| Latvian song | Free translation | Word-for-word translation |
| Tumša, tumša tā eglīte Kur caunīte naktī guļ. | Dark, dark is the fir tree Where the *pine marten sleeps at night. | dark-fem.nom.sg. dark-fem.nom.sg. that-fem.nom.sg. fir-tree-dim.nom.sg. where pine-marten-dim.nom.sg. night-loc.sg. sleep/lie-3rd.p.pres. |
| Tālu, tālu tā māmiņa Kur aug mana līgaviņa | Far, far away is the mother Who is raising my future **bride. | far far that-fem.nom.sg. mother-dim.nom.sg. where grow-3rd.p.pres. my-fem.nom.sg. bride-dim.nom.sg. |
| No kurienes tu, puisīti, Ar tik jauku valodiņ'? | Where are you from, young man, You who are so well-spoken? | from where-gen.sg. you-2nd.p.sg. boy-dim.voc.sg. with so pretty-acc.sg. language-dim.(acc.sg.) |
| Es, māmiņa, no Vidzemes, Nāku savas vajadzīb's; | Mother, I am from %Vidzeme; I come here of necessity. | I-nom.sg. mother-dim.voc.sg. from Vidzeme-gen.sg. come-1st.p.sg.pres. own-gen.sg. necessity-(gen.sg.) |
| Es precētu jūs' meitiņu, To, lūdzami, neliedziet. |
I wish to marry your daughter, I beg you, don't refuse me. | I-nom.sg. wed/marry-cond. your-2nd.p.pl. daughter-dim.acc.sg. that/it-acc.sg. beg-pres.ppl. not-forbid-2nd.p.pl. |
| Velti, velti tu, puisīti, Pēc meitiņas lūkojies; | Young man, you look here in vain For a girl to wed. | vainly vainly you-2nd.p.sg. boy-dim.voc.sg. for girl-dim.gen.sg. look-for(refl.)-2nd.p.sg. |
| Viena pati man meitiņa, Tā par mazu un par jaun'. | I only have one daughter, She's much too young to marry. | one-fem.nom.sg. self/only-fem. me-dat.sg. daughter-dim.nom.sg. That-one-fem.nom.sg. too small-acc.sg. and too young-(acc.sg.) |
| Additional (slightly naughty) verses: | The following two verses are not part of the 'standard' folksong, but occur in some (slightly more risqué) variations as additional (or in some cases alternate) verses: | |
| Jauns ar jaunu sagulēja Udens cauri netecēja. | When two youngsters share a bed, A drop of water cannot seep between them. | young-masc.nom.sg. with young-masc.acc.sg. with-sleep/lie-3rd.p.pst. water-nom.sg. through not-drip/run-3rd.p.pst. |
| Vecs ar vecu sagulēja Žīds ar tačku cauri skrēja. | When two oldsters share a bed, A %%peddler with his barrow can run between them. | old-masc.nom.sg. with old-masc.acc.sg. with-sleep/lie-3rd.p.pst. jew-nom.sg. with barrow-acc.sg. through/between run-3rd.p.pst. |
* The marten (or pine marten; in Latin Martes martes) is a member of the weasel family. It is often trapped for its soft, thick fur (which is not surprising, considering it is related to the ermine). For more information see: Wikipedia: Pine Marten.
** The Latvian word līgava (or its diminutive/endearment form līgaviņa) most often means fiancée, betrothed, or sweetheart, as well as bride. Interestingly, the word is not a Baltic word originally, but derives from Estonian or Livonian, which are Finnic languages. Perhaps this indicates a high degree of intermarriage between the original Baltic tribes which arrived in the region, and the Finnic peoples who were already living there.
% Vidzeme is the north-eastern province of Latvia.
%% The Latvian word žīds literally means 'Jew'. In this context it clearly implies a peddlar, and I have so translated it.
To see the explanation of the grammatical abbreviations used in the "word-for-word" translations, go to → Grammatical Abbreviations
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Last revised September 18, 2008