Some of the following material is not in the public domain.
It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. Printing copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator is also illegal.
You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.
For more information, contact us at:
Before writing, please read the instructions below the translations (under Authorship). Always include the names of the translators in your email if you wish to reprint something!
Ruft die Mutter, ruft der Tochter Über drei Gebirge: "Ist, o Mara, liebe Tochter, Ist gebleicht das Linnen?" Ihr zurück die junge Tochter Über neun Gebirge: "Nicht in's Wasser, liebe Mutter, Taucht' ich noch das Linnen, Denn, o sieh', es hat das Wasser Jawo mir getrübet. - Wie dann erst, o liebe Mutter, Hätt' ich es gebleicht schon! Fluch' ihm, Mutter, liebe Mutter! Ich auch will ihm fluchen. Gäbe Gott im hellen Himmel, Daß er sich erhänge - An ein böses Bäumchen hänge, An den weißen Hals mir! Gäbe Gott im hellen Himmel, Daß er lieg' gefangen - Lieg' gefangen tief im Kerker, An der weißen Brust mir! Gäbe Gott, der Herr im Himmel, Daß er Ketten trage - Ketten trage, festgeschlungen, Meine weißen Arme! Gäbe Gott im hellen Himmel, Daß ihn nähm' das Wasser - Daß ihn nähm' das wilde Wasser, Mir in's Haus ihn bringe!"
About the headline (FAQ)
Authorship
- by Siegfried Kapper (1821 - 1879), "Fluch ihm, Mutter, ich auch will ihm fluchen", appears in Die Gesänge der Serben, Leipzig, first published 1852 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
- a text in Serbian (Српски) from Volkslieder (Folksongs) , "Марина клешва", appears in Српске народне пјесме - скупио ис и на свијет издао Вук Стеф. Караџић (Srpske narodne pjesme), Volume I, page 382-383 (Poem 531).
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)
- by Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), "Mädchenfluch", op. 69 (Neun Gesänge) no. 9 (1877), published 1877, first performed 1878 [voice and piano], Berlin, Simrock [text verified 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Emily Ezust) , title 1: "A maiden's curse", copyright ©
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , title 1: "La malédiction de la jeune fille", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , title 1: "De vloek van een meisje", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
Text added to the website: 2003-11-05 00:00:00
Last modified: 2014-06-16 10:01:58
Line count: 30
Word count: 147
The mother calls, calls to her daughter Across three mountains: "Is, o Mara, dear daughter, The linen bleached?" Back to her, the young daughter calls Across nine mountains: "Nothing is in the water, dear mother, I haven't dipped the linen yet For, you see, Jawo has Muddied the water. How, then, o dear mother, Could I have bleached it? Curse him, mother, dear mother! I will curse him too. May God in bright heaven grant That he might hang himself On a terrible little tree... On my white neck! May God in bright heaven grant That he might lie imprisoned, Imprisoned deep in a dungeon... On my white breast! May God grant, o lord in heaven, That he might wear chains - Wear chains tightly about him... My white arms! May God in bright heaven grant, That the waters might seize him - That the wild waters might seize him... And bring him to my house!"
Authorship
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © by Emily Ezust
Emily Ezust permits her translations to be reproduced without prior permission for printed (not online) programs to free-admission concerts only, provided the following credit is given:
Translation copyright © by Emily Ezust,
from the LiederNet Archive -- https://www.lieder.net/For any other purpose, please write to the e-mail address below to request permission and discuss possible fees.
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Siegfried Kapper (1821 - 1879), "Fluch ihm, Mutter, ich auch will ihm fluchen", appears in Die Gesänge der Serben, Leipzig, first published 1852
- a text in Serbian (Српски) from Volkslieder (Folksongs) , "Марина клешва", appears in Српске народне пјесме - скупио ис и на свијет издао Вук Стеф. Караџић (Srpske narodne pjesme), Volume I, page 382-383 (Poem 531).
Text added to the website: 2003-11-05 00:00:00
Last modified: 2014-06-16 10:01:58
Line count: 30
Word count: 156