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SOMEONE ASKED FOR MAIDEN ILINKA’S HAND

TRANSLATED FROM KOSOVAR GORANI BY DENIS FERHATOVIĆ

  • GA SAKALE ILINKA DIVOJKA, DALEK NADALEKO


    Ga sakale Ilinka divojka, dalek nadaleko, 
    Dalek nadaleko, preko Crno more. 
    Mati ne gi se, Ilinki divojki, kail učinuje, 
    Devet braća, Ilinki divojki, kail učinija. 
    “Sme ga dale, majčice mila, Ilinka divojka,
    Dalek nadaleko, preko Crno more, 
    Konji da jaame, majčice mila, puške da frljame.
    Ilinka da ispratime, da se rašetame.”
    Ge prek’vna  mila stara majka sve devet sinoi: 
    “Čuma da ve udri, sinoj, čuma radomirska, 
    Šo mi dadote ćerka nadaleko,
    Da dojdete sve devet sinoi glave prevrzane, 
    Glave prevrzane so crne šamije
    Samo Alija, samo Alija so zelena šamija” 
    Zaminaa, Ilinki divojki, bajegi godine, 
    Deca izrađala, Ilinka, nikoj ne ga polja. 
    Gi se posmijala, Ilinki divojki, najmlada jetrva: 
    “Nikoj ne ti dojde, Ilinko divojko, doma da te polja, 
    Da imaš braća, Ilinko divojko, na gosti bi te zele, 
    Ilinko divojko, na prvič na gosti.”
    Mi otide, Ilinka divojka, vo reka studena, 
    Ilinka divojka, ališća da pere.
    Prala, puala, Ilinka divojka, Bogu se moljala:
    “Da l’ se žive, Bože Sajbijence, muje devet braća,
    Šo ge nema, Bože, mili Bože, na gosti da me zemet, 
    Bože Sajbijence, na prvič na gosti?”
    Pa gi dojde, Ilinki divojki, postara jetrva:
    “Da mi dadeš, Ilinko divojko, najgolem muštilok,
    Eno ti go, Ilinko divojko, najmladoto bratče,
    Ilinko divojko, bratče Alijiče,”
    “Šo ve nema, Alija be brate, mene da poljate, 
    Mi projdoa, Alija be brate, du devet godine?”
    “Rabota sme imale, Ilinko divojko, kuća sme praile,
    Kuća sme praile so devet odaje.
    Ajde, Ilinko, ajde be sestro, vakat mi zamina, 
    Vakat mi zamina, saba ne klanata.”
    “Evo Alija, evo be brate, deca da ok’pem, 
    Deca da ok’pem, Alija be brate, kolači da mesim.”
    “Ajde, Ilinko, ajde be sestro, vreme zaminuje,
    Ilinko be sestro, pladno ne klanato.”
    “Evo be brate, čekaj be bratence, sebe da soberem.”
    Ka trnala Ilinka divojka, prvič na gosti,
    Go prašuje, Ilinka divojka bratče Alijiče:
    “Šo mi udaraš, Alija be brate, duša zemnojna?”
    “Rabota sme imale, Ilinko divojko, kuća sme praile,
    Ilinko divojko so devet odaje,
    Ilinko divojko za sve devet braća.” 
    “Čudno pujet, Alija be brate, poljskeve pilića,
    Oni pujet, Alija be brate, žalosno kažujet:
    ‘Živa sestra, mrtvogo brata nosi.’”
    “Take pujet, Ilinko be sestro, pilića radomirske!”
    Ka stignala, Ilinka divojka, ka ke svuje selo, 
    Go prašuje, Ilinka divojka, bratče Alijiče:
    “Što ge nema, Alija be brate, da me prečekaje, 
    Deka idem, Alija be bratče, na prvič na gosti, 
    Alija be brate, na devet godine?”
    “Će te prečekaje, Ilinko be sestro, ka du pri selo.”
    “Što ge nema, Alija be bratče, deca da ilezet, 
    Alija be brate, tetka da prečekaje?”
    “Deca ošle, Ilinko be sestro, nadvor da igraje.”
    “Šo nema ge, Alija be bratče, snae da ilezet?”
    “Snae ošle, Ilinko be sestro, vo selo na gosti.”
    “Šo ga nema, Alija be bratče, mati da ileze, 
    Mati da ileze, mene da prečeka?”
    Ka stignala, Ilinka divojka, ka ke svua kuća, 
    Go prašuje, Ilinka divojka, bratče Alijiče:
    “Zašto vi se, Alija be brate, porte zaključene, 
    Kede vi se, Alija be bratče, snae da ilezet,
    Alija be bratče, porte da otvoret?”
    Gi se otvoria, Ilinki devojki, porte obe krila,
    Ka videla, Ilinka divojka, dvoroj zarudene, 
    Vo dvoroi devet groboi,
    Pa viknala, Ilinka divojka, svua stara majka:
    “Ti ilezi, mila stara majko, mene da prečekaš, 
    Ti som došla, majčice mila, od mlogu daleko.”
    Gi ileze, Ilinki divojki, mila stara majka, 
    Mila stara majka gore na čardače, 
    Go videla, mila stara majka, mlado Alijiče, 
    Go videla vo grob vlizajeći, 
    Mu videla, mila stara majka, samo desna ruka!
    Se učini Ilinkina majka crna kukaica, 
    Se učini Ilinka divojka pristala lastojca.  



  • by Denis Ferhatović

    I read a version of this folk lyric, titled “Imuljka dejka daljek na daleko dadena” (“Maiden Imuljka Married Off Farther than Far”) in Ramadan Redžeplari’s anthology Sedefna tambura: goranske narodne pesne (The Mother-of-Pearl Tambura: Gorani Folk Lyrics, 2008). I thought it would be perfect for Turkoslavia. What struck me about the text was its vast Eurasian scope. Imuljka, like Ilinka of the version I eventually translated, is sent off across the Black Sea—or maybe a black sea. But unlike Ilinka, she is taken to Dagestan, becoming a Kazakh bride (“kazahska manesta”), while her brother Alija at one point speaks of Caucasian fledglings (“kafkaske piljiće”). Is it possible that a folk song from Kosovo mentions Caucasian and Central Asian locales? 

    My initial euphoria gave way to doubt. I contacted Prof. Sadik Idrizi who confirmed my suspicions. He directed me to a definitive version called “Ga sakale Ilinka divojka” (“Someone Asked for Maiden Ilinka’s Hand”), first recorded in 1967 by researchers from the Skopje Institute of Folklore. I accessed the text in Nazif Dokle’s digitized anthology Goranske narodne balade/ Ballada popullore gorane (Gorani Folk Ballads, 2018). Idrizi also introduced me to the Albanian legend of Doruntina and her twelve brothers, which features the motifs of the mother’s curse and the revenant youngest brother.

    Gorani (goranski) is a small South Slavic linguistic variety spoken in the far south of Kosovo and the immediate surrounding area in Albania and North Macedonia. I employ the term “linguistic variety” since speakers of standardized South Slavic varieties—as well as Gorani people themselves—categorize it variously as a dialect, language, and variety (govor). Those who consider it a dialect claim it for Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, or Serbian, depending on their own national(ist) allegiances. Uninterested in ceaseless sociolinguistic squabbles, I simply wish to spread more awareness of Gorani and its rich poetic tradition.

    For me, the appeal of “Someone Asked for Maiden Ilinka’s Hand” lies in its unflinching combination of the horrific and intimate, akin to the Freudian uncanny. The toxic masculinity of Ilinka’s nine brothers finds its match in their mother’s devastating curse. Alija’s return as a zombie and the avian metamorphoses of Ilinka and her mother add to the somber, mythic quality of the work. 

    The diminutives marking familiarity presented a challenge to translation. For example, “Sajbijence” is an affectionate form that seems unique to Gorani. It comes from Sajbija, “the Lord,” which derives from the Turkish “sahip.” Cute little God? Darling little Lord? I chose something both formal and casual: “precious Lord.” I used “dear brother” and “little brother” for “bratence” and “bratče.” “Alijiče” stayed the same because the context makes its meaning clear. One more traductorial decision may need to be explained: I translated “saba” and “pladno” as “fajr” and “dhuhr” because those are the terms normally used by English-speaking Muslims.

    I thank Prof. Sadik Idrizi Aljabak for his generous help, and the journal editors Ena Selimović and Sabrina Jaszi and the issue’s poetry editor Selma Asotić for their outstanding work in editing the translation.

    “Someone Asked for Maiden Ilinka’s Hand” is a folk lyric; its author(s) is (are) anonymous.



    Denis Ferhatović (b. 1980) is a Bosnian-American scholar and writer. His essays, reviews, poems, translations, and co-translations have been published in Rumba under Fire, Index on Censorship, The Riddle Ages, Iberian Connections, Turkoslavia, Trinity Journal of Literary Translation, DoubleSpeak, Asymptote, and Exchanges. His scholarly work appears in various journals and essay collections. His monograph Borrowed Objects and the Art of Poetry: Spolia in Old English Verse (2019) came out in paperback in the spring of 2024.

An offer of marriage came for maiden llinka
From farther than far, across the Black Sea.
To the marriage her mother said no.
To the marriage her nine brothers said yes.
“Dearest mother, we’ve married Ilinka off 
Farther than far, across the Black Sea
Our horses galloped, our rifles sounded, 
We saw Ilinka off on her journey.”
Their dear old mother cursed all nine of her sons:
“May the plague strike you, my sons, the plague of Radomirë
For sending my daughter off farther than far.
May you come back, all nine of my sons, 
With your heads wrapped in black
Only Alija’s, Alija’s wrapped in green.”
Many years passed, no one came to see her. 
Many children she bore, no one came to see her.
Her youngest sister-in-law mocked maiden Ilinka:
“Oh, Ilinka, you’ve no one to host nor to visit.
Had you really nine brothers, you’d be someone’s guest.”
Thus went the maiden to the icy river
Ilinka the maiden with garments to wash.
She washed, she wept, to God she prayed:
“Do they still live, my precious Lord God, 
My nine brothers, are they still alive?
Why not have me as their guest, oh God, 
A guest in my old home again?” 
Her eldest sister-in-law to Ilinka came:
“I bring you good tidings, maiden Ilinka.
Look yonder, Ilinka, there goes your youngest brother,
Your little brother Alijiče.”
“Where have you been, Alija my brother?
For nine long years, where have you been?”
“We had work to do, maiden Ilinka, a house to build,
A house with nine chambers.
Come, Ilinka, come, my sister, time is growing short,
I’m late to pray fajr.”
“Wait a little, Alija my brother, let me bathe the children
Bathe the children and bake some cakes.”
“Come, Ilinka, come, my sister, time is running short,
I’m late to pray dhuhr.”
“Coming, dear brother, I’m gathering my things.”
When maiden Ilinka drew near her old home
She asked her little brother Alija:
“Alija my brother, why do you smell of earth?”
“We had work to do, maiden Ilinka, a house to build,
A house with nine chambers,
A house for all nine brothers.”
“Strange is the song of these fieldbirds, my brother,
Sad is the song they sing:
‘A sister her dead brother carries.’”
“That’s what they sing, Ilinka my sister, the birds of Radomirë.”
When maiden Ilinka drew closer,
She asked her brother Alija:
“Where are my brothers, my dear Alija, to meet me, 
To greet me returning to my old home,
My first return in nine long years?”
“They’ll meet you, dear sister, when we reach the village.”
“Where are the children, Alija my brother, to meet me, 
To greet their aunt returning home?”
“The children, my sister, have gone to play.”
“Where are my sisters-in-law, Alija my brother, to meet me?”
“They, dear Ilinka, have gone visiting.”
“Where is my mother, dear brother, to meet me,
To greet me returning home?”
When maiden Ilinka arrived, 
She asked her brother Alijiče:
“Why is the gate locked, Alija my brother?
Where are my sisters-in-law, dear brother, to meet me,
To open the gate?”
The gate swung open for maiden Ilinka, with both its wings.
She saw the yard overgrown 
And in the yard nine graves.
Then maiden Ilinka cried out to her old mother:
“Come, dear old mother, come meet me.
I’m here, precious mother, from farther than far.”
Ilinka’s old mother stepped out to meet her. 
She stepped out onto the terrace. 
The dear old mother saw young Alijiče, 
Saw him sinking into his grave,
Only his right hand she now saw.
A black cuckoo the mother became,
And Ilinka a fair swallow.