snxʷmeneʔ nqʷlqʷeltn
6190 Agency Loop Road
PO Box 100
Wellpinit, WA 99040
509-258-4222
Spokane Tribe Language and Culture
sPQNi/
The Sun
Narrated by Orten Ford
Illustrated by Frank Campbell
Ou/ cQsipi/, put Oi Ye sTuliz CxiO sJuJiMLt puti/ Ou/ hecyaF zizeYuO Ou/ huł sqeliz. hu jeNt Oi Ye yoyot ʔilmizm Ou/ n scdmasQt hu lci/.
A long time ago, just as though this land was like a little child as yet then all of the animals/birds were like people. And then this one very strong chief there in the sky world he lived.
YeYuje/!! YeYuje/ Oi Ye ʔilmizm! hecyaF stem hu heʔc ye/jminms, Ou/ njtnaqsm, hec dST-STstes, syeʔkʷmiys Oi Ye sPQNi/. Ye n SSNSNeNe/ hec čJuL t EamEmt sšSN-SeNS, njtnaqsms, ti/!
STINGY!! Very stingy was this chief! Absolutely everything he was stingy with, and too he highly prized them, he took good care of what we now know as the sun. Here in a little box that was decorated with beautiful little gems, very expensive, I guess!
Tma hec SNqin Oi Ye sPQNi/ n Ye SSNSNeNe/, jeNt Oi Ye stuliz ta he/p sPQNi/, jeNt hi deY, hi DiM! Ye nJa Ye sDLupe/ t/e hu dOTuztene/is Ye ilmizm citzs, hu widis steM PD PiD.
Don’t you see it is boxed inside this sun in this little box, so then this land did not have a sun, then it is shady-like, it was dark! Here this one day Raven by here and he flew over this chief’s house, and he saw something shiny! You know he loves all things shiny.
y'e n ilmixʷm citxʷs n nč̓ amqnełxʷ hu łaqšlš, DOpa/xeYs. he/! neJ hi DuDu//w Ou/ hepO citz. n/uOz jeNt SeYs te/t/ems qs DOmu/maWms Ye PDPiC. hayo! Ti/ miO yoyot t/em hu DOnD ehzzJep Oi Ye SnSnene/-- hayo! cP/ez Ye sPQNi/! hi jeNt hu hi Pez!
Here on the chief’s house on the roof pole he sat, to plan how to get it. HEY! What do you know, they are all gone away whoever owns this house. He went inside then began to pound and pound was going to break off these shining gems oh ho! I guess too strongly he’d hit it and it accidentally flew open this here box—oh ho, it shone forth the sun! So suddenly and it was bright!
“Yo… Oi Ye Ou/ S/it EamEmt!” nte sDlupe/. eni, jeys hu dTuztasQtmis. Ye ilmizm widis sDlupe/ he/c naAumOtm – ih! pN ngxciscut hu We/is sDlupe/! Jss-us sDlupe/ hu Pgpaqs mis Ye/ hec J/eWesc sPQNi/ c ti….wt Za Ye pu…t snyih-heWsc Ye sdDmasQt hu n Za steM hu cQLuz, hu lSe/ hu nyaFpmist. ZL SeY hu qe/ hepO sPQNi/ YetOZa.
“Whoa… this is the foremost most important wondrous thing!” thought Raven. Boy, he took it and flew into the sky with it. This chief saw Raven who is robbing him – oh ! But he he raised his voice and hollered at Raven! So startled was Raven and dropped it out of his mouth, the sun it sparkled as it fell probably here just in middle of here of the sky and on what ever and got hooked onto and right there it forever is now. That is why now we have the sun today.