Little Kjersti
- Artist: Kong Lavring
- Album: Kong Lavring
- Song: Liti Kjersti
- Translation: Norwegian → English
- Submitted by
Gjendine on Sat, 02/06/2012 - 19:03
Liti Kjersti
Liti Kjersti ho var seg so lite eit viv,
- brunfolen rinner lett -,
ho kunde 'kje råda sitt unge liv.
Det regner og det blæs.
Langt nord i fjellom djupt under hellom der leikar det.
Bergekongen kom seg ridand' i gård
- Brunfolen rinner lett -
Pål gullsmed ute for honom står.
Det regner og det blæs.
Langt nord i fjellom djupt under hellom der leikar det.
Bergekongen ha' seg ein gangare spak,
- Brunfolen rinner lett -
Han sette liti Kjersti på hans bak.
Det regner og det blæs.
Langt nord i fjellom djupt under hellom der leikar det.
So reid dei berget tri gonger ikring,
- Brunfolen løyper lett -
Og berget det opnast so dei kom der inn.
Det regner og det blæs.
Langt nord i fjellom djupt under hellom der leikar det.
Dei gav henne drikke av raude gullhorn,
- Brunfolen rinner lett -
Dei slepte der nedi tri villarkorn.
Det regner og det blæs.
Langt nord i fjellom djupt under hellom der leikar det.
Den tridje drykken liti Kjersti ho drakk,
- Brunfolen rinner lett -
Dei kristne landi ho aldri mer gat.
Det regner og det blæs.
Langt nord i fjellom djupt under hellom der leikar det.
"Kvar er du fødd, og kvar er du bori?
- Brunfolen rinner lett -
Kvar er dine jomfruklæde skorne?''
Det regner og det blæs.
Langt nord i fjellom djupt under hellom der leikar det.
I berget vil eg leva, og der vil eg døy.
- Brunfolen rinner lett -
"Og der er eg kongens festarmøy.''
Det regner og det blæs.
Langt nord i fjellom djupt under hellom der leikar det.
Little Kjersti
Little Kjersti was so young and innocent a girl
-the brown foal trips so lightly
She could not govern her own life
The rain falls and the wind blows.
Far north in the mountains, deep beneath the rocks the underworld is luring you*
The Mountain King came riding to the farm.
-the brown foal trips so lightly
Pål the Goldsmith receives him.
The rain falls and the wind blows.
Far north in the mountains, deep beneath the rocks the underworld is luring you.
The Mountain King had a silent horse
-the brown foal trips so lightly
He placed little Kjersti on his back
The rain falls and the wind blows.
Far north in the mountains, deep beneath the rocks the underworld is luring you.
They circled the mountain three times
-the brown foal trips so lightly
and the mountain opened so that they could enter.
The rain falls and the wind blows.
Far north in the mountains, deep beneath the rocks the underworld is luring you.
They gave her a drink poured in a red and golden horn*
-the brown foal trips so lightly
and into the drink they slipped three villar grains*
The rain falls and the wind blows.
Far north in the mountains, deep beneath the rocks the underworld is luring you.
The third time that little Kjersti drank
-the brown foal trips so lightly
the Christian lands were lost to her.
The rain falls and the wind blows.
Far north in the mountains, deep beneath the rocks the underworld is luring you.
"Where were you born, and where were you raised?
-the brown foal trips so lightly
where are your virginal shoes?*
The rain falls and the wind blows.
Far north in the mountains deep beneath the rocks the underworld is luring you.
In the mountain I wish to live and there I wish to die
-the brown foal trips so lightly
And there I am betrothed to the Mountain King
The rain falls and the wind blows.
Far north in the mountains, deep beneath the rocks the underworld is luring you.
| thanked 2 times |
| User | Posted ago | |
|---|---|---|
| TrampGuy | 1 year 2 weeks |
A slipp that one. On the other side it is a bit tricky.The spelling used in Norwegian dialects, especially dialects spoken in the 18th century were not uniformal (is that the word?) it´s a bit like old english, it was often written as it sounded and there are small varieties between the different versions of the song, so in some of them it says "går" , in some "i gaar", in some "i gar" and in some "i gård" AND they all sound the same when spoken (at that time). In THIS written version though, "farm" would have been a better translation. I´ll correct it:)
That is actually a version I have not seen before! Very much abliged:) yes, there are definitely some changes and differences here. Firstly in this version the king of the mountain which is here called the King of the Hill, meets with little Kjersti in the woods and invites her to follow him to his home. She declines, telling him that her mother awaits her but he tempts her with all the things that he might give her and so she consents and goes with him willingly, never to return to her mother. In the beginning of the song it is said that Kjersti is lured to the mountain by the soft sounds and music coming from it (see explanation of the word "leikar" underneath my translation of little Kjersti) and in the last verse a sorrowful tune is added to the music now coming from the mountain, the sorrow being that of little Kjersti, now trapped for ever inside the mountain.
It might be a pleasant song but not a pleasant story:)
You are also correct in that the first is a modern arrangement. The original songs were sung without any form of accompaniment, but Arve Moen sings in a way which is now considered the traditional folk song-way (non--vibrato among other things)
Calusarul
see here http://barnesanger.wikispaces.com/Liti+Kjersti+og+Bergekongen for both version and their translations.
Hmmm, is Arve Moen a man? Man, what a voice! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arve_Moen_Bergset
("Whatta man, whatta man, whatta mighty good man!")
So, in this version here, Kjersti is happy because she forgets about her parents, right? While in the other version she feels trapped because she cannot forget her past life, right? Well, I like both versions.
This resembles a Romanian fairy tale called "Youth without old age and life without death".
Thanks for the info.
Arve Moen is a man today, but when he sang this I think he was rather young:) No, I think the main idea is that Kjersti ends up unhappy in both versions (after all, it wasn´t only the parents she was cut off from but also the sky, the rest of nature, other humans etc) note the sorrowful note that emanates from the mountain in the last verse.
The creatures of the underworld might lure you with beautiful gifts and riches but were after all dark non-human creatures. Not the best place to camp and definitely not a sort of elysium which might seem to be what your romanian title sounds more like.
Calusarul
there's also this version http://lyricstranslate.com/en/request/liti-kjersti-og-alvekongen . again, slightly different use of the text (a similar variant) but completely different performance. Folque are my personal favorites 
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