Die Sänger Yared und Benjamin Dibaba | NDR Talk Show | NDR (German Talk Show):
Rough translation of the above interview by Yared A. D.
Interview with two famous German artists of Oromo origin: Yared Dibaba and Benjamin Dibaba. It was aired on a German television show. I’ve tried to translate it from German into English as follows.
Applause….
Moderator: Have you guys appeared on a Tv program together before?
BENJAMIN: No, this is the first time we appear together on a show.
Moderator: Isn’t that awesome when someone has not just some money but also somebody from his family with him?
YARED: it has been very helpful
BENJAMIN: especially for me.
Moderator to Benjamin: How come you speak better plattdeutsch (a dialect in Germany, spoken mostly in Lower Saxony) even though you are the younger brother?
BENJAMIN: Well, we came to Germany in 1979 and lived in Freiburg, where I attended elementary school. At the school we had a plattdeutsch course, and later I also participated in a plattdeutsch reading competition.
Moderator: Did you learn the dialect because you were interested, or because you had to? Or may be it relates to Oromo as well?
BENJAMIN: Plattdeutsch was the only language that people spoke in the village. So, I had to. (laughter and applause)
Moderator: okay…so you guys communicated in this language everyday?
YARED: We spoke Oromo as well, the East African version of Plattdeutsch.
Moderator: We can see that you deal with each other with a sense of humor and a lot of respect. What is the biggest difference of character between the two of you?
YARED: hahaha…when we reached the age of puberty….well… I am a year older than him… but he started to overwhelm me..he became stronger ..and got everything one would develop at that age..a deep voice, and hair sprouting everywhere..which I had not yet received.
Moderator: well speaking of hair, it appears you haven’t got any so far. (audience laughs)
BENJAMIN: otherwise we almost look the same. Sometimes people even ask me for an autograph thinking that I am Yared.
YARED: yeah, and people often ask me, “Are you the brother, or are you the other?
Moderator: What I find fascinating is that ..your childhood took place between Ethiopia and Germany….different geography, different culture. How’s it to come to Germany as a child?
YARED: We were in Germany twice. First we moved to Osnabrueck at the age of 4. We had spent the first four years in Oromia, where we had a big house, and grew up in a relative freedom. And then we came to Osnabrueck to live in a 3-room flat, on a 3rd floor, and….in a cold winter ..we had to stay at home, and had to be silent..that was a culture shock for us.
Moderator: in my generation of the time, it’s true children had to be silent at home. And then you went back to Ethiopia?
YARED: Yes
Moderator: because you loved Osnabrueck so much. (laughter)
YARED: hahaha Yes and No. Well, it was because the Ethiopian government at the time called back everybody who studied abroad. My father studied here in Germany, and so did my mom. Then we moved back to Ethiopia. But unfortunately, a couple of weeks later the Red Terror started. And that was terrible, obviously.
Moderator: It is often said that there are certain similarities between the people of Lower Saxony and that of the Oromos?
BENJAMIN: Yes, especially the good-naturedness and the mentality.
YARED: ..and we don’t talk too much. The Oromos are pretty much like the people of Northern Germany. Also, you can get Grünkohl (cabbage, raafuu?) the whole year. (laughter)
Moderator: We happen to have another Ethiopian here on stage – Denesech Zewde- Are you also an Oromo?
DENESECH: I am Amhara, which is one ethnic group in Ethiopia. Ethiopia is a multi-ethnic nation.
Moderator: Do you understand each other when you speak in your own language?
DENESECH: No, we don’t understand each other because I speak Amharic like a 5-year old child.
Moderator: (to Yared): I think I once heard you speak Oromo on the phone with your parents. You speak fluently, right?
YARED: Absolutely.
Moderator: How would you say in Oromo, “I am delighted with the conversation here tonight.”?
YARED (turns to his brother and says teasingly): shall I tell him the truth or simply joke? (Benjamin smiles and says, “Tell him”.
YARED: “Amma as teenyee yeroo haasofnu baay’ee gaarii haasofna. Atis afaan keetiin ba’eessa dubbatta..gidduu gidduun waliin makta..garuu homaa hin jedhu.”
Moderator: oh..what a great language! Applause….
BENJAMIN: No, this is the first time we appear together on a show.
Moderator: Isn’t that awesome when someone has not just some money but also somebody from his family with him?
YARED: it has been very helpful
BENJAMIN: especially for me.
Moderator to Benjamin: How come you speak better plattdeutsch (a dialect in Germany, spoken mostly in Lower Saxony) even though you are the younger brother?
BENJAMIN: Well, we came to Germany in 1979 and lived in Freiburg, where I attended elementary school. At the school we had a plattdeutsch course, and later I also participated in a plattdeutsch reading competition.
Moderator: Did you learn the dialect because you were interested, or because you had to? Or may be it relates to Oromo as well?
BENJAMIN: Plattdeutsch was the only language that people spoke in the village. So, I had to. (laughter and applause)
Moderator: okay…so you guys communicated in this language everyday?
YARED: We spoke Oromo as well, the East African version of Plattdeutsch.
Moderator: We can see that you deal with each other with a sense of humor and a lot of respect. What is the biggest difference of character between the two of you?
YARED: hahaha…when we reached the age of puberty….well… I am a year older than him… but he started to overwhelm me..he became stronger ..and got everything one would develop at that age..a deep voice, and hair sprouting everywhere..which I had not yet received.
Moderator: well speaking of hair, it appears you haven’t got any so far. (audience laughs)
BENJAMIN: otherwise we almost look the same. Sometimes people even ask me for an autograph thinking that I am Yared.
YARED: yeah, and people often ask me, “Are you the brother, or are you the other?
Moderator: What I find fascinating is that ..your childhood took place between Ethiopia and Germany….different geography, different culture. How’s it to come to Germany as a child?
YARED: We were in Germany twice. First we moved to Osnabrueck at the age of 4. We had spent the first four years in Oromia, where we had a big house, and grew up in a relative freedom. And then we came to Osnabrueck to live in a 3-room flat, on a 3rd floor, and….in a cold winter ..we had to stay at home, and had to be silent..that was a culture shock for us.
Moderator: in my generation of the time, it’s true children had to be silent at home. And then you went back to Ethiopia?
YARED: Yes
Moderator: because you loved Osnabrueck so much. (laughter)
YARED: hahaha Yes and No. Well, it was because the Ethiopian government at the time called back everybody who studied abroad. My father studied here in Germany, and so did my mom. Then we moved back to Ethiopia. But unfortunately, a couple of weeks later the Red Terror started. And that was terrible, obviously.
Moderator: It is often said that there are certain similarities between the people of Lower Saxony and that of the Oromos?
BENJAMIN: Yes, especially the good-naturedness and the mentality.
YARED: ..and we don’t talk too much. The Oromos are pretty much like the people of Northern Germany. Also, you can get Grünkohl (cabbage, raafuu?) the whole year. (laughter)
Moderator: We happen to have another Ethiopian here on stage – Denesech Zewde- Are you also an Oromo?
DENESECH: I am Amhara, which is one ethnic group in Ethiopia. Ethiopia is a multi-ethnic nation.
Moderator: Do you understand each other when you speak in your own language?
DENESECH: No, we don’t understand each other because I speak Amharic like a 5-year old child.
Moderator: (to Yared): I think I once heard you speak Oromo on the phone with your parents. You speak fluently, right?
YARED: Absolutely.
Moderator: How would you say in Oromo, “I am delighted with the conversation here tonight.”?
YARED (turns to his brother and says teasingly): shall I tell him the truth or simply joke? (Benjamin smiles and says, “Tell him”.
YARED: “Amma as teenyee yeroo haasofnu baay’ee gaarii haasofna. Atis afaan keetiin ba’eessa dubbatta..gidduu gidduun waliin makta..garuu homaa hin jedhu.”
Moderator: oh..what a great language! Applause….
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