I Am an Only Son lyrics and meaning
Aš viens sūnelis pas tėvutėlį,
Kaip girioj užuolėlis, kaip lauke diemedėl.
Kaip aš užaugsiu, pats žirgą šersiu,
Pas mergužėlį josiu, pas mergužėlį jos.
Jojau per girį --- giria žaliava,
Gegutėlas kukava, gegutėlas kukav.
Jojau per tiltą, tiltas dundėja
Žirgelis susverdija, žirgelis susverdij.
Kaip susverdėja, bėras žirgelis,
Nupuola kepurėla, nupuola kepurėl.
Eina mergela, eina jaunoji,
Šiuo muštu vieškelėliu, šiuo muštu vieškelėl.
Eik mergel griečiau, eik mergel sparčiau,
Paduok man kepurėlą, paduok man kepurėl.
Neeisiu greičiau, neeisiu sparčiau,
Nei duosiu kepurėlą, nei duosiu kepurėl.
Aš tavį nežnau, jaunas berneli,
Iš kurios tu šalalės, iš kurios tu šalal.
Esu bernelis, tėva motinas,
Ir slaunos giminėlės, artimų susiedėl.
Oi, kas man paklos, kas man pataisys
Ant marų patalėlį, ant marų patalėl?
Motulė paklos, senoj pataisys
Ant marų patalėlį, ant marų patalėl.
Ai skrida skrida gožioj naktelėj,
Trys raibas gelutėles, trys raibas gegutėl.
Pirmoji puola, prieg man kojelių,
Tai mana motinėla, tai mana motinėl.
Antroji puola, prieg man kojelių,
Tai mano sesiužėla, tai mano sesiužėl.
Trečioji puola, prieg man šonelio,
Tai mano mergužėla, tai mano mergužėl.
Motulė verkia --- sūnelio gaili,
Sesulė verkia --- broluka gaili,
Mergela netbok nieką, mergela netbok niek.
O kaip man netbot, kaip man neraudot,
Pražudžiau jaunas dienas, pražudžiau jaunas dien.
I Am an Only Son: song interpretation
This song can be understood as a ballad-like song about the death of a young man. At the beginning the only son is compared to an oak in the forest and southernwood in the field, emphasizing both his aloneness and his preciousness. When grown, he feeds his horse and rides to the young woman, hoping for love.
The journey is full of troubling signs: as he rides through the forest, cuckoos call; as he crosses a bridge, the horse stumbles or sways and his cap falls. In Lithuanian songs, a fallen cap often foreshadows misfortune or death. The young woman he meets refuses to hand the cap back and says she does not know him, so the hope of love remains unfulfilled.
The song then turns toward death: it speaks of a deathbed, which the mother will make, and in the dark night three speckled cuckoos arrive, revealed to be the mother, the sister, and the beloved young woman. The mother and sister weep, while the beloved seems not to care. The young man laments that he has ruined his young days. This story can be read as a lament for a youth dying too early, where the cuckoos are grieving women or souls. That is one possible meaning, but the motifs of early death and mourning are clear.
I Am an Only Son: symbols and phrases
- Oak and southernwood
- The only son is compared with an oak in the forest and southernwood in the field. These images stress his loneliness and value.
- Fallen cap
- When the horse sways, the cap falls. In songs this image often foretells misfortune or death.
- Deathbed
- The bed or resting place of death. The question of who will make it turns the song toward mortality.
- Three speckled cuckoos
- The cuckoos arriving in the dark night are revealed as the mother, sister, and beloved. They mark grieving women or souls.
I Am an Only Son: song history
"I Am an Only Son" belongs to the ballad-like layer of family songs, telling of a young man's early death and his relatives' mourning. The song is composed through dialogue and repeated couplet formulas, with each line repeated in shortened form, and the narrative moves from the ride to the beloved toward the arrival of mourning cuckoos. Such ballad-like formulas and nature signs are characteristic of lyric-epic family songs.
The exact place and time where this Dzūkian song was recorded are not given on the page, so it is presented by genre. The text is filled with omens of death - the calling cuckoo, the swaying horse, the fallen cap - and at the end the three speckled cuckoos turn out to be the mother, the sister, and the beloved. The transformation of cuckoos into grieving women is a common image in Lithuanian laments and family songs.
sources
- Lietuvių liaudies dainynas, vols. 1-23, Vilnius 1980-2011 (LLTI)
- Lietuvių liaudies dainų katalogas, 6 vols., Vilnius 1972-1986
I Am an Only Son: sources
I Am an Only Son: frequently asked questions
What kind of song is this?
It is a ballad-like family song about the early death of a young man and the grief of his mother, sister, and beloved.
Why is the young man compared to an oak and southernwood?
As an only son, he is compared with an oak in the forest and southernwood in the field to emphasize both his isolation and his preciousness to the family.
What does the fallen cap foreshadow?
When the horse sways and the cap falls, the image often functions in Lithuanian songs as a sign of approaching misfortune or death.
What do the three speckled cuckoos mean?
They turn out to be the mother, sister, and beloved. In this context, cuckoos mark grieving women or souls.
Why does the beloved behave differently from the mother and sister?
The mother and sister weep, while the beloved "does not care." The contrast emphasizes the depth of blood kinship and family mourning.