Meren neito, metsän sulho

SKVR III1 258·Soikkola·1858·Collector: Länkelä, Jaako

In the SKVR edition: Soikkola. J. Länkelä. v. V 9 a. 1858.

SKVR textEnglish

1Meren neito, metsän sulho,Maiden of the sea, groom of the forest,

2Korven korkia senihka,Wilderness's lofty ancient one,

3Tuon on mieli merosta naia,His desire is to wed from the sea,

4Saaha lasta lainehesta,To gain a child from the wave,

5Kuuhun korkean tytärtä,A daughter of the lofty moon,

6Vaahen valkean sisarta.Sister of the white duck,

7Ei tuolle oroja huoli,He wants no suitors,

8Ei oroja, ei rekojaNo suitors, no wooers,

9Eikä saksan saanikkeja.Nor German envoys.

10Neito aallossa ajaa,The maiden rides the waves,

11Veon pinnalla pitää,Holds fast on water's surface,

12Vetoi alla, tuuloi päällä,Waters below, winds above,

13Keskellä venoi matala,Amidst shallow boats,

14Venoisessa neito nuori,In the boat, a young maiden,

15Neito nuori ja verevä.Young maiden, bright and fair.

16Ei oo neion naittajaista,No suitors for the maiden,

17Ihalan itettäjäistä.No one to charm the beloved.

18Suku suuri neitosella,The maiden has great kin,

19Suku neion naittajaksi,Kin as her matchmakers,

20Ihalan itettäjäksi,Compellers of her joy,

21Itetti ihalat silmät,Made her fair eyes laugh,

22Vetytti poset punaiset;Reddened her rosy cheeks;

23Väen vietihin vihille,The folk were led to wed,

24Pahoin mielin pappilaan,To the vicarage with dread,

25Tuoen tuotiin kotiin,The dowry brought home,

26Väen sormus vaihettiin.Rings exchanged by the folk.

27Ei mee neitoi tupaan,The maiden won't go inside,

28Neito seisoo kujassa,She stands in the alley,

29Päin on katsoo meroon.Gazing toward the sea.

30Neito seisoo porstuvassa,The maiden stands on the porch,

31Neito vasten vastajaa:Confronting her questioner:

32Ken on kanan kaupitellut,Who sold the hen away,

33Ken on linnut liitkat juonna?Who made the birds flee?

34Isois möi, emois lupais,Grandfather sold, mother allowed,

35Vellois linnut liitkat joivat.Brothers drove the birds off.

English translations by DeepSeek R1, provided by Lidia Pivovarova (University of Helsinki). AI-generated translations may contain inaccuracies.

The text is that of the SKVR digital edition of the Finnish Literature Society (SKS), with these changes:

The edition’s line numbers are replaced by a number on every verse, counted as in the poem reader.
The editors’ notes, and the marks in the verses that point to them, are left out; they can be read at SKS.

Source

Text: SKVR (Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot), the digital edition of the Finnish Literature Society (SKS), licensed under CC BY 4.0.

Added by RunoVerse: the English translations, the song types, the verse numbers and the links.