by Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962)
Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Ich liebe Frauen, die vor tausend Jahren
Language: German (Deutsch) 
Our translations:  CAT ENG FRE
Ich liebe Frauen, die vor tausend Jahren
Geliebt von Dichtern und besungen waren.

Ich liebe Städte, deren leere Mauern
Königsgeschlechter alter Zeit betrauern.

Ich liebe Städte, die erstehen werden,
Wenn niemand mehr von heute lebt auf Erden.

Ich liebe Frauen -- schlanke, wunderbare,
Die ungeboren ruhn im Schoß der Jahre.

Sie werden einst mit ihrer sternebleichen
Schönheit der Schönheit meiner Träume gleichen.

About the headline (FAQ)

Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada and the U.S., but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.

Confirmed with Hermann Hesse, Sämtliche Werke, herausgegeben von Volker Michels, Band 10 Die Gedichte, bearbeitet von Peter Huber, Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag, 2002, page 71.


Text Authorship:

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

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

  • CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2009-05-19
Line count: 10
Word count: 61

I love women, who a thousand years ago
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch) 
I love women, who a thousand years ago
Were loved by poets and praised by them in song.

I love cities whose empty walls
Mourn the royal dynasties of olden times.

I love cities that shall come into being
When no one from the present still lives on earth.

I love women -- slender ones, wondrous ones,
Who rest unborn in the womb of the years.

Someday with their star-pale beauty they shall
Equal the beauty of my dreams.

About the headline (FAQ)

Translations of title(s):
"Ich liebe Frauen, die vor tausend Jahren" = "I love women, who a thousand years ago"
"Ich liebe Frauen --" = "I love women --"


Text Authorship:

  • Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2018 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.
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This text was added to the website: 2018-09-28
Line count: 10
Word count: 78