Ukrainian Folk

Летіла зозуля → English translation

Original lyrics

Летіла зозуля

Летіла зозуля через мою хату,

Сіла на калині, та й стала кувати. (2)

Ой, чого, Зозуле, ой, чого ж ти куєш?

Хіба ти, Зозуле, добро мене чуєш? (2)

Якби не чувала, то би не кувала,

Про тебе, дівчино, всю правду сказала. (2)

Ой, Боже мій, Боже, що я наробила?

Козак має жінку, а я полюбила. (2)

Козак має жінку, ще й діточок двоє.

Ще й діточок двоє, чорняві обоє. (2)

А я ж тих діточок та й не понаймаю,

З тобою, Марусино, в саду й погуляю. (2)

Гуляв Козаченько неділю й дві ночі,

Прийшов Козаченько до дівчини в гості. (2)

Ой, Боже мій, Боже, який я удався,

На чужій сторонці за жінку признався. (2)

Не так же за жінку, як за дві дитини,

Розкололось серце на дві половини. (2)

Translation

Flew a young Cuckoo

Flew a young Cuckoo in through my house,

Sat on the Kalyna, and started to coo coo. (2)

Oh why, you Cuckoo, oh, why do you sing?

May be you, oh Cuckoo, do hear me so well? (2)

If you would not have heard me, you would not be singing,

About you oh girl, the whole truth was told. (2)

Oh God, my dear God, what have I now done?

The Kozak has a wife, and I loved him so. (2)

The Kozak has a wife, and yet two children.

Yet there are two children, dark and handsome are both.(2)

And I those children will not hire them out,

I with you, dear Mary, in the orchard shall be. (2)

Ran around, the young Kozak, one Sunday and two nights,

Came the young Kozak, a guest to the maiden. (2)

Oh God, my dear God what have I now become,

I find myself in the wrong, for a woman, I do confess. (2)

And not just for that woman, as for those two children,

My heart has now been broken - in two, in two halfs. (2)

Thanks! ❤
thanked 10 times

User	Time ago
Tatiana Lina	1 year 4 weeks
Jadis	4 years 3 months

Submitted by

Steve Repa on 2016-04-10

Last edited by

Steve Repa on 2018-11-06

Author's comments:

The cuckoo flies intio anothers nest to lay it's egg, causing the death of the other bird's young. The surrogate parents then have to raise the cuckoo's young at the expence of their young, which are pushed out of the nest.

Ukrainian Folk: Top 3

1.	Гей, соколи! (Hey, sokoly!)
2.	Щедрик (Shchedrik)
3.	Батько наш Бандера (Batʹkо nash Bandera)

Idioms from "Летіла зозуля"

Боже мій!

Comments

Ukrainian Folk

Летіла зозуля → English translation

Летіла зозуля

Flew a young Cuckoo