“Bring nannié Back!” From The Grave

Notes

Eritrean poet and activist Ribka Sibhatu wrote 'Riportatemi nannié', dalla tomba! in both Italian and Tigrinya. We began by discussing the Tigrinya word nannié (mother/mommy) in its original language and decided to keep it in the title but not in the poem. This was something the poet was very keen on preserving, according to our guest translator André Naffis-Sahely. An interesting debate arose concerning the verb 'scampato' (to escape) in the first line of the poem. We opted for its iteration 'slipped' as it better conveyed a sense of the boy Aman sliding from his mother's embrace without being noticed. We also discussed the various English options for the Italian verb 'raccontare'. Some participants were keen on the iteration 'retelling' and some on 'relating', but the majority opted for the more straightforward 'telling'. An act that the poet herself was enacting in her heartbreaking poem. An interesting debate arose when discussing the last line of the first stanza: 'Ha fatto dew a nannié', which we translated as 'hew pew-pew my mommy'. We wanted to keep the boy speaking with his voice and register, using the onomatopoeic for 'shooting/gunning down' and opting for 'mommy' instead of the more formal 'mother'. The Italian line 'Aman ha visto tutto, ma non ha capito/quel che è successo' instigated a fascinating debate about the verb 'capire/to understand'. We found the solution 'Aman saw it all, but doesn't get it' as we tried to convey the sense of urgency and speed in that stanza. The harrowing line 'per ore e ore, solo circondato dai cadaveri e corvi' was finally translated as 'hours and hours, surrounded only by corpses and crows'. A devastating poem that moved us and shook us in equal measure.

Leo Boix, Workshop Facilitator