Au lointain | Tu es comme une petite colombe

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by Knut Hamsun (1859 - 1952)

Translation © by Pierre Mathé

Borte

Language: Norwegian (Bokmål)

Our translations: FRE

Choose for Diff

Du er som en liden Due,
en levende Fugl saa hvid.
Jeg husker dig nu iaften,
du flyr vel om i vor Stue,
men gid du heller fløj hid!

Her slaar i Hotellets Gade
en Sanger sin Mandolin.
Jeg kender et Minde stige:
du er som den Serenade
saa sød og skælvende fin.

Nu skinner Maanen derfremme
og lyser ind paa mit Bord.
Et Vindpust løfter Papiret --
det er som et Bud fra hjemme
med dine de stille Ord.

Godnat da, du Fuglen hvide,
min Tanke i Land og By!
Nu tysinede Mandolinen,
det lider til Midnatslide...
Godmorgen med SOl paany!

Text Authorship:

by Knut Hamsun (1859 - 1952), "Borte" [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 Magne Amdahl (b. 1942), "Borte", 1994 [ bass-baritone, narrator, violoncello, and piano ], from En Hamsun konsert, no. 12 [sung text not yet checked]

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

FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Au lointain", copyright © 2026, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2009-08-26
Line count: 20
Word count: 101

Au lointain

Language: French (Français) after the Norwegian (Bokmål)

Choose for Diff

Tu es comme une petite colombe,
un oiseau vivant, tout blanc.
Ce soir, je me souviens de toi,
tu voles sans doute autour notre maison
mais  si seulement tu volais plutôt ici !

Ici, dans la rue de l’hôtel
un chanteur joue de sa mandoline.
Je sens monter un souvenir :
tu es comme cette sérénade,
si douce et délicatement tremblante.

À présent la lune brille au loin
et éclaire ma table.
Un souffle de vent soulève ma feuille,
c’est comme un message de chez nous,
avec tes paroles silencieuses.

Alors, bonne nuit, oiseau blanc,
Ma pensée aux campagnes et aux villes !
La mandoline s’est tue
la nuit avance vers minuit …
Bonjour, avec à nouveau le soleil !

Text Authorship:

Translation from Norwegian (Bokmål) to French (Français) copyright © 2026 by Pierre Mathé, (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 Norwegian (Bokmål) by Knut Hamsun (1859 - 1952), "Borte"
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2026-09-03
Line count: 20
Word count: 116