Hamborger Veermaster
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´De Hamborger Veermaster´ (Standard German: ´Der Hamburger Viermaster´, English: Hamburg's four-master) is a famous sea shanty sung in Low German. It was written in 1849 and is partly in English and partly in Low German. It was and is still sometimes, in particular in Northern Germany, the historical geographical distribution of Low German, sung as a work song. This song is normally sung when sails are set and therefore it hardly will be heard in rural areas.
Contents |
[edit] Text
| German lyrics | Literal English translation |
|---|---|
| Verse 1 | |
|
Ick heff mol een Hamborger Veermaster sehn,
De Masten so scheef as den Schipper sien Been, |
I once saw a four-master from Hamburg.
Her masts were as crooked as the skipper's legs. |
| Refrain | |
|
|: Blow, boys, blow, for Californio, |
|: Blow, boys, blow, for Californio, |
| Verse 2 | |
|
Dat Deck weer vull Isen, vull Dreck un vull Smeer.
„Rein Schipp“ weer den Oll'n sin scheunstes Pläseer. |
The deck was full of iron, duck and grease.
´Clean the ship´ was the captain's most beautiful joy. |
| Verse 3 | |
|
De Kombüs weer vull Lüüs, de Kajüt weer vull Schiet,
De Beschüten, de leupen von sülvens all wiet. |
The galley was full of louses, the cabin was full of shit.
The biscuits walked away all by themselves. |
| Verse 4 | |
|
Dat Soltfleesch weer greun, un de Speck wör vull Modn.
Un Köm geef dat blots an Wiehnachtsobend. |
The salted meat was green, the lard was full of maggots
Snaps was only there at Christmas. |
| Verse 5 | |
|
Un wulln wi mol seiln, ick sech ji dat nur,
Denn lööp he dree vorut un veer wedder retur. |
And if we wanted to sail, I merely say,
She moved three footages ahead and four back again. |
| Verse 6 | |
|
Un as dat Schipp, so weer ok de Kaptein,
De Lüüd för dat Schipp, de weern ok blots schangheit. |
And like the ship, so the captain was,
The men for the ship were all impressmented. |
[edit] Importance
As with many sea shanties, this song contains a criticism of the society. It takes up the California Gold Rush from 1848/1849.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Hamborger Veermaster with Text and midi files (in German)
