe : depositor
D. Tu Ja : speaker
DOI 10.4225/72/598b377831acb
Cite as Keita Kurabe (collector), Keita Kurabe (depositor), D. Tu Ja (speaker), 2017. Wan nnan la wa ai lam (The first fire) with English translation. EAF+XML/MPEG/VND.WAV. KK1-1384 at catalog.paradisec.org.au. https://dx.doi.org/10.4225/72/598b377831acb
Content Files (3)
Filename Type File size Duration File access
KK1-1384-A.eaf application/eaf+xml 11 KB
KK1-1384-A.mp3 audio/mpeg 1.73 MB 00:01:53.240
KK1-1384-A.wav audio/vnd.wav 62.4 MB 00:01:53.216
3 files -- 64.2 MB -- --

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Collection Information
Collection ID KK1
Collection title Kachin folktales told in Jinghpaw
Description Recordings of Kachin folktales and related narratives in Jinghpaw. These materials were collected by Keita Kurabe, Gumtung Lu Awng, Sumdu Ja Seng Roi, Hpauhkum Htu Bu, Labang Tu La, Gumtung Htu Nan, and Lashi Seng Nan as part of community-based collaborative fieldwork in northern Myanmar. A total of 2,491 stories with 2,481 ELAN files, 2,481 transcriptions, and 1,437 translations are currently available (November 23, 2024). Transcriptions were contributed by Gumtung Lu Awng, Pausa La Ring, Galang Lu Hkawng, Sumdu Ja Seng Roi, Hpauhkum Htu Bu, and Keita Kurabe. Stories were translated by Nbanpa Rita Seng Mai, Sumlut Gun Mai, Lazing Htoi San, Maran Seng Pan, Dumdaw Mike Tu Awng, Nhkum Htoi Awng, and Keita Kurabe.

Animated stories are available at:

https://catalog.paradisec.org.au/collections/KK3
https://www.youtube.com/@kachinfolktales
https://www.facebook.com/KachinStories

Other Kachin culture and history are available at:

https://catalog.paradisec.org.au/collections/KK2

Our research was made possible under the support of JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number JP17H04523, JP20K13024, JP20H01256, JP24K03887, Linguistic Dynamics Science 3 (LingDy3) from Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA), Tokyo University of Foreign Studies (TUFS), and JSPS Program for Advancing Strategic International Networks to Accelerate the Circulation of Talented Researchers "A collaborative network for usage-based research on lesser-studied languages."
Countries
Myanmar - MM
To view related information on a country, click its name
Languages
Jingpho - kac
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Access Information
Edit access Nick Thieberger
Keita Kurabe
View/Download access
Data access conditions Open (subject to agreeing to PDSC access conditions)
Data access narrative
Metadata
RO-Crate Metadata
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