I' woiß wo a Rösle 
So schöa und so fei', 
As wird net a zwoit's so 
Im Schwobeland sei'! 

I' woiß wo a Nescht 
[Und]1 a Vögele drin, 
Dees Vögele will m'r 
Halt net aus mei'm Sinn. 

I' woiß a Paar Schternle 
So hell und so klar, 
Am schönschte Nachthi'mel 
Ischt net so a Paar!  

Dees ällerliabscht Rösle, 
Dees Rösle bischt Du 
Und [hättescht an' Dorne, 
I' nähm']2 De' im Nu!   

[Und dei' ischt's sell Nescht]3
Und as Vögele d'Liab', 
Und i', ei, i' wär' gern 
Der Vögelesdiab. 

Und's selbig Paar Schternle?  --  
Komm, Schatz, [sieh]4 me' a, 
Daß i' in mei'n Hi'mel
Recht nei' [gucke]5 ka! 

About the headline (FAQ)

View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with Deutsche Dichterhalle, zweiter Band, ed. by Oskar Blumenthal, Leipzig: Johann Friedrich Hartknoch, 1873, page 272. Appears in double-issue "no. 23 und 24".

¹ Kuntze: "'S sitzt"
² Kuntze: "ob du an Dorn hast,/ I' nemm'"
³ Kuntze: "Dei Herz is as Nest"
⁴ Kuntze: "guck"
⁵ Kuntze: "schaua"

Text Authorship:

• by Gustav Seuffer , "I' woiß wo a Rösle", subtitle: "(Schwäbisch.)" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

• by Franz Wilhelm Abt (1819 - 1885), "s' Rösle", op. 495 (Fünf Gesänge für vierstimmigen Männerchor) no. 5, published 1877 [ four-part men's chorus a cappella ], Braunschweig, Bauer [sung text not yet checked]
• by Carl Kuntze (1817 - 1883), "I woiss wo a Rösle", op. 259 no. 1 [ SATB chorus ] [sung text checked 1 time]

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

• ENG English (Johann Winkler) , "I know a rose somwhere", copyright © 2024, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Melanie Trumbull , Johann Winkler

This text was added to the website: 2021-12-10
Line count: 24
Word count: 111

I know a rose somwhere,
so nice and so beautiful,
that none will be equal to her
in entire Swabia.

I know a nest somewhere
and a bird within it,
and it's that bird
that I can't get out of my mind.

I know a pair of stars somewhere,
so bright and so clear;
on the most beautiful sky at night
there is none equal to it.

This dearest rose of all,
this rose art thou,
and even if thou hadst a thorn,
I'd take thee outright.

And the said nest, it's thine,
and the said bird, it's love,
and I myself - I'd like to be
the robber of this nest.

And what about the said pair of stars?
Come, lass, have a good look at me,
so that into this heaven of mine
I can look to my heart's content.