In August 2008 died a great Mordovian writer, a classic of national literature Kuzma Grigorievich Abramov. While studying his archive, we found waritings of translations of some Russian and foreign poets, including W. Shakespeare. K. Abramov started his literature activity as a poet. He translated into Erzya-Mordovian poems by N. Nekrasov and T. Shevchenko. However, he never printed translations of poems by Shakespeare and didn´t even tell anyone about it. Writings have dates of 1948-1951 on them. During this period the writer, being a former prisoner of war, couldn´t find a job, and thus he worked at home. 14 sonnets have been found in his archive
The first sonnet by W. Shakespeare, as we know, starts with the words:
From fairest creatures we desire increase,
That thereby beauty´s rose might never die,
But as the riper should by time decease,
His tender heir might bear his memory:
Translated by K. Abramov into Erzya-Mordovian this sonnet looks as follows:
Sad piren´ chuvtos´ sex tunda tsvetyas´,
Pryasonzo ney umartne velt yaksterdit´
Kadyk pevery pujzhon´ tselyan´ pryas´, -
Od tsetsyat minek eise esest terdit´.
Vechksak to ansyak eset´ mazychit´
Dy sonze turtov altat vese viet´.
Chavoks kadovy ton´ eryamo kit´,
Koda chavoks ulnest vese ton yet´.
A kuvat´ ton mazoldomo karmat,
Istya eryaz´ ey pokolen´ sedeise,
Ikeltsepelen´ ushodksont´ kalmat
Dy, teke marto, ertniat´ vyet´ eise.
Ilit´ naxavto vidymetnet´, konet
Valske kasytyt´ od panzhovkst dy zernat!
For the hundred years from Birthday of K. Abramov, that will be celebrated in 2014, the V council of Mordovian nation resolved to publish the full collection of his compositions in Erzya-Mordovian in 10 or 12 volumes. All his translations are considered to be included into the collection, including the translations of sonnets by W. Shakespeare.
The work is submitted to the International Scientific Conference «The problem of international integration national educational standards»», France (Paris), 15-22 March, 2012, came to the editorial office оn 13.01.2012.