There went out at dawn

Attention! Some of this material is not in the public domain.

It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. It is also illegal to reprint copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator.

To inquire about permissions and rates, contact Emily Ezust at licenses@email.lieder.example.net

If you wish to reprint translations, please make sure you include the names of the translators in your email. They are below each translation.

Note: You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.

by Anonymous / Unidentified Author

Translation © by Grant Hicks

Exiit diluculo

Language: Latin

Our translations: ENG

Exiit diluculo
  rustica puella
Cum grege, cum baculo,
  cum lana novella.

Sunt in grege parvulo
  ovis et asella,
Vitula cum vitulo,
  caper et capella.

Conspexit in caespite
  scholarem sedere:
"Quid tu facis, domine?
  veni mecum ludere!"

About the headline (FAQ)

Confirmed with Studies in the Harley Manuscript: The Scribes, Contents, and Social Contexts of British Library MS Harley 2254, United States: Medieval Institute Publications, 2000, Page 238.

From Carmina Burana, 90.

Text Authorship:

by Anonymous / Unidentified Author ( 12^th/13^th century ) , no title [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 Jan Novák (1921 - 1984), "Exiit diluculo", from Cantica latina, no. 28 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

ENG English (Grant Hicks) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Grant Hicks [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 36

There went out at dawn

Language: English after the Latin

There went out at dawn
  a peasant girl,
With her flock, with her crook,
  with new wool.

In her tiny flock are
  a sheep and a she-ass,
A heifer with a bull-calf,
  a billy-goat and a nanny-goat.

She saw in the grass
  a scholar sitting:
"What are you up to, master?
  come play with me!"

About the headline (FAQ)

Translations of titles:
"Exiit diluculo" = "There went out at dawn"

Text Authorship:

Translation from Latin to English copyright © 2025 by Grant Hicks, (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 Latin by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist , no title
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2025-10-12
Line count: 12
Word count: 55