Nabu - Jahkrai ma bungli tam (Orphan looking for a job) with English translation

Item details

Item ID	KK1-2235 (Collection Details)
Title	Jahkrai ma bungli tam (Orphan looking for a job) with English translation
Description	Translation (Rita Seng Mai) The title is 'An orphan boy who was looking for a job'. Once upon a time, there was an orphan boy who had lost both of his parents. When he was young, other people gave him food. When he grew older, He thought, "I should not spend my life like this anymore. I am already a grown-up. I should look for a job." He wanted to work and earn some money. He thought, "I will work hard at any kind of work." Then he went out to look for a job. However, no one wanted to give him a job because they assumed he couldn't work since he was an orphan. When he arrived at a palace, he said, "I would like to meet with the king." The king agreed to meet him. Then he asked the boy, "What brings you here?" The orphan boy said, "My king, I lost both of my parents. I really want to work. I can do any work you ask." The king said, "Fine. Do you want to clean the elephants' dung at the elephant center?" The boy said, "Yes, I want to." Then he worked very hard cleaning the dung. He piled it up on one side and later burned it after it had dried. It had become fertilizer. He thought, "It would be great to grow mustard here. This soil is full of fertilizer." Then he went to the market where mustard seeds were sold. He asked the seedsmen, "Can you give me some mustard seeds to grow?" However, no one wanted to give him any seeds. In the end, when the boy asked the man, the man told him, "You can take as many seeds as you can carry with your little finger." When the boy picked them up with his little finger, he got nothing. Then he thought of a plan to get the seeds. He thought, "I might not get any seeds if I just use my finger." Suddenly, he got an idea and wet his little finger with saliva. When he put his finger into the heap of seeds, many seeds stuck to it. He took the seeds and went back. Then he spread them over the burned elephant dung. The mustard plants were growing a lot because of the fertilizer. When he had free time after cleaning the dung, he discovered another way to earn more money. He earned money not only from cleaning the dung but also from growing mustard plants. He also shared some of the plants with other poor people. The mustard plants were growing successfully and abundantly. The king asked him, "How did you get the mustard seeds? Where did you grow them?" The boy answered, "I planted them on the burned elephant dung. I thought it would be a great place to plant the seeds. When I asked the seedsmen for some seeds, one of them told me I could take as many seeds as I could carry with my little finger, but I didn't get any. So I wet my finger with saliva and picked up the seeds. Then I got some seeds. And I planted them here, my king." The king thought that the boy was well-behaved and hard-working, so he gave him a job at the palace. The orphan boy secured a good job. This is the end. Transcription (La Ring) Chyahkrai ma bungli tam ai lam re ai ga baw gaw. Moi.. da chyahkrai ma langai mi Kanu da Kawa da si mat rai shi gaw kaji yang gaw masha ni jaw sha rai na sha sha lawt lu tim shi gaw kaba wa sai. "Ngai gaw kaba wa sai bungli mung lu ra sai ndai hku masha ni jaw ai sha sha na nga gaw n mai sai" nga na shi gaw grai myit yu ai da dai jahkrai ma gaw. Grai myit yu nna bungli ma grai galaw mayu ai da. Dai majaw shi gaw "Hpabaw bungli raitim mung shangun ai bungli kang kang ka ka galaw na re" ngu na tam hkawm mat wa sai da. Tam hkawm mat wa yang she kadai mung jahkrai ma rai nna hpa ma chye na zawn nshadu na kadai kadai ma shi hpe e n ra la ai da. Raitim mung hkaw hkam wang langai mi kaw du ai shaloi e "Hkaw hkam wa hte hkrum mayu ai" ngu tsun yang she "E.. mai hkrum ai da" nga na hkrum yang she "Ya nang nhpa hte seng nna du ai" ngu yang "Hkaw hkam wa e ngai gaw Kanu Kawa mung n lu mat re majaw gaw bungli gaw grai galaw mayu ai raitim hpa chye galaw ai majaw Hkaw hkam wa shangun ai bungli hpa raitim galaw na" ngu yang she "E mai sa nang le.. magwi rem ai ni e magwi hkyi hta kam ai i" ngu ai da. "E kam ai" ngu na shi gaw magwi hkyi hta n na grai shakut shaja ai hte ra nrawng hkra hkra asan awan rai hkra hta n na ye kau ye kau. Magwi hkyi hpe gaw maga mi de sum pum tawn sum pum tawn hkraw jang gaw nat kau re da. Hkraw jang gaw nat kau re ai dai shara kaw wa she nam hpun wa grai law na she shi gaw e "Yi, n dai chying hkrang hkai sha yang gaw grai kaja na nga law n dai hkyi sum pum nat kau shara kaw gaw" ngu. Shing ngu nna she "Woo" chying hkrang si dut ai gat langai mi kaw e sa wa ai da. Sa wa yang she chying hkrang tum dut ai ni hpe e "E ngai hpe e chying hkrang tum hkai sha na li kachyi mi jaw rit law" ngu yang wo ra wa mung ngai mi kaw sa hpyi hpyi rai she "Wo ra wa kaw hpyi u" nga langai mi mung "Wo ra wa kaw hpyi u" nga Nkam jahkrai ma e nkam jaw na dan ngu she marai ngai mi kaw du yang she ning ngu ai da. "Nang dai na ta latsa hte ning.. di shagawt n na lawm ai hte wa la u le" nga da. Shaloi she jahkrai ma gaw ta yung tsang ning.. di yang chying hkrang tum ngai pyi n lawm wa ai da. Nlawm wa jang gaw shi myit yu ai da "Humm.. ndai hku rai yang gaw ngai chying hkrang tum li lu na masa nsa ai" ngu na she shi a yung sha kaw she mayen law wa achya la n na she "Ning" di chying hkrang tum kaw shawn bang dat yang she chying hkrang tum sumpum mi ting gayawp wa ai da shi ta kaw. Gayawp wa jang she dai mayut la n na she magwi hkyi sumpum nat kau ai dai kaw wa gat rai na she chying hkrang gaw grai kaja grai kaja na grai tsawm wa, dai kaga bungli n nga ai lapran e e magwi hkyi hta ngut re shaloi gaw shaloi gaw shi kaga bungli shi a gumhpraw shang lam kaga bai lu jat la ai da. Hkaw hkam wa a magwi hkyi hta ai jahpu mung lu, shi e chying hkrang grai kaja tsawm ai dai mung masha ni n lu sha ai ni e mung jaw sha, rai na chying hkrang grai kaja na grai lu wa re majaw Hkaw hkam wa gaw "Yi nang gara kaw na e chying hkrang kaning rai na chying hkrang hkai sha wa ai" ngu yang she "Wo magwi hkyi nat ai kaw grai kaja na zawn rai na chying hkrang tum sa hpyi yang kadai mung njaw ta yung tsang kaw lawt ai hte mi la nga na shagawt yu yang mung ngai mung n lawm re majaw mayen madip la nna shagawt la nna wa hkai sha ai re law Hkaw hkam wa e" ngu jang she Hkaw hkam wa gaw grai ma dai gaw grai myit su nna grai kyet ai majaw da dai Hkaw hkam wang kaw na kaga bungli shangun ai ma bai shatai nna bungli kaja lu mat ai da. Ngut sa! Hkai ngut sai gaw.
Origination date	2017-04-15
Origination date free form
Archive link	https://catalog.paradisec.org.au/repository/KK1/2235
URL
Collector	Keita Kurabe Find similar
Countries	Myanmar - MM To view related information on a country, click its name
Language as given	Jinghpaw
Subject language(s)	Jingpho - kac To view related information on a language, click its name
Content language(s)	Jingpho - kac To view related information on a language, click its name
Dialect	Standard Jinghpaw
Region / village	Northern Myanmar
Map not displayed for automated requests
Originating university	Tokyo University of Foreign Studies
Operator
Data Categories	primary text
Data Types	Sound
Discourse type	narrative
Roles	Keita Kurabe : depositor Mwijang Lu Htoi : speaker
DOI	10.26278/5fa176fbda0ea
Cite as	Keita Kurabe (collector), Keita Kurabe (depositor), Mwijang Lu Htoi (speaker), 2017. Jahkrai ma bungli tam (Orphan looking for a job) with English translation. EAF+XML/MPEG/WAV. KK1-2235 at catalog.paradisec.org.au. https://dx.doi.org/10.26278/5fa176fbda0ea

Content Files (3)

Filename	Type	File size	Duration	File access
KK1-2235-A.eaf	application/eaf+xml	17.4 KB
KK1-2235-A.mp3	audio/mpeg	4.94 MB	00:05:23.482
KK1-2235-A.wav	audio/wav	178 MB	00:05:23.461
3 files	--	183 MB	--	--

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Collection Information

Collection ID	KK1
Collection title	Kachin folktales told in Jinghpaw
Description	Recordings of Kachin folktales and related narratives in Jinghpaw. These materials were collected by Keita Kurabe, Gumtung Lu Awng, Sumdu Ja Seng Roi, Hpauhkum Htu Bu, Labang Tu La, Gumtung Htu Nan, and Lashi Seng Nan as part of a community-based collaborative fieldwork project in northern Myanmar. As of February 25, 2026, the collection includes 2,491 stories, 2,481 ELAN files, 2,481 transcriptions, and 1,800 translations. Transcriptions were contributed by Gumtung Lu Awng, Pausa La Ring, Galang Lu Hkawng, Sumdu Ja Seng Roi, Hpauhkum Htu Bu, and Keita Kurabe. Translations were prepared by Nbanpa Rita Seng Mai, Sumlut Gun Mai, Lazing Htoi San, Maran Seng Pan, Dumdaw Mike Tu Awng, Nhkum Htoi Awng, and Keita Kurabe. Related resources on Kachin culture and history are available at: https://catalog.paradisec.org.au/collections/KK2 https://catalog.paradisec.org.au/collections/KK3 https://www.youtube.com/@kachinfolktales https://www.facebook.com/KachinStories This research was supported by Linguistic Dynamics Science 3 (LingDy3), Description and Documentation of Language Dynamics in Asia and Africa　(DDDLing), and TUFS Field Science Commons (TUFiSCo), all from the Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA), Tokyo University of Foreign Studies (TUFS), JSPS KAKENHI (Grant Numbers JP17H04523, JP20K13024, JP20H01256, JP24K03887, JP25H00465), as well as the JSPS Program for Advancing Strategic International Networks to Accelerate the Circulation of Talented Researchers, "A Collaborative Network for Usage-Based Research on Lesser-Studied Languages."
Countries	Myanmar - MM To view related information on a country, click its name
Languages	Jingpho - kac To view related information on a language, click its name

Access Information

Edit access	Nick Thieberger Keita Kurabe
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Data access conditions	Open (subject to agreeing to PDSC access conditions)
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