Aesop 004: The Town Mouse & the Country Mouse
Notes
Translation by VL user Rínor in 2026. First posted on VL, on 2026-02-14; not reviewed yet.
Note: The author does not wish that this Quenya text be used to train AI.
Motto: Poverty with security is better than plenty in the midst of fear and uncertainty.
Also potentially available in Sindarin at: Sindarin crash course
Text
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Alternative versions: English (literal).
| No. | Quenya | Tengwar | Means |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nyarrincë Hérostollo ar Nyarrincë Restassello | | The Town Mouse & the Country Mouse |
| 2 | -- | | -- |
| 3 | Nyarrincë Hérostollo ellumë cecennanë ressë ye marnë restassessë. | | A Town Mouse once visited a relative who lived in the country. |
| Endematten i Nyarrincë Restassello sestanë þirpi, sulcar, noccar, ó limba ringa neno yulë opo sé. | | For lunch the Country Mouse served wheat stalks, roots, and acorns, with a dash of cold water for drink. | |
| I Nyarrincë Hérostollo mantë tittë nahtainen, tyucila titta sino ar titta tano, ar lengaleryanen tananë i mantes i þundomatta rië ná mailengaitë. | | The Town Mouse ate very sparingly, nibbling a little of this and a little of that, and by her manner making it very plain that she ate the simple food only to be polite. | |
| 4 | Apa i mat i málot quentë andavë, hya úsië i Nyarrincë Hérostollo quentë pá coiverya i hérostossë lan i Nyarrincë Restassello lastanë. | | After the meal the friends had a long talk, or rather the Town Mouse talked about her life in the city while the Country Mouse listened. |
| Tá cainet lorë árina haustassë i ceätiëssë ar lornet quildessë ar aþiëssë mennai arin. | | They then went to bed in a cozy nest in the hedgerow and slept in quiet and comfort until morning. | |
| Lan lorila i Nyarrincë Restassello ólanë Nyarrincen i nánes Nyarrincë Hérostollo ó ilyë i mairië ar elmenda mariéno hérostossesen ya melderya osetécië sán. | | In her sleep the Country Mouse dreamed she was a Town Mouse with all the luxuries and delights of city life that her friend had described for her. | |
| Epetai i neuna ressë i Nyarrincë Hérostollo iquiryanë i Nyarrincë Restassello lelya maryanna hérostossë, alaranyes quetë nása. | | So the next day when the Town Mouse asked the Country Mouse to go home with her to the city, she gladly said yes. | |
| 5 | Yá ananyeltë i marda yassë i Nyarrincë Hérostollo marnë, túvet i paluhtassë i latsessë matiéno i lemba matta elmendeä merendello. | | When they reached the mansion in which the Town Mouse lived, they found on the table in the dining room the leavings of a very fine banquet. |
| Opo sen nánë lissimattar ar piohimmar, liscorni, tyaustië tyurmi, é, i aritelyantalyë mattar yai Nyarrincë polë sana. | | There were sweetmeats and jellies, pastries, delicious cheeses, indeed, the most tempting foods that a Mouse can imagine. | |
| Mal vin yá i Nyarrincë Restassello nánë ferya matë nihta liscorneo, hlasses romya muilë Miuyo ar nyaþië i fennassë. | | But just as the Country Mouse was about to nibble a dainty bit of pastry, she heard a Cat mew loudly and scratch at the door. | |
| Þossessë i Nyarrinci norner nómenna nurtaléo, yassë quilindet anden lúmeo, þosseä þúya. | | In great fear the Mice scurried to a hiding place, where they lay quite still for a long time, hardly daring to breathe. | |
| Yá teldavë nanwennet i merendenna, i fenna latyanë vercálavë ar núri mittaner poita i paluhta, hilina i Röanen. | | When at last they ventured back to the feast, the door opened suddenly and in came the servants to clear the table, followed by the House Dog. | |
| 6 | I Nyarrincë Restassello sérë i eccassë Hérostollo Nyarrinciva rië faren anda napë fillannerya ar ulutelmerya. | | The Country Mouse stopped in the Town Mouse's den only long enough to pick up her carpet bag and umbrella. |
| 7 | “Ná ten i samityë mairië ar elmendeä matta yai ú-samin,” eques lan ronganes öa, “mal tyasin þundomattanya ar þundocoiviënya i restassessë ó i calainë ar varnassë ya lenna ó sé.” | | "You may have luxuries and dainties that I have not," she said as she hurried away, "but I prefer my plain food and simple life in the country with the peace and security that go with it." |
| 8 | -- | | -- |
| 9 | Eques: Penyalë ó varnassë ná arya epë aurië imíca þossë ar útancië. | | Motto: Poverty with security is better than plenty in the midst of fear and uncertainty. |