The closest nearness | We were fond of each other

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by Friedrich Rückert (1788 - 1866)

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Die engste Nähe

Language: German (Deutsch) after the Arabic (العربية)

Our translations: ENG

Wir hatten einander [gerne]¹,
und lauschten heimlich versteckt
als wie zwei Mandelkerne,
von einer Schale bedeckt.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

• C. Loewe

View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with Erbauliches und Beschauliches aus dem Morgenland, zweites Bändchen, Berlin, 1838. Appears in Arabische Volkslieder, no. 19, page 121; and confirmed with Friedrich Rückert's gesammelte Poetische Werke in zwölf Bänden, sechster Band, erste Abtheilung, fünftes Buch, Frankfurt am Main: J. D. Sauerländer's Verlag, 1868. Appears in Wanderung, in Fünfter Bezirk. Erbauliches und Beschauliches aus dem Morgenlande, in Arabische Volkslieder, no. 19, page 101.

¹ Loewe: "so gerne"

Text Authorship:

by Friedrich Rückert (1788 - 1866), "Die engste Nähe", appears in Wanderung, in 5. Fünfter Bezirk. Erbauliches und Beschauliches aus dem Morgenlande, in Arabische Volkslieder, no. 19 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Based on:

a text in Arabic (العربية) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist [text unavailable]
- Go to the text page.

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

by Carl Loewe (1796 - 1869), "Die engste Nähe", 183-? [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "The closest nearness", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Melanie Trumbull

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 4
Word count: 18

The closest nearness

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

We were [fond]¹ of each other
And listened secretly concealed
As do two halves of an almond
Covered by a single shell.

View original text (without footnotes)
¹ Loewe: "so fond"

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2011 by Sharon Krebs, (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 Friedrich Rückert (1788 - 1866), "Die engste Nähe", appears in Wanderung, in 5. Fünfter Bezirk. Erbauliches und Beschauliches aus dem Morgenlande, in Arabische Volkslieder, no. 19
- Go to the text page.

Based on:

a text in Arabic (العربية) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist [text unavailable]
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2011-05-23
Line count: 4
Word count: 23