St. Zayya’s Cake Dough

shlama allokhun. ana shemmi ile Vektur Urshan ana et-mat-Zumallaniven. Zumallan kha men-matvatet mashtakhet Urmila. npeltela kurbet Nazlu-chay.

Greetings to you. My name is Victor Urshan. I am from the village of Zumallan. Zumallan is one of the villages on the plain of Urmi. It is situated near the Nazlu river.

hakyat bitayele al-kha-dana men-adattet akhnan etlan gu-matet Zumallan b-shemmet mertukhet Mareze. mertukhet Mareze atkha sharuyele kat kha dana gu Urmi e-dan bet-diyyaniva akhnan men-amti, men-kha kelpat khita, b-shemmet Yuav Muradkhan, shemmet khanimu Khlita ki-khayyakhva. aha myu-kerta le-avivala bruna. tlebla men-Mar-Zayya kat-avila kha bruna. ita a bruna tile vile, shemmu muttila Odishu.

The story is about one of the customs that we have in the village of Zumallan by the name of (the festival of) the cake dough of St. Zayya. (The festival of) the cake dough of St. Zayya began when a … when our family was living in Urmi together with my paternal aunt, with another family, by the name of Yuav Muradkhan, the name of whose wife was Xlita. This lady could not have a child. She requested St. Zayya (to allow) her to have a son. Then this son was born and she named him Odishu.

ita al-da niyyat shurilun anne tla betvate kut shita ki-jammiva bel-gane kamkha, meshkha, ki-zarziva mertukha, ki-pallivale bel-gane. kharta a khabra peshle prisa gu-bne matan kat-shmilun a-masala atkha vayela, a shula shurile nikha nikha garvuse.

Then for this purpose (of celebrating this event) these three houses began every year to gather among themselves flour, oil, (from which) they made cake dough and divided it among themselves. Later this news was spread among the inhabitants of our village, who heard that this was taking place, and the event began gradually to grow.

b-da tahar vila kat shurilun men-gibet tla betvate shurilun kulle betvatet mata hayyure al-da nesbat. kha yuma rshemlun kat ka-da yuma ki-hadriva ki-aziva al-matet Zumallan. k-aviva zvine m-kam dana raba kamkha, meshkha. u mikhultaze ki-labliva kha sama gellale, lakhma, ka-dan nashet k-ativa.

In this way it happened that instead of just three families, all the families of the village began to help in this connection. They designated a day for which they would prepare and on which they would go to the village of Zumallan. They would have bought beforehand a lot of flour, oil. They also took food, some herbs and bread for those people who came.

shuraya a shula akhchi iva kha adat ka-bne matan. ki-jammiva kha-yuma men-morisha hal danet gnetet yuma a shula k-odivale. ki-tapkiva p-uydale, ki-hamzemmiva m-uydale ki … kha yuma ki-morivale m-uydale b-khalta u-shteta. b-da mertukha kha tkhara k-aviva.

In the beginning this event was a custom only for the inhabitants of our village. They used to gather for one day and hold this event from morning until the time of the setting of the sun. They met one another, they talked with one another. They would spend a day with each other eating and drinking. With this (festival of) cake dough a memorial took place.

ina a masala bush gurvesla. shurila beshkala shopa gu-kulle Urmi. e-danet a-yuma ativa, sabab matet diyyan etvala budrate, chimane raba nasheda PmakhsusanP kat anne shenne kharaye gu-Iran vile kha kuyama eslamaya, ita letvalun dukanet paltiva, letvalun dukanet aziva ka-mabsamta u-shule, b-da mahana e-dan a-yuma ativa ki-jammiva b-alpe nashe balket gu-da yuma gu-mashtakhet matet Zumallan, bne-Zumallan k-aviva.

But this initiative grew bigger. It began to take place in the whole of Urmi. When this day came, because our village had many threshing floors and lawns, and the people, especially since in recent years an Islamic revolution took place in Iran, did not have places to go out to, did not have places to go to for enjoyment and so forth, for this reason when this day came, the people gathered in the open space of the village of Zumallan and the inhabitants of Zumallan were perhaps in their thousands there.

sabab a shula raba gurvesseva shutteslun kha sita kma ganate tagberrane kat m-kam dana kha tre-yume, tla-yume k-aziva ka-zvantet mendi, masalla, khalta, shteta, hadaryate shule k-odiva. o-yuma a shula kulle k-odivale gu-mata.

Because this initiative had grown a lot, they established a committee, with a number of organizers, who one, two or three days previously would go to buy things, goods, food, drink and make preparations and so forth. On that day they would all hold this event in the village.

gu-mata etva tre umrane kha-menne b-shemmet Mar-Aprem kha-menne b-shemmet Mat-Maryam. gu-dartet um-ret Mat-Maryam morisha khanime k-aviva jemye. ki-makhivale a mertukha kat k-aviva b-tiyane balket k-oya tanuye. bart a mertukha makhivale, k-odivale akh kunde sure ki-karmekhkhivale gu-lakhma. balket ka-hal khamshamma ganay k-oya tanuye anne ki-hadrivale a mendi.

In the village there were two churches, one of them by the name of St. Ephrem and the one of them by the name of St. Mary. In the courtyard of the church of St. Mary in the morning the ladies would have gathered. They used to put together the cake dough that was there in cauldrons, perhaps one could say. After they put the cake dough together, they would make something like small balls of dough and roll them in bread. One could say that they prepared this for up to five hundred people.

ita sabab nashe bezyadeva khina masala bush gurvesla men det akhchi avilun mikhulta ka-kavutra, lakhma, gellale, ya men-halva, et dana ki-makhiva halva.

Then, because the people were increasing and the event grew bigger than their just having food for lunch (consisting of) bread, herbs or sweetmeats—there were times that they used to make sweetmeats.

kharta ina shurilun bezvana busraze ki-bashlivale, akh taharet dukhrana ki-hadrile, sabab mellat rabeva. a shula k-odivale. hal udyu yumaze k-oya tanuye a shula gu-matet Zumallan gu-mashtakhet Urmi pyashele vida.

Later they started to buy meat and cook it, they prepared it like the type (of meat cooked for) votive offerings, because the people were many. They used to do this. It may be said that to this very day this is being done in the village of Zumallan on the plain of Urmi.

ita b-shennet kuyama kat kemle nashet matet Zumallan shurilun mashakhatta bitaya al-atret Amerka. jmilun gu-koluniyyet Kalifornia. lakhkhaze sabab betvatet bne-matet Zumallan zedlun tukhmennun al-da yuma sabab beddayeva kha yuma etten gu-Zumallan ki-jammile. merrun bush spayela akhnanze a shula lakhkha odakhle.

Then, in the years when the revolution occurred, the people of the village of Zumallan began to immigrate to America. They gathered in the colony of California. Also here, because the families of the inhabitants of Zumallan increased, they thought about this day, because they knew that there is a day in Zumallan that they jointly hold. They said ‘It is better that we also do that here.’

al-da nesbat lakhkhaze shutteslun kha sita khveshta men-kma ganate men-mdinatet Los Angeles, San Jose u-Turlokk sabab nashet diyyan gu-tullunte m-danne mdinate ki-khayyiva. aha shula shurile men-mditet Los Angeles. shita kameta bekhshaven gu-shitet alpo echchammo echchi kha oyava a shula shurile. kha-shita k-aviva gu-San Jose, kha-shita gu-Turlokk, kha-shita gu Los Angeles.

In this regard they also here established a committee, composed of several people, from the towns of Los Angeles, San Jose and Turlock, because our people live in these three towns. This began from the town of Los Angeles. I think the first year that it began was in 1991. One year it was in San Jose, one year in Turlock and one year in Los Angeles.

ka-kma shenne a shula atkha pishele shukhleppa udyu yumaze medre nashe a PmarasemP k-odila. ki-jammi medre men-ruyta berashe al-hadartet dukhrana, bush zoda men-mertukha, akht merri sabab nashe arkhe atyane raba vayena. lena vaya akhchi kha yuma mavure b-khaltet mertukha. but daha muzyeddalun masala gurvessalun.

For several years the event changed (place), and to this day people hold this festival. They gather starting on Friday evening to prepare the (meat for the) votive offering, more than cake dough, as I said, because guests and visitors are many. They do not spend the day only eating cake dough. For that reason they increased the event and made it bigger.

u-udyu yuma pishele diyya kha men-adattet bne-matan Zumallan. b-gashshaktet al-da shula up matvate khineze shurilun adattet gane etvalun, akh sharavatet kat ki-dokivalun. akh detet diyyi matet Muyshava kut shita ki-jamma. matet Ada ki-doka … PmarasemPet ani gane etvalun. ita a hakyat ila kha keryuta men-matet Zumallan al-mertukhet Mareze kat pyashela tunita b-yad Vektur Urshan men-matet Zumallan. avitun basime.

Nowadays it is known as one of the customs of the inhabitants of our village, Zamallan. By looking at this, also other villages began, as they had their own customs, such as festivals of saints that they used to hold. As far as I know, the village of +Mušava gathers every year. The village of +ʾAda holds traditions that they used to have. So this story is a brief account concerning the village of Zumallan about the cake dough of St. Zayya, which is being told by Victor Orshan from the village of Zumallan. Thank you.