A Bit
About Work
We have already met some aspects of work. Now we
can add to them (but note that our modern concepts of work may be rather
different from those of our forebears, so we may have to compromise in our
choice of vocabulary), e.g.:
gonis to
work, to till, to sow seed
obery to work, to operate, to fashion
gwicor dealer, monger
marchont merchant, businessman
whel work, mine workings
Thero’vy
o conis e’n lowar’. I work (I’m working) in the
garden.
Thero’vy
o conis et o lowar’. I work (I’m working) in my
garden.
Thew
o broder lowarther, My brother is
a gardener,
saw
nag o’vy lowarthores dha. but I’m not a
good gardener.
Ma’n
tiek o conis has
et y wel. The farmer is sowing
seeds in his field.
Ma’n
den owth obery jynn palas. The
man operates a mechanical digger.
Ero’whei owth obery
whath e’n briweythva?
Are
you still working in the pottery?
Stenoryon a wrüg lavürya en balyow down ha dû.
Tinners
worked in deep, dark mines.
Den
heb skians a dal lavürya. “They that can’t schemey must louster.”
Tüs
whel a lavüryas war an for’. Workmen laboured on the road.
Ma pronter hag ispak o conis
en eglosyow.
A
priest and a bishop work in churches.
Nag
ero’vy o conis. I don’t work.
Omdednys o’vy. I am retired.
Nag
eus whel dhebm. I’m out of work.
Tho’vy medhek. I am a doctor.
O’whei descador? Were you a teacher?
There
are of course, plenty of place names indicating where work took place,
sometimes incorporating a family name, a description or a location. e.g.:
Barkla
Shop workshop of the Barkla family
Ponsonjoppa
(Pons an joppa) bridge
at the workshop
Wheal
Vor road mine
[1] pronounced
like [lav-irria]
[2] This is also
the most authentic word to use for shop
– originally making and selling were done in the same place. Softens to joppa.
[3] From when
tradesmen lived over the shop. Some people use gwerthji for shop (sale house) but this is not
found in any of the old texts. Similarly kigti is not attested for the butcher’s.
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