From the Circassian Nart Epos: "The Anthem of Nart Sosriqwe" [«Нарт Сосрыкъуэ и пшыналъэ»; "Nart Sosriqwe yi Pshinalhe"] There are many versions of this ancient chant that differ in the details but are unitary concerning the main theme. Two versions are presented hereby. The first, some three millennia old, is sung (in Kabardian) by Vladimir Bereghwn (Baragunov). The second is a modern rendition by the popular singer Sultan Uragan (Hezhiroqwe; Хьэжырокъуэ СулътIан). Transcribed and interpreted by Amjad Jaimoukha. Produced by Sanjalay Jaimoukha. Jaimoukha, Amjad, Circassian Culture and Folklore, London: Bennett and Bloom, 2010. http://www.bennettandbloom.com/circassians.htm This is perhaps the best known melody in the Nart Epos musical repertoire, and one of the most difficult to interpret, given the plenitude of archaic words and expressions, and the presence of at least two layers of semantics transposed in different eras. This gives rise to two interpretations; one archaic and somewhat obscure, and the other more recent and tractable. This is the story of the epic duel between crafty Sosriqwe and guileless Toteresh on Mount Hereme. In the first meet, the invincible Toteresh son of Albech easily prevails over Sosriqwe, but (foolishly) grants him a stay of execution until the next day. 'He who forfeits tomorrow's encounter shall don the coward's cap!' he said as he let Sosriqwe go. Terrified, Sosriqwe goes back to his over-protective mother Satanay, who counsels him to use ruse to overcome his formidable adversary ('the lone rider, who's the terror of whole armies'), and she invokes black magic in aid of her pet son. In fact, the brash Nart was many a time saved from certain death by the intervention of the mighty sorceress. On the set date, Sosriqwe casts a dark mist over the sacred Mount, causing Toteresh to nod off. Sosriqwe makes his appearance with loud clamour issuing from the bells attached to the mane and tail of his steed, Tx'wezchey. Toteresh's horse takes fright, and is killed by the enraged Toteresh. As Sosriqwe stands over the fallen Toteresh with sword in hand, the supine Nart pleads for a third encounter. However, wily Sosriqwe refuses, cuts off Toteresh's head and returns triumphant to his mother. Notes on the text: The expression "мэIуху=shield" is an imposition on the original expression "мыIуэху", whose exact designation is mooted. Schible is the Circassian God of Thunder. Ariq (Арыкъ) is a toponym used in the Nart Epos. In current Kabardian, "арыкъ" designates "foothills". "ПIинэ", "пIынэ": a little cap of rags worn usually by women for everyday use. If someone displays cowardice during a battle or a campaign, he is forced to don this cap, and keep it on until he accomplishes a feat of bravery or heroism, wherefore it is taken off by the womenfolk. Qwehipsch [literally: Prince of the Ship; qweh (къуэхь)=ship in Old Circassian, pschi (пщы)=prince] is here interpreted as a proper name, although the original designation has been lost in the mist of time. This word is an atavism that was spared the phonetic differentiation undergone by Kabardian (from main Circassian, roughly in the last millennium), one feature of which was the generation of the "new" phoneme qx'w [кхъу; in such words as кхъуэ=pig, кхъуей=cheese, кхъухь=ship], which is not found in the other dialects of Circassian, having kept the original phoneme qw (къу) [къо=pig, къуае=cheese, къухьэ=ship]. In one interpretation, "Лъэдакъэ цыджэт" is rendered "[the Bay] had a shaggy fetlock"! Toteresh is actually Sosriqwe's maternal cousin. Toteresh's mother, Barembipx'w (Барэмбыпхъу), is Lady Satanay's sister. Some of the variations on the name of the fierce (but dim) lone rider: Toteresh (Тотэрэш), Totiresh (Тотырэш), Totresh (Тотрэш), T'ot'eresh (ТIотIэрэш).