Kuin kasvoin koissa ennen

SKVR VII2 1961·Ilomantsi·1926·Collector: Kettunen, Paul

In the SKVR edition: Ilomantsi. Kettunen P, n. 2. -26. Muistoonpanija lähettänyt kokoelman Meskinvaarasta.

SKVR textEnglish

Kuin kasvoin koissa ennen.

Neiton valitus kotoa lählettyä.

1Kuin kasvoin koissa ennen,As I grew in homes of old,

2Korkean isoni koissa,In my noble father's halls,

3Teuto tengat tietä myöten,Wealth's paths along the road,

4Rahat rantoja ajali.Coins chased the riverbanks.

5Vaan tulipa surma suutimaton,But death came unbridled,

6Kesken yötä kenkimätön,In night's midst, unsummoned,

7Pois otti minun polosen,Took my poor one away,

8Kauvas kanto Karjalahan,Bore them far to Karelia,

9Näille ouvoille oville,To these alien doorways,

10Veräjille vierahillen,Gates of unwelcoming kin,

11Jossa harvon päivä paisto,Where sun rarely shines,

12Harvoin kuutamot kumotti,Moonlight seldom glimmers,

13Harvon on hauki vierahana,Pike seldom visit here,

14Siika ei sinä ikänä,Whitefish never in their time,

15Lohen poik ei polvenakaan.Salmon fry not knee-high.

16Niin kellen nyt sanon sanani,To whom now speak my words,

17Haastan mieli haikeani,Voice my aching heart,

18Ettei muut muretta saisi,Lest others take this grief,

19Miero mieltä arvoaisi?Loneliness crush their spirit?

20Jos mä virkan vierahalle,If I tell a stranger,

21Mainitsen kylän Matille,Mention Village Matti,

22Vieras sen viiteksi panepi,Stranger twists it to a sign,

23Kylän Matti kymmeneksi.Matti's tale grows tenfold.

24Menen metsähän mäelle,I go to the forest hill,

25Puhelen Jumalan puillen,Speak to God's own trees,

26Haastan haavan lehtisille,Tell the aspen's leaves,

27Ne ei kerro kellenkähän,They'll tell no one ever,

28Kuiskuttele kullenkahan.Whisper not a soul.

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.

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