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 Éadig béo þu

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Éadig béo þu, góda mann!
Éadig béo þu, léofe wíf!
Langre lisse ic þe ann -
hafa lof and líþe líf!
Hé þe hér swa sáre swanc,
rúna rǽdde’ and fyrngewrit,
hál béo hé, on sálum wlanc,
healde láre’ and wís gewit!

Éadge béo we eft swa nú!
Dréam ne dréose, drync genóg
flówe on fullum síþ swa iú -
fyllaþ wǽge, fyllaþ cróg!
Byrla! byrla! medu scenc!
Dóm is feor þeah dóm sie strang.
Swanc forlǽt and géot ús drenc!
Lust is lýtel, earfoþ lang.

Uton singan scírne sang,
herian Beorc and byrcen cynn,
láre’ and láreow, leornungmann -
sie ús sǽl and hǽl and wynn!
Ác sceal feallan on þæt fýr
lustes, léafes, lífes wan!
Beorc sceal ágan langne tír,
bréme glǽme glengan wang!

Good luck to you, good man,
and to you, dear woman.
I give you lasting joy,
have praise and pleasant life.
He who worked you here so hard,
expounded runes and ancient texts,
may he be happy too, merry at his feasts,
and keep up good sense and learning.

May we be happy later as we are now,
may joy not fail, and drink enough
flow in the cups in times to come as times gone by - fill the cups and fill the pitchers!
Waiter, waiter, give us mead!
Doom is far enough though doom be strong,
give up work and pour us drink.
Joy is little and labour long.

Let’s sing a cheerful song,
praise the Birch and birch's race,
the teacher, the student and the subject,
may we all have health and joy and happiness.
The oak will fall into the fire,
losing joy and leaf and life.
The birch shall keep its glory long,
shine in splendour over the bright plain.


Éadig béo þu "Good luck to you" is a poem composed by J. R. R. Tolkien and published in a collection called Songs of the Philologists. It is a scholars' amusement made of comical verse - satirical poems, famous tunes, drinking songs - composed or translated in early Germanic languages. It was published privately in 1936 for Tolkien and his colleague and friend E. V. Gordon. A few have been published in T. A. Shippey's critical essay The Road to Middle-earth, including this one with the modern translation given here. We added to the text a few missing acute accents.


References

Shippey, T[homas] A[lan]. The Road to Middle-earth: How J. R. R. Tolkien created a new mythology. London: Grafton, 1992. 337 p. ISBN 0-261-10275-3



Quotations of John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, Christopher Tolkien, Édouard Kloczko, Christopher Gilson, Patrick Wynne, Rhona Beare, Thomas Alan Shippey, Charles Kennedy, Elaine Treharne, André Crépin, Régis Boyer, François-Xavier Dillmann, Gabriel Rebourcet, Keith Bosley, Pierre-Yves Lambert, Gwyn Jones, Thomas Jones are under the copyright of their publishers.


Last update of the site : 2006, August 9th.
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