The Old Man Went to Plow lyrics and meaning
Ėjo senis lauko arti,
Pasiėmęs pypkę karčią.
Oi lylia, oi lylia, oi lylia,
Dainuok linksmai.
Ėjo senis tuo keleliu,
Dėjo pypkę ant kelmelio.
Ėjo boba tuo keleliu,
Rado pypkę ant kelmelio.
Ei tu, boba, nekvailioki,
Mano pypkę atiduoki.
Mano pypkė kukavinė,
O cibukas misinginis.
Suraizgyta, sumazgyta,
Kur aš gausiu tokią kitą?
The Old Man Went to Plow: song interpretation
This song with the refrain "Oi lylia, sing merrily" can be understood as a humorous everyday song about an old man and his precious pipe. At the beginning, the old man goes to plow the field, taking his bitter pipe with him, and later places it on a stump. The everyday scene immediately creates a light, comic mood.
A woman walking along the same road finds the pipe on the stump. The old man asks her not to fool around and to give it back. This encounter can be read as a comic village scene in which a quarrel arises over a small object.
The old man praises his pipe: it is kukavinė, with a brass cibukas, twisted and knotted, and he will never find another like it. This exaggerated attachment can be understood as laughter at a person for whom a minor possession becomes endlessly precious. This is one possible meaning, but the humorous nature of the song is obvious.
The Old Man Went to Plow: symbols and phrases
- Old man and pipe
- The old man plowing with his bitter pipe. His exaggerated attachment to it is the source of the song's humor.
- Boba
- The woman passing by who finds the pipe. She becomes part of the comic quarrel.
- Kukavinė pipe
- A special pipe with a brass cibukas or stem. It marks a small object that becomes irreplaceable to the old man.
The Old Man Went to Plow: song history
"The Old Man Went to Plow" belongs to humorous everyday songs, where laughter is made from ordinary rural scenes. Such songs characteristically use a simple narrative, an old man loses a pipe and a woman finds it, a repeated sung refrain, "Oi lylia, sing merrily," and an exaggerated attitude toward a small object. The praise of the pipe, kukavinė, with a brass cibukas, twisted and knotted, is typical comic exaggeration.
The exact place and time of recording are not given on this page, so the song is presented according to genre features. Similar joking-song variants have been recorded in different parts of Lithuania. The refrain "Oi lylia" sustains a cheerful rhythm and interrupts the story between stanzas.
sources
- Lietuvių liaudies dainynas, vols. 1-23, Vilnius 1980-2011 (LLTI)
- Lietuvių liaudies dainų katalogas, 6 vols., Vilnius 1972-1986
The Old Man Went to Plow: sources
The Old Man Went to Plow: frequently asked questions
What kind of song is this?
It is a humorous everyday song about an old man and his cherished pipe, sung with the refrain "Oi lylia, sing merrily."
What are cibukas and a kukavinė pipe?
Cibukas is the pipe stem or mouthpiece, here made of brass. Kukavinė is an epithet for the old man's ornate, special pipe.
What causes the quarrel in the song?
The old man leaves the pipe on a stump, and a woman passing by finds it. He asks her to return it, creating a comic conflict over a small thing.
Why is the song funny?
The humor comes from the old man's exaggerated attachment to a minor object, which he praises as if no other such pipe could exist.