The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, The African: Written By Himself — Page 4
This mark is conferred on the person entitled to it, by cutting the skin across at the top of the forehead, and drawing it down to the eye-brows; and while it is in this situation applying a warm hand, and rubbing it until it shrinks up into a thick _weal_ across the lower part of the forehead.
Dieses Zeichen wird der Person, die Anspruch darauf hat, verliehen, indem man die Haut oben an der Stirn quer einschneidet und sie bis zu den Augenbrauen hinabzieht; und während sie sich in diesem Zustand befindet, legt man eine warme Hand darauf und reibt sie, bis sie sich zu einer dicken _Wulst_ über dem unteren Teil der Stirn zusammenzieht.
Most of the judges and senators were thus marked; my father had long born it: I had seen it conferred on one of my brothers, and I was also _destined_ to receive it by my parents.
Die meisten Richter und Senatoren trugen dieses Zeichen; mein Vater hatte es schon lange getragen: Ich hatte gesehen, wie es einem meiner Brüder verliehen wurde, und auch ich war von meinen Eltern _bestimmt_, es zu empfangen.
Those Embrence, or chief men, decided disputes and punished crimes; for which purpose they always assembled together.
Diese Embrence, oder Häuptlinge, entschieden Streitigkeiten und bestraften Verbrechen; zu diesem Zweck versammelten sie sich stets gemeinsam.
The proceedings were generally short; and in most cases the law of retaliation prevailed.
Die Verfahren waren im Allgemeinen kurz; und in den meisten Fällen herrschte das Gesetz der Vergeltung.
I remember a man was brought before my father, and the other judges, for kidnapping a boy; and, although he was the son of a chief or senator, he was condemned to make recompense by a man or woman slave.
Ich erinnere mich, dass ein Mann vor meinen Vater und die anderen Richter gebracht wurde, weil er einen Jungen entführt hatte; und obwohl er der Sohn eines Häuptlings oder Senators war, wurde er verurteilt, Wiedergutmachung durch einen männlichen oder weiblichen Sklaven zu leisten.
Adultery, however, was sometimes punished with slavery or death; a punishment which I believe is inflicted on it throughout most of the nations of Africa[A]: so sacred among them is the honour of the marriage bed, and so jealous are they of the fidelity of their wives.
Ehebruch jedoch wurde manchmal mit Sklaverei oder dem Tod bestraft; eine Strafe, die, wie ich glaube, in den meisten Völkern Afrikas[A] darauf steht: so heilig ist ihnen die Ehre des Ehebettes, und so eifersüchtig wachen sie über die Treue ihrer Frauen.
Of this I recollect an instance:--a woman was convicted before the judges of adultery, and delivered over, as the custom was, to her husband to be punished.
Daran erinnere ich mich an einen Fall: Eine Frau wurde vor den Richtern des Ehebruchs für schuldig befunden und, wie es der Brauch war, ihrem Mann zur Bestrafung übergeben.
Vocabulary
- Dieses
- This; that (demonstrative pronoun/adjective)
- Zeichen
- Sign; mark; symbol indicating status or rank
- wird
- Is; becomes (present tense of werden)
- der
- The (definite article, masculine singular)
- Person
- Person; individual human being
- die
- The (definite article, feminine/plural); who, which
- Anspruch
- Claim; right; entitlement to something
- darauf
- On it; on that; thereupon
- hat
- Has (present tense of haben)
- verliehen
- Awarded; conferred; granted (past participle)
- indem
- By; while; in that; by the fact that
- man
- One; you; people (impersonal pronoun)
- Haut
- Skin; hide; outer covering of body
- oben
- Above; up; at the top
- an
- At; on; to (preposition)
- Stirn
- Forehead; brow part of face
- quer
- Crosswise; transverse; at right angles
- einschneidet
- Cuts into; incises; makes a cut
- und
- And (conjunction)
- sie
- She; it; they (personal pronoun)
- bis
- Until; till; up to (preposition)
- zu
- To; at; in direction of (preposition)
- den
- The (definite article, accusative masculine/plural)
- Augenbrauen
- Eyebrows; hairs above the eyes
- hinabzieht
- Pulls down; draws downward
- während
- While; during; whereas (conjunction/preposition)
- sich
- Oneself; himself; herself; itself (reflexive)
- in
- In; into; within (preposition)
- diesem
- This; that (demonstrative, dative/locative)
- Zustand
- State; condition; situation of being
- befindet
- Finds; is; is located (present tense)
- legt
- Lays; places; puts (present tense of legen)
- eine
- A; an (indefinite article, feminine/accusative)
- warme
- Warm; heated (adjective, feminine/accusative)
- Hand
- Hand; palm; human upper limb
- reibt
- Rubs; scrubs; polishes (present tense)
- einer
- A; one (indefinite article, feminine/dative)
- dicken
- Thick; fat; dense (adjective)
- Wulst
- Ridge; welt; raised mark on surface
- über
- Over; above; across (preposition)
- dem
- The (definite article, dative masculine/neuter)
- unteren
- Lower; bottom; beneath (adjective)
- Teil
- Part; section; portion of whole
- zusammenzieht
- Contracts; pulls together; shrinks
- Die
- The (definite article, feminine/plural nominative)
- meisten
- Most; majority of; greatest number
- Richter
- Judge; justice; one who judges
- Senatoren
- Senators; members of senate body
- trugen
- Wore; carried; bore (past tense)
- mein
- My; mine (possessive adjective/pronoun)
- Vater
- Father; male parent; patriarch
- hatte
- Had (past tense of haben)
- es
- It; that (neuter pronoun)
- schon
- Already; yet; by now
- lange
- Long; for a long time; lengthy
- getragen
- Worn; carried (past participle of tragen)
- Ich
- I; me (first person pronoun)
- gesehen
- Seen; observed (past participle of sehen)
- wie
- How; as; like (conjunction/adverb)
- einem
- A; one (indefinite article, dative masculine)
- meiner
- My; mine (possessive, feminine/dative)
- Brüder
- Brothers; male siblings
- wurde
- Was; became (past tense of werden)
- auch
- Also; too; as well (conjunction)
- ich
- I; me (first person singular pronoun)
- war
- Was (past tense of sein)
- von
- From; of; by (preposition)
- meinen
- My; mine (possessive, plural/dative)
- Eltern
- Parents; mother and father
- bestimmt
- Destined; intended; determined (adjective)
- empfangen
- Received; welcomed; conceived (past participle)
- Diese
- These; those (demonstrative plural)
- oder
- Or (conjunction)
- Häuptlinge
- Chiefs; leaders; heads of tribe
- entschieden
- Decided; determined; resolved (past participle)
- Streitigkeiten
- Disputes; quarrels; conflicts between parties
- bestraften
- Punished; penalized (past tense of bestrafen)
- Verbrechen
- Crimes; offenses; serious illegal acts
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