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My Father's Bright Manors (Wedding Song) lyrics and meaning

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Mano tėvužėlio margi dvaružiai, Mano širdužėlio margi dvaružiai, O ir prijojo pilnas dvaružėlis jaunų svetužių. /2x -Sėskite, sveteliai nuo bėrų žirgų, Riškite žirgelius prie rūtų daržo, Prie rūtų daržo prie štakietužėlių už kamanužių. /2x Imkit kepurėlas į baltas rankas, Duokit tėvužėliui laba vakarą, -O ar duos, ar leis tėvas dukružėlę savo jauniausią. /2x Vaikščioj motinėlė po margą dvarą, Savo dukružėlę labai bardama, -O ar tu turi šimta lovužėlių žalių rūtužių. /2x O ar tu turi šimtą lovelių, Šimtą lovužėlių žalių rūtužių, Ar išrėdysi brolių kepurėles jaunų svetužių. /2x Yra sesužėlių kieme augančių, Baltų lelijėlių kieme augančių, O tai jos pasės šimtą lovužėlių žalių rūtužių. /2x O tai jos pasės šimtą lovelių, Šimtą lovužėlių žalių rūtelių, Tai jos išrėdys brolių kepurėles, jaunų svetužių. /2x

Meaning

This song can be understood as a courtship and wedding song about arriving guests. At the beginning, a full manor of young guests rides into the father's bright homestead. This arrival can be interpreted as a gathering of matchmakers and wedding guests from the groom's side.

The guests are told to dismount from their bay horses, tie the horses by the rue garden, take their caps into their white hands, greet the father, and ask whether he will give or allow his youngest daughter. This image can be understood as a formal request for marriage. The mother walks through the manor, scolding the daughter and asking whether she has a hundred beds of green rue and whether she can adorn the guests' caps.

The answer is that the sisters growing in the yard, the white lilies, will sow a hundred beds of green rue and adorn the brothers' caps. These images can be interpreted as the maiden's readiness for marriage, where rue marks chastity and dowry, and caps decorated with rue are wedding signs. That is one possible meaning, but the motifs of courtship and wedding preparation are clear.

Symbols

A full manor of young guests
The young guests who ride in. They mark matchmakers and wedding guests from the groom's side.
Tying horses by the rue garden
The horses are tied by the fence of the rue garden. This marks arrival at the maiden's home.
A hundred beds of green rue
Many beds of rue, about which the mother asks. They mark the maiden's chastity and dowry.
Caps adorned with rue
The guests' caps decorated with rue. They are wedding signs.

History

"My Father's Bright Manors" belongs to wedding songs, more precisely to the courtship and guest-reception part of the wedding. A full manor of young guests rides into the bright homestead; they are told to dismount, tie their horses by the rue garden, and, holding their caps in white hands, ask the father for his youngest daughter. This is a traditional image of a marriage request. The many affectionate diminutives and repeated lines are typical of wedding-song style.

The exact place and date of recording are not given on this page, so the song is presented through its genre features. The song's core is rue: the mother's question, whether the daughter has "a hundred beds of green rue" and whether she can adorn the guests' caps, speaks of dowry and chastity, because caps decorated with rue are a wedding sign and the rue bed symbolizes the bride's preparation.

Sources