Attention! Some of this material is not in the public domain.
It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. It is also illegal to reprint copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator.
To inquire about permissions and rates, contact Emily Ezust at licenses@email.lieder.example.net
If you wish to reprint translations, please make sure you include the names of the translators in your email. They are below each translation.
Note: You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.
Weiß nicht, woher ich kommen bin; Weiß nicht, wohin ich geh: ob ich ein Waldvöglein bin oder eine Fee. Die Blumen, die da quillen, den Wald mit Ruch erfüllen, hat einer je vernommen, woher die sind [kommen]1? Aber manchmal fühl' ich ein Brennen: Möchte so [gerne]2 Vater und Mutter kennen. Kann es nicht sein, füg' ich mich drein. Bin doch ein schönes, goldhaariges Waldfräulein.
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)1 Faisst: "gekommen"
2 Faisst: "gern"
Text Authorship:
- by Gerhart (Johann Robert) Hauptmann (1862 - 1946), appears in Die versunkene Glocke [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 Clara Mathilda Faisst (1872 - 1948), "Rautendeleins Lied aus „Die versunkene Glocke“" [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Clemens von Franckenstein (1875 - 1942), "Weiss nicht, woher ich kommen bin", op. 8 no. 1 [ voice and piano ], from Drei Gesänge Rautendeleins, no. 1, Leipzig, Weinberger [sung text not yet checked]
- by Hans Hermann (1870 - 1931), "Rautendelein's Lied", op. 10 (Sechs Gesänge für eine Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 1, published 1897 [ voice and piano ], Magdeburg, Heinrichshofen Verlag [sung text not yet checked]
- by Robert Kahn (1865 - 1951), "Weiss nicht, woher ich kommen bin", op. 40 (Fünf Lieder nach Gerhart Hauptmann) no. 1 (1903) [sung text not yet checked]
- by Gustav Lewi , "Rautendeleins Lied", published 1900 [ voice and piano ], from Zwei Lieder für 1 Singstimme mit Pianofortebegleitung, no. 2, Berlin, Deneke [sung text not yet checked]
- by Otto Moritz Julius Muyschel (1874 - 1928), "Rautendeleins Lied" [sung text not yet checked]
- by Julius Rünger , "Weiß nicht, woher ich kommen bin", op. 47, copyright © 1916 [ high voice and piano ], from Rautendelein Lieder : aus Gerhard Hauptmanns Märchendrama Die versunkene Glocke, no. 2, Mainz, B. Schott's Söhne [sung text not yet checked]
- by Otto Sprinzel , "Rautendelein am Brunnen", op. 7 ([Drei] Lieder und Gesänge für 1 Singstimme mit Pianoforte) no. 1, published 1900 [ voice and piano ], Berlin, Deneke [sung text not yet checked]
- by Julia Weissberg (1878 - 1942), "Weiß nicht, woher ich kommen bin", op. 3 no. 1, copyright © 1912 [ soprano and orchestra ], from «Раутенделейн» — три песни для голоса с оркестром на тексты из «Потонувшего колокола» Г. Гауптмана, no. 1, Leipzig : M.P. Belaieff [sung text not yet checked]
- by Heinrich (Heinz) Wimmer (1897 - 1985), "Weiß nicht, woher ich kommen bin", op. 1 no. 1 (1929) [ voice and piano ], from Sechs Lieder der Rautendelein, no. 1 [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Michael P Rosewall) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2011-07-25
Line count: 13
Word count: 66
I don’t know where I’ve come from; I don’t know where I’m going: If I’m a forest bird Or a sprite. The flowers that spring forth, Filling the woods with perfume, Does anyone know Where they come from? Yet sometimes I feel a burning: I so want to know my father and mother. If that isn’t possible, I’ll resign myself to it. For I’m a beautiful, golden-haired forest maiden.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translations of titles:
"Rautendelein am Brunnen" = "Rautendelein by a spring"
"Rautendeleins Lied" = "Rautendelein's Song"
"Rautendeleins Lied aus „Die versunkene Glocke“" = "Rautendelein's Song from "The Sunken Bell""
"Weiss nicht, woher ich kommen bin" = "I don't know where I've come from"
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2025 by Michael P Rosewall, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net
Based on:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Gerhart (Johann Robert) Hauptmann (1862 - 1946), appears in Die versunkene Glocke
This text was added to the website: 2025-12-08
Line count: 13
Word count: 69