Senatola

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10 October 2026 · from English · 6 sentences

The Star (Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star)

Source: Jane Taylor, “The Star”, in Ann and Jane Taylor, Rhymes for the Nursery (1806, public domain), text from en.wikisource.org.

Literal: PL = ma, NOT = ne, REQ = vo, Q = ka, ALREADY = ti, STILL = ku. Compounds with hyphens.

Whole text in one piece

vo buvisa lumise! mi kile pulo, de tu lute tama ka. tu pulu tare he bida, su tu fale di goka si botatada. tu vesene nalo luma vubiri tu, fi sela pulu ridi vugole ti su lumene ku ne tama. tu lumise ru nika nali. nubalipara fose tu fu dunisa vubiri tu di vuluma. lo pune ne vesa fara, fi tu lumise ne. tu fane di goka besi vulumi, su tu vese pulo ru risema pesaluma mi, ke tu vulagene nomo nosa tu va bela. dunisa lumi vubiri tu lumene nubalipara di vuluma. mi rike ne, de tu lute tama ka. ho vo buvisa lumise!

Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are! Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky. When the blazing sun is gone, when he nothing shines upon, then you show your little light, twinkle, twinkle, all the night. Then the trav'ller in the dark thanks you for your tiny spark; he could not see which way to go, if you did not twinkle so. In the dark blue sky you keep, and often thro' my curtains peep, for you never shut your eye till the sun is in the sky. 'Tis your bright and tiny spark lights the trav'ller in the dark: tho' I know not what you are, twinkle, twinkle, little star.

Sentence by sentence (6 sentences)

Verse 1

vo buvisa lumise! mi kile pulo, de tu lute tama ka.

REQ star-small bright-small-be! I think often, that you same-be thing Q

Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are!

Notes (4)
  • A nursery rhyme with -is- (buvisa little star, lumise twinkle, dunisa spark), the address as a vo sentence and an indirect question.
  • The address becomes a vo sentence with the star as the subject: “The little star shall twinkle!” This way the address works as in “Listen, sheep!” in Schleicher's fable.
  • “Twinkle” = lumise (bright + -is-: shine a little), a new term.
  • “How I wonder what you are” = I often think about what you are: kile + an indirect question in the de clause. The exclamation becomes a statement.

Verse 1

tu pulu tare he bida, su tu fale di goka si botatada.

you much high-be on world, and you be-located in sky like stone-hard

Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky.

Notes (1)
  • diamond = botatada (from “The Shepherd Boy”). The si group compares the subject: you are in the sky like a diamond.

Verse 2

tu vesene nalo luma vubiri tu, fi sela pulu ridi vugole ti su lumene ku ne tama. tu lumise ru nika nali.

you show always light small you, if sun much warm leave ALREADY and bright-make STILL NOT thing. you bright-small-be through night whole

When the blazing sun is gone, when he nothing shines upon, then you show your little light, twinkle, twinkle, all the night.

Notes (4)
  • The fi clause comes at the end. Its two verbs are joined with su and count as one; that way both “when” stay in the same subordinate clause.
  • “Whenever” = nalo + fi.
  • “Blazing” = pulu ridi (hot). In Taylor the sun is “he”; in Senatola there is no gender.
  • “All the night” = ru nika nali (duration with ru).

Verse 3

nubalipara fose tu fu dunisa vubiri tu di vuluma. lo pune ne vesa fara, fi tu lumise ne.

go-far-person thank you for fire-small small you in darkness. he can NOT seeing path, if you bright-small-be NOT

Then the trav'ller in the dark thanks you for your tiny spark; he could not see which way to go, if you did not twinkle so.

Notes (3)
  • traveller = nubalipara (travel + -ar-), a new term. spark = dunisa (fire + -is-).
  • “In the dark” comes at the end of the sentence, like every prepositional phrase.
  • The unreal condition (“could not … if you did not”) becomes a simple condition: he cannot see the path if you do not twinkle. “Which way to go” = fara (the path).

Verse 4

tu fane di goka besi vulumi, su tu vese pulo ru risema pesaluma mi, ke tu vulagene nomo nosa tu va bela.

you stay in sky blue dark, and you see often through cloth wall-bright I, because you close never eye you to morning

In the dark blue sky you keep, and often thro' my curtains peep, for you never shut your eye till the sun is in the sky.

Notes (3)
  • “Dark blue” = besi vulumi; both adjectives belong to goka.
  • “Curtain” = risema pesaluma (cloth of the window); mi specifies pesaluma.
  • “Till the sun is in the sky” = va bela (until morning).

Verse 5

dunisa lumi vubiri tu lumene nubalipara di vuluma. mi rike ne, de tu lute tama ka. ho vo buvisa lumise!

fire-small bright small you bright-make go-far-person in darkness. I know NOT, that you same-be thing Q. but REQ star-small bright-small-be!

'Tis your bright and tiny spark lights the trav'ller in the dark: tho' I know not what you are, twinkle, twinkle, little star.

Notes (1)
  • “Tho'” (although) = two sentences with ho. Statement and request are in separate sentences; the vo sentence begins with ho and so links up.