Kuulin mie vaan kummempia

SKVR XIII1 180·Sakkola·1848·Collector: Reinholm, H. A.

In the SKVR edition: Sakkola. Reinholm NI 17. 48.

SKVR textEnglish

1Kuulin mie vaan kummempia,I heard of stranger things,

2Nähnt on näitä ouvompiaHave seen these more absurd things:

3Hämehess käyessäi.While traveling in Häme.

4Hämehess härkä poikii,In Häme, a bull gives birth,

5Lam̄as men, läävään munall,A sheep went, laid an egg in the barn,

6Kana tek' kaksi tallikaist.A hen made two stable-stripes.

7Ei tuo vielä kum̄a ollut,That wasn't yet a wonder,

8O mä kuult viel kum̄empii,Oh, I've heard stranger yet,

9Näht on näitä ouvompii:Seen things more absurd:

10Ukko kykkii kytkyvessä,An old man squats in harness,

11Härkä loikkuu pöyvän päässä.An ox sways atop the table.

12Ei to vielä kuma ollut,That wasn't yet a marvel,

13O mä kuult viel kum̄empii:Oh, I've heard stranger yet:

14Akka tarhalla makasi,An old woman lay in the yard,

15Lehmä leipoo taikinaa.A cow bakes dough.

16Ei tuo vielä kum̄a ollut,That wasn't yet a wonder,

17O mä kuult viel kum̄empii,Oh, I've heard stranger yet,

18Näht on näitä ouvompii:Seen things more absurd:

19Kattilalla vestettiin,They bathed in a cauldron,

20Kirvehell keitetti.Cooked food with an axe.

21Ei tuo vielä kum̄a ollut,That wasn't yet a wonder,

22O mä kuult viel kum̄empiiOh, I've heard stranger yet:

- - -

24Kirppu pyyhki kiukovaa,A flea wiped the stove,

25Täi lakas' lattiaa,A louse swept the floor,

26Lutikkaine lunta kanto.Bedbugs hauled snow.

27Ei tuo vielä kum̄a ollut,That wasn't yet a wonder,

28Sukka survo, rätti rääky,A sock stomped, a rag squealed,

29Kalsu parka paihattel.Poor drawers labored hard.

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.

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.