Katrina kotin kanane

SKVR V1 170·Lempaala·1847·Collector: Reinholm, H. A.

In the SKVR edition: Lempaala. Reinh. A IV 39. 47.

Song types: Katrina kotikananen, Meren kosijat, Päätään pesemätön tyttö, Taivaanvalojen kosinta

Open in the poem reader →

SKVR textEnglish

1Katrina kotin kananeKatrina, the hen of the household,

2Kauvan kotona kasvo,Grew long at home,

3Luona eukon on emän̄än.By the old woman as mistress.

4Ei häntä emo torun̄',Her mother did not scold her,

5Ätt' ei äijin ärjähelty,Nor the old man grumbled,

6Piti viiet vitjat poikki,She broke five rods,

7Kuuet vöilliset kulutti,Wore six belts,

8Pit' uuvet ummiskengätWore new closed shoes

9Kirkko tietä käyvessään.On her way to church.

10Alko permanto vihata,The floor began to hate,

11Äijän kolkat ärjätellää:The old man's corners grumbled:

12Miks ei sinusta naija,Why does no one marry you,

13Miks ei naija suan kukaista,Why not a swamp-dweller,

14Suankukaista, maankukaista,Swamp-dweller, land-dweller,

15Pellon pientaren kukaista?A field-strip dweller?

16Hän kys̄y toiselta tytöltä:She asked another girl:

17"Miks ei minusta naita?""Why does no one marry me?"

18"Sill' ei sinuist naita,"They don't marry you

19Miks et illoin päätä pesty."Because you don't wash your hair at night."

20Alko illoin päätä pessä,She began washing her hair at night,

21Aamukausin kampajella.Mornings with a comb.

22Käviit kymmenet kysyjät,Ten suitors came,

23Käviit kosiot kolmenlaista;Three kinds of suitors;

24Yhet käyvät kuun kosiot,Some came as moon suitors,

25Toiset käyvät päivän kosiot,Others as sun suitors,

26Kolmannet Kojosen kosiot.Third as Kojonen's suitors.

27Päivä jyty paistamaan,The sun began to shine,

28Kuu jyty kumottamaa.The moon to glow.

29Hää sitt vasten vastaeli:She then replied:

30En o suotu enk o luotuI'm not destined nor made,

31Eik o eukkoin toivottantNor wished by old women

32Saunamaassa maatessa,Lying in sauna lands,

33Ruisoljilla ollessai.Being in rye fields.

34Tul' kyntäjä kossii:A plowman came to the yard:

35"Tulet sie, neitone, miulle,"Come, maiden, with me,

36Käkejelet sie kaita käymääWalk along fences,

37Saa(n) lehmän lypsäjäksi,To milk cows,

38Tuhanne heruttajaksi?"Churn a thousand?"

39Hää vasten vastajeli:She answered:

40"Sinne on suotu, sinne on luotu,"There I'm destined, there I'm made,

41Sinn' on eukko toivottanutThere an old woman wished

42Saunamaassa maatessa,Lying in sauna lands,

43Ruisolilla ollessa."Being in rye fields."

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 editors’ signs inside the verses ([ ], ⌈ ⌉, *, [!], [?]) are left out, as in the poem reader; the letters they enclose are kept.
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.

Permanent address of this poem at SKS: http://urn.fi/urn:nbn:fi:sks-kvr-016650 · Read at SKS ↗

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