Krister Stoor Yoiks on Giella Page
Ruovga, ruovga – A Reindeer Calf
(1953 yoik text)
(Orig. Johannes Alexander Nutti, Övre Soppero 1915-66, 1953)
Grunt, grunt, you clear-sounding voice
which is heard much further than the great reindeer bell.
Thus the empty mountains when there is fog
the misty and stormy mountains.
Your clear voice sounds farther than the great reindeer bell
or the note of the great bell
your voice is heard farther.
The calf’s grunting says:
Grunt, you clear-sounding voice
so that the herding boy and girl
hear where you grunt,
your voice in the stormy mountain.
You can go over mountain, over flat valleys,
you are not so close by.
It is heard from afar
it is heard much farther
it is heard for ten miles
when it grunts in fog and the storm
it is heard much farther.
Basic musical pattern of each verse is: F+C C C Bb –– D+C D D C
+ sign indicates a melisma (2 notes sung to one syllable) – first verse begins on E+C
1 ay+ay ju lu la –– lay+ay ju lu la
2 lu+u lu lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu breath
3 ru+ovg ga ruog ga –– ªe+el ges jie na [grunt, grunt, clear sound]
4 ru+ovg ga ruog ga –– ªe+el ges jie na breath
5 o+o lu lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu
6 lu+u lu lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu breath
7 voy+oy go gul lui –– voy+oy go gul lui [oh, it can be heard, can be heard]
8 gu+uh ki bu go –– stu+or bjellu [farther than the great bell]
(NB: last half verse only 4 syllables) breath
9 mu+ur ra bor ga –– du+od da ri s(ul) [through trees, fog on the tundra]
10 lu+u lu lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu breath
11 ay+ay ju lu la –– lu+u lu lu la
12 loy+oy ju lu lu –– lu+u lu lu la
13 lo+o lu lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu breath
14 ru+ovg ga ruog ga –– nu+u aht’ reain nár [grunt, grunt, that the herd girl]
15 ni+eid da reai nár –– lu+un ta gu lái [herd boy can hear]
16 go+os don ruv ge –– u+u lu lu lu [where you grunt] breath
17 loy+oy ju lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu
18 lu+u lu lu la –– loy+oy ju lu la
19 lo+o lu lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu breath
20 pickup to main verse on C: la – lo+o lo lo la –– lay+ay ju lu la
21 loy+oy ju lu lu –– lu+u lu lu lu breath
22 vo+oy ja na a –– vu+ost e gier dái [they drive the reindeer against the sun]
23 ma+an ná jo o –– va+a riid bad djel [to go, over mountains]
24 lá+á guid ras tá –– loy+oy ju lu lu [right over the plateaus] breath
25 lay+ay ju lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu
26 lo+o lu lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu
27 lo+o lu lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu breath
28 i+it don leat jur –– da+a sta na ga [you are not at all near]
29 go+o ruo ga stit –– ju+u lu lu lu [when it grunts just once} breath
30 oy+oy ju lu la –– lu+u lu lu lu
31 lu+u lu lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu breath
32 pickup to main verse on C: na – lay+ay ju lu la –– lu+u lu lu lu
33 lu+u lu lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu
34 lu+u lu lu la –– lay+ay ju lu lu