Where Cart rins rowing to the sea,
By mony a flow'r and spreading tree,
There lives a lad, the lad for me,
He is a gallant weaver.
 
Oh I had wooers eight or nine,
They gied me rings and ribbons fine;
And I was fear'd my heart wou'd tine,
And I gied it to the weaver.
 
My daddie sign'd my tocher band,
To gi'e the lad that has the land,
But to my heart I'll add my hand,
And gi'e it to the weaver.
 
While birds rejoice in leafy bowers;
While bees delight in opening flowers;
While corn grows green in simmer showers,
I love my gallant weaver.

About the headline (FAQ)

View text with all available footnotes

Confirmed with Robert Burns, The Poetical Works of Robert Burns, Humphrey Milford, Oxford University Press, 1919, page 421.

Glossary
Ayont = beyond
Rowing = rolling
Tine = be lost
Tocher band = marriage settlement, dowry

Text Authorship:

• by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), "The Gallant Weaver" [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) Joseph Haydn (1732 - 1809), "The auld wife ayont the fire", JHW. XXXII/3 no. 225, Hob. XXXIa no. 195 [sung text checked 1 time]

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

• Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by Bernhard Dessau, Catharinus Elling, Eugène Jámbor.
  • Go to the text.
    

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

• CZE Czech (Čeština) (Jaroslav Vrchlický) , "Dvorný tkadlec"
• FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "La vieille femme près du feu", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Ferdinando Albeggiani , Pierre Mathé [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2009-09-02
Line count: 16
Word count: 117