One of my favourite aspects of Christmas is the singing of carols and hymns in commemoration of the birth of Christ, and - perhaps on account of me being a historian - I usually prefer the older songs. Here in Norway, we have a rich tradition of Christmas songs in both our official variants of Norwegian (bokmål and nynorsk), and some of these are translation of songs from other languages, most notably German, Danish and Latin, with a few from English as well.
In previous blogposts I've posted links to some of my favourite English carols, such as the Herefordshire Carol or God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen. In this blogpost I wish to present a favourite from the German tradition, Maria durch ein Dornwald ging. This was originally not a Christmas song, but a song of pilgrimage which came about in Thüringen and the bishopric of Paderborn during the 19th century. The oldest printed source can be dated to 1850, and this edition contained seven strophes. In the early 20th century, a new edition with three strophes became the standard edition and this is currently the rendition most frequently performed. The author or authors of this song are unknown to us and so are the composers of the music, and it is perhaps chiefly this trait which allows us to label this song a folksong. (Information is taken from this website.) The text is found below taken from Edition B, and an English translation follows at the end.
In previous blogposts I've posted links to some of my favourite English carols, such as the Herefordshire Carol or God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen. In this blogpost I wish to present a favourite from the German tradition, Maria durch ein Dornwald ging. This was originally not a Christmas song, but a song of pilgrimage which came about in Thüringen and the bishopric of Paderborn during the 19th century. The oldest printed source can be dated to 1850, and this edition contained seven strophes. In the early 20th century, a new edition with three strophes became the standard edition and this is currently the rendition most frequently performed. The author or authors of this song are unknown to us and so are the composers of the music, and it is perhaps chiefly this trait which allows us to label this song a folksong. (Information is taken from this website.) The text is found below taken from Edition B, and an English translation follows at the end.
Thomaner Chor, Leipzig
Maria durch ein Dornwald ging
Maria durch ein'n Dornwald ging
Kyrie eleison
Maria durch ein'n Dornwald ging
der hat in sieben Jahr'n kein Laub getrag'n
Jesus und Maria
Was trug Maria unter ihrem Herzen?
Kyrie eleison
Ein kleines Kindlein ohne Schmerzen
das trug Maria unter ihrem Herzen,
Jesus und Maria
Da haben die Dornen Rosen getrag'n
Kyrie Eleison
Als das Kindlein durch den Wald getrag'n
da haben die Dornen Rosen getrag'n
Jesus und Maria
der hat in sieben Jahr'n kein Laub getrag'n
Jesus und Maria
Was trug Maria unter ihrem Herzen?
Kyrie eleison
Ein kleines Kindlein ohne Schmerzen
das trug Maria unter ihrem Herzen,
Jesus und Maria
Da haben die Dornen Rosen getrag'n
Kyrie Eleison
Als das Kindlein durch den Wald getrag'n
da haben die Dornen Rosen getrag'n
Jesus und Maria
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Sandro Botticelli, Madonna with child and singing angels
c.1477, currently in Gemäldegalerie, Berlin
Courtesy of Wikimedia
Mary through the thornwood walked
(My translation)
Mary through the thornwood walked
Kyrie Eleison
Mary through the thornwood walked
Which had not borne for seven years a leaf
Jesus and Maria
What bore Mary underneath her heart?
Kyrie Eleison
A little child withouten pain
that's what Mary bore underneath her heart
Jesus and Maria
Then the thorns were bearing roses
Kyrie Eleison
As the little child through the wood did walk
Then the thorns were bearing roses
Jesus and Maria
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