Korsou (Curacao)
- Kòrsou 1 [Curaçao]
| Kaminda tin baranka | Where there are rocks |
| Te na unda bista tira | As far as eyes can reach, |
| Ku tèrko, tranka, | Stubborn, stingy, |
| Nan ta bira | That turn |
| Kara mira | And look down |
| Ku despresio, | Disdainfully |
| Olanan kore, kansa | At the pounding surf exploding, |
| Na nan pia | At their feet, |
| Den etèrno alabansa, | into pieces of an unbroken eulogy, |
| Kaminda tin kadushi | Where there are cacti |
| Ku ta buta bientu kanta | That make the tradewinds sing |
| Himno dushi | Tender songs, |
| I ta lanta, | That rise |
| Para wanta | And, erect, endure |
| Siglonan pasa | The passing of ages |
| Solo sigui kima | And the sun burning ceaselessly |
| Riba brasa | On the limbs |
| Di lugá ku mi ta stima, | of soil that I cherish, |
| Kaminda ku tur palu | Where each and every tree |
| Ta keha, baha nan kabes | howls and bows its head |
| Pa bientu salu | For salty winds |
| I nan rama | And every branch |
| Tur ta sklama | Cries out for |
| Awaseru, | Showers of rain, |
| Trupial ta lanta | Where troupials awaken |
| Trahadónan | Man to work |
| Ku su melodioso kanto, | With melodious voices, |
| Kaminda den kunuku | Where in the wastelands |
| Solo ta mira i hari | The sun watches and laughs |
| Kon ku buriku | At how we toil |
| Nos ta maha | With donkeys |
| Pa nos traha | Laboring |
| Ku tur forsa, | With all our might |
| Pa di suela seku | And extract from this parched earth |
| Nos por ranka | Wholesome food |
| Alimentu ku fe siegu, | In blind faith, |
| Kaminda ku mi tata | Where my father |
| A siña mi ser humilde | Taught me to be modest, |
| Ku su frenta | Head upright, |
| Ku a mustra | Which told me |
| Mi di buska | To look for |
| Bida honrado, | An honorable life |
| Pan, trabou, sosiegu | Bread, work, tranquility |
| I mas nada | And no more |
| Riba un isla bou di shelu, | On an island under celestial blue, |
| Kaminda ku historia | Where history |
| A forma den siglonan pasá | In past centuries |
| Armonia, | Shaped harmony, |
| Pas sonriendo | Shining peace |
| Den tur hende | In every person |
| I un pida | And a part |
| Di shelu a baha abou | Of heaven alighted and settled |
| Den nos bida, | In our lives, |
| EI TA MI PATRIA KÒRSOU! | THAT’S WHERE MY HOMELAND IS: CURAÇAO |
[End Page 652]
Pierre A. Lauffer (1920–1981 Curaçao), a pioneer in the development of Papiamentu as a literary language, was a prolific writer in three languages, English, Dutch, and, especially, Papiamentu. For the high quality of his Papiamentu poetry he was awarded the Literary Prize of the Cultural Centrum Curaçao in 1963, the Cola Debrot prize in 1969, and the Sticusa prize in 1975. Among his many publications are poetry—Patria (1944), Kumbu (1955), Kantika pa Bientu (1963)—and short stories—Wiri-wiri (1961), Ñapa (1961), Raspá (1962) and Lágrima I sonrisa (1973)—in Papiamentu. A number of books of poetry have been published posthumously.
Aart G. Broek, born in the Netherlands, has lived in Curaçao since 1981 where he lectures and writes on Antillean literature. He is the author of numerous articles on Papiamentu literature some of which have appeared in the Journal of Caribbean Studies and The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre. He is the author of Something Rich Like Chocolate: Introduction to Caribbean Prose Writing in English and The Rise of a Caribbean Island’s Literature: The Case of Curaçao and Its Writing in Papiamentu. His translations include poetry by Luis Daal, Oda Blinder, Elis Juliana and Pierre A. Lauffer.
Footnotes
1. Patria (1944; Curaçao: Fundashon Pierre Lauffer, 1985), 7–8.
