Fairest isle, all isles excelling,
Seat of pleasure and of love
Venus here will choose her dwelling,
And forsake her Cyprian grove.
Cupid from his fav'rite nation
Care and envy will remove;
Jealousy, that poisons passion,
And despair, that dies for love.
Gentle murmurs, sweet complaining,
Sighs that blow the fire of love
Soft repulses, kind disdaining,
Shall be all the pains you prove.
Ev'ry swain shall pay his duty,
Grateful ev'ry nymph shall prove;
And as these excel in beauty,
Those shall be renown'd for love.
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) , "L’illa més bonica", copyright © 2024, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- CHI Chinese (中文) [singable] (Dr Huaixing Wang) , "极美岛", copyright © 2024, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Plus belle des îles", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) [singable] (Bertram Kottmann) , "Schönstes Eiland", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- SPA Spanish (Español) (Mercedes Vivas) , "La isla más hermosa", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Virginia Knight
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 87
极美岛，所有岛之冠，
快乐和爱情之处
维纳斯在此将家安，
放弃塞岛树林住。
丘比特会离开本国
忧虑嫉妒就止步；
嫉妒会将激情折磨，
绝望是爱的死处。
温柔低语，甜蜜抱怨，
叹息吹得爱焰杜
温柔拒绝，善良小看，
将证明所有痛苦。
牧童都会尽职尽心，
仙女感激心中宿；
容貌出类拔萃之人，
将因爱情声名著。
