Diidxa’ Bisiaanda’
Ti diidxa’
ti diidxa’ si,
ti diidxa’ si ñapa’
lu bata naya’,
ndaani’ xquendabianne’
ndaani’ ladxidua’ya’.
Ti diidxa’ si
ñabe lii lu gueela’,
ra nibáninu siadó’ guie’ru’,
ne riuunda’ sti’ guirá’ mani huiini’,
lu ca yaga nuu Lahuoyaga.
Ti diidxa’ si,
ti diidxa’ ma’ biaanda’ naa.
Translator’s Glossary
|
WORD
|
DEFINITION
|
POSSIBLE SYNONYMS
|
|---|---|---|
| bata naya’ (n.) | the inner surface of the hand between the wrist and fingers | palm of my hand, my cupped hand |
| biaanda’ (v.) | from the verb meaning “to fail to remember” | forgot, cannot recall, escaped memory |
| bisiaanda’ (adj.) | not remembered | forgotten, lost, left behind, abandoned |
| ca (adj.) | used to identify specific people or things observed by the speaker | those, the, those there |
| diidxa’ (n.) | a single distinct meaningful element of speech or writing | word, term, phrase, utterance, language, idiom |
| gueela’ (n.) | the period of time between sunset and sunrise | night, nighttime, darkness, nightfall, sunset |
| guirá’ (adj.) | used to refer to the whole quantity or extent of a particular group or thing | all, each, every |
| ladxidua’ya’ (n.) | the center of a person’s thoughts and emotions, especially love and compassion | heart, soul, center, core, compassion, humanity |
| Lahuoyaga (n.) | the Zapotec name for the town in Oaxaca, Mexico, known for its springs and forests; also the hometown of the poet | Lahuoyaga |
| lii (pron.) | used to refer to the person or people that the speaker is addressing | you |
| lu (prep.) | referring to a location in time or space | in, about, on, at, during |
| ma’ (adv.) | before or by the present | already, by now, so far, before now, until now |
| mani huiini’ (n.) | warm-blooded, egg-laying animals with feathers, wings, and a beak | birds, fowls |
| naa (pron.) | used by the speaker to refer to him or herself | I |
| ñabe (v.) | utter words so as to convey information | to say, to utter, to voice, to pronounce, to speak, to give voice to |
| ñapa’ (v.) | from the verb meaning “to be in possession of” | I had, I possessed, I owned, I retained, I kept, I enjoyed |
| ndaani’ | 1. noun—the front part of the human torso containing the stomach 2. preposition—expressing the situations of being enclosed or surrounded by something else | belly, intestines; inside, within, in |
| ne (conj.) | in addition to | and, with, plus |
| nibáninu (v.) | from verb meaning “to emerge from a state of sleep” | we wake up, we awake, we stop sleeping, we get up |
| nuu (prep.) | belonging to or associated with | of |
| ra (conj.) | at or during the time that | when, at which point |
| riuunda’ (n.) | the act of making musical sounds with the voice | singing, crooning, song, music, tune |
| si (adv.) | no more than | just, only, merely, simply |
| siadó’ guie’ru’ (n.) | literally means “morning’s flower” | at dawn, at breaking dawn, at sunrise, at morning’s bloom |
| sti’ (prep.) | belonging to or associated with | of |
| ti (adj.) | not more than one | one, a, an, single, lone |
| xquendabianne’ (n.) | from xquenda meaning “characteristic” and bianne’ meaning “light”; the center of a person’s objective reasoning and understanding | mind, intelligence, intellect, brain, head, thoughts, judgment |
| yaga (n.) | plants with a trunk growing to a considerable height and bearing branches | trees, woods, saplings, forest |
Artistic Elements
I. About Free Verse
• Free verse is a literary device that can be defined as poetry that is free from
limitations of regular meter or rhythm and does not rhyme with fixed forms. Such
poems are without rhythms and rhyme schemes; do not follow regular rhyme
scheme rules and still provide artistic expression. In this way, the poet can give his
own shape to a poem how he/she desires. However, it still allows poets to use
alliteration, rhyme, cadences or rhythms to get the effects that they consider are
suitable for the piece.
Bio
Victor de la Cruz is a Zapotec poet from Oaxaca. The Zapotec civilization originated in southern Mexico over 2,500 years ago and flourished until the Spanish invaded in 1521. According to various Zapotec legends, its people were born from rocks, or else transformed from jaguars, trees, or clouds. In Zapotec, the language itself is called Diidxazá, combining the words for “tongue” and “cloud,” or “language of the clouds.” During the 1970s, a movement began in Oaxaca to revive the Zapotec language and culture. At the center of the movement was Victor de la Cruz, who founded the magazine Guchachi’ Reza (Sliced Iguana) to promote indigenous literature. Today there are over 750,000 speakers of Zapotec spread out as far as Mexico City and Los Angeles. Victor de la Cruz continues to write poetry and teach anthropology at the University of Oaxaca.