Höpöhöpö Böks/ Bök's Höpöhöpö (literal translation)

Köld öld Böks mjög örg.
Ölböl örlög Böks!
Sök Böks kvöl öll kvöld.
Öll göt Gvöðs köld.

(Bök’s cold century is very angry.
Ale curse is Bök’s destiny.
bök’s guilt is his pain every night.
all of God’s holes are cold.)

Ör hönd Böks sökk,
gjör mörg lönd rök
hönd Böks sökk gröð,
Örg: "Ööööh... Bök!"

(Bök’s quick hand sank,
makes many lands moist,
Bök’s hand sank horny,
angry: “Uuuuuh… Bök!“)

Frönsk mön öll hözl Böks.
Rök mök gjör Bök börn.
Börn Böks ör, frökk:
Örn, Ösp, Björn, Björg.

(All of Bök’s lays are French women,
moist sex makes babies for Bök.
bök’s babies are quick, bold:
Örn, Ösp, Björn, Björg.)

Fökk Bök! Böks sök!
Sölt höf Böks röff
Brött fjöll kjörlönd Böks
Kjörfög Böks frökk stönt.

(Fuck Bök! It’s Bök’s fault!
Bök’s salty baths are rough.
Steep mountains are Bök’s preferred venue.
Bök’s chosen field is daring stunts.)

Mörbörn fjörstöð Böks:
Ösp gjör fönn; Björg gjör stönt;
Sönglög Björns öll böst;
Örn gjör öll lök rök.

(Grease-children are Bök’s fun-station:
Ösp makes snow; Björg does stunts;
Björn’s singing tunes are a bust;
Örn Makes all sheets moist.)

För Böks sönn, löng.
Böks höfn löt vör.
Þökk, Gvöð! Römm gjöf:
Gjör Böks tölt ört.

(Bök’s journey is true, long,
Bök’s harbour is lazy.
Thanks, God! A powerful gift:
Make Bök’s ride fast.)

Tölt Bök, tölt, för hröð.
Stökk Bök, stökk, gjör för
Böks fjörför, gjör tök Böks hörð;
flöt Böks jörð gjör stökkför töff.

(Ride Bök, ride, the journey is fast.
Jump Bök, jump, make the journey
of Bök a fun journey, make Bök’s grip hard;
Bök’s flat earth makes the jumping journey cool.)

Böks stöff: Rör, hörslör, gjörð;
Böks rör mjög, mjög löng;
Hörslör Böks gjör hörför;
Gjörð Böks, örlög Böks.

(Bök’s stuff: Pipes, a veil, a hoop;
Bök’s pipes are very, very long;
Bök’s veil makes veil-marks;
Bök’s hoop, the fate of Bök.)

Stök mjöðm Böks hölt,
öxl Böks hörð, tönn Böks skökk,
Böks sköp rök, gröð mök Böks
gjör Bök röff örlög; fökk röff örlög!

(Bök’s single hip is limp,
Bök’s shoulder hard, Bök’s tooth crooked,
Bök’s cunt is moist, the horny sex of Bök
makes destiny rough for Bök; fuck rough destiny!)

Kjöt Böks stökk!; löng stökk kjöts!,
Böks kjöt gjör Böks tögg mjög töff,
öl Böks gjör mön ör, stöff Böks gjör fjör.
Töff, töff, töff! Töff, töff, töff!

(Bök’s meat jump!; long jumps of meat,
Bök’s meat makes Bök’s toughness very cool,
Bök’s ale makes women quick, Bök’s stuff makes fun.
Cool, cool, cool! Cool, cool, cool!)


(In the summer of 2005 Christian Bök, the author of univocal lipogram Eunoia, was a guest at the Nýhil international poetry festival in Iceland, an event I organized. After some drinks one evening I leant over and said I thought it was really strange that he'd skipped his own Ö (incidentally CB was born "Christian Book" - but found the cross to heavy to bear, and changed his name) - and as the drinking got heavier my bravado grew, and eventually I promised that I would produce an Ö chapter for him. Eventually I did in Icelandic, did a rough translation, and they were printed together in a chapbook by Derek Beaulieu's No Press for Christians 40th birthday last year.

My reading of the poem can be found on my UBU-web page.

Christian's own reading of it (in Icelandic) can be found on Youtube.

The word Höpöhöpö (more commonly written höpö höpö) is finnish and means something between "bla bla bla" and "bullshit". Written in one word it's the longest word I know that only has ö's (although I have heard unsubstantiated rumours about it's synonym: höpölöpö)).