The Young Cossack Died on Saturday lyrics and meaning
Ir numirė kazokėlis subatos dienelą,
Ir parėdė kazokėlį baltai ir raudonai.
Ir apvilko kazokėlį baltais marškinėliais,
Ir apjuosė kazokėlį šilkine juostele.
Ir apavė kazokėlį jukto čebatėliais,
Ir uždėjo kazokėlį kiaunių kepurėla.
Pašarvojo kazokėlį seklyčioj ant suolo,
Dar aušrelė neišaušo --- per miestą lydėjo.
Dar Saulalė netekėjo --- induobę indėjo,
Tėvas verkė, motka verkė jaunojo sūnelio.
Pasodytau šermukšnėlį ant jojo kapelio,
Kad atlėktų pakukuotie raiboji gegutė.
Meaning
This song can be understood as a funeral ballad about the death of a young Cossack or soldier. At the beginning it says that the young Cossack died on Saturday and was dressed in white and red. These colors and the careful preparation immediately point to a burial rite.
Then the dead young man is dressed in a white shirt, girded with a silk sash, shod in leather boots, and given a marten-fur cap. This careful adornment can be interpreted as honoring the dead, especially when a young person is sent off in fine clothing.
Laid out in the main room, before dawn he is escorted through the town, and before sunrise he is lowered into the grave. Father and mother weep for their young son, and at the end there is a wish to plant a little rowan on his grave so that the speckled cuckoo might fly there to call. These images can be understood as signs of mourning and memory. That is one possible meaning, but the funeral and grief motif is clear.
Symbols
- Young Cossack
- The dead young soldier or Cossack. He is the object of the song's mourning.
- Dressing the dead
- The white shirt, silk sash, boots, and marten-fur cap. They mark a respectful send-off for the young dead.
- Grave pit
- The grave into which the young Cossack is lowered before sunrise. It marks the burial moment.
- Rowan and cuckoo
- The rowan imagined on the grave and the cuckoo that would fly there to call. They are signs of memory and mourning.
History
"The Young Cossack Died on Saturday" belongs to ballad-like funeral songs that tell of a young person's death and send-off. Such songs characteristically list the dead person's preparation in sequence - white shirt, silk sash, boots, marten-fur cap - mark time precisely - death on Saturday, procession before dawn, burial before sunrise - and use images of mourning: parents' weeping, a rowan tree on the grave, and the speckled cuckoo.
The exact place and time of recording are not stated on this page, so the song is presented according to genre features; variants of funeral ballads have been recorded in different regions of Lithuania. The word "kazokėlis" here marks a young soldier or Cossack; the white and red colors and careful adornment are typical signs of a respectful send-off for a young dead person, while the hoped-for rowan and cuckoo on the grave are symbols of memory and grief.
Sources
- Lietuvių liaudies dainynas, t. 1-23, Vilnius 1980-2011 (LLTI)
- Lietuvių liaudies dainų katalogas, 6 t., Vilnius 1972-1986
- Universal Lithuanian Encyclopedia: Lithuanian folk songs
- LLTI: Lithuanian Folk Songbook
Common questions
The Young Cossack Died on Saturday: what kind of song is this?
It is a ballad-like funeral song about the death of a young Cossack and his solemn send-off.
Who is the kazokėlis?
Here he is a young soldier. The song mourns his early death and the careful, respectful preparation for his last journey.
What does dressing the dead in white and red mean?
The white shirt, silk sash, boots, and marten-fur cap mark a respectful send-off in fine clothing for a young dead person.
What do the rowan and cuckoo on the grave mean?
They are signs of memory and mourning. In Lithuanian songs the cuckoo is often linked with lament and longing, so it would call beside the grave.