by Heinrich Heine (1797 - 1856)

Täglich ging die wunderschöne
Language: German (Deutsch) 
Available translation(s): ENG ENG ITA
  Täglich ging die wunderschöne 
Sultanstochter auf und nieder 
Um die Abendzeit am Springbrunn,
Wo die weißen Wasser plätschern.

  Täglich stand der junge Sklave
Um die Abendzeit am Springbrunn.
Wo die weißen Wasser plätschern;
Täglich ward er bleich und bleicher.

  Eines Abends trat die Fürstin 
Auf ihn zu mit raschen Worten:
"Deinen Namen will ich wissen, 
Deine Heimat, deine Sippschaft!"

  Und der Sklave sprach: "Ich heiße
[Mohamed]1, [ich]2 bin aus Yemen,
Und mein Stamm sind jene Asra,
Welche sterben, wenn sie lieben."

About the headline (FAQ)

View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with: Heinrich Heine’s sämtliche Werke in vier Bänden, herausgegeben von Otto F. Lachmann, Erster Band, Leipzig: Druck und Verlag von Philipp Reclam jun, [1887], page 392.

1 Loewe, Rubinstein: "Mahomet"
2 Loewe: "und"

Authorship:

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

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

  • Also set in English, a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by Henry C. F. Castleman.
  • Also set in English, a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by George Coleman Gow.
  • Also set in English, a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by Henry Kimball Hadley.
  • Also set in Russian (Русский), a translation by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 - 1893) ; composed by Anton Grigoryevich Rubinstein.
  • Also set in Russian (Русский), a translation by Apollon Nikolayevich Maykov (1821 - 1897) , "Невольник", written 1856 ; composed by Mikhail Mikhailovich Ippolitov-Ivanov, Nikita Loginovich Linev, Sergey Vladimirovich Yuferov.
  • Also set in Spanish (Español), a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist , "Un asra" ; composed by Montserrat Campmany i Cortés.
  • Also set in Ukrainian (Українська), a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ; composed by Stanyslav Pylypovych Lyudkevych.

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

  • ENG English (Emma Lazarus) , "The Asra", appears in Poems and Ballads of Heinrich Heine, first published 1881
  • ENG English [singable] (Peter Palmer) , "The Asra", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ITA Italian (Italiano) (Amelia Maria Imbarrato) , "Asra", copyright © 2006, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


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

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 82