Saturday, October 15, 2011

Qubanın ağ alması (Guba's white apple)

This is a beautiful xalq mahnısı (folk song). The chorus can vary a bit with aman and yar and can, but the main verses are always as follows. I really like to sing this song, but now that I try to write the translation I once again am unsure, especially of the second verse. I await the expert advice of native speakers. If I get some feedback I'll post a recording of me singing this song.

N.B.: After some debate, I think I agree with balkanika's assertion that "Yarıma yola saldım" is correct.

Qubanın ağ alması, ay gülüm,      Guba's white apple, my love, 
Yeməyə var alması. (2 dəfə)        There is an apple to eat.

Yarım gələnə qalıb, ay gülüm,      When my love comes to stay, my darling,
Yaramın sağalması.                    My [heart's] wounds are healed. [Lit: my wound's healing]

Nəqarat:                                      Chorus (Refrain) 

Sevirəm, sevirəm, yar, səni mən, yar,      I love you, darling, you, darling, [Sounds SO much better in Azerbaijani!]
sevirəm, yar aman. Aman, aman, aman.     I love you, darling, have mercy on me!

Sevirəm, yar, səni mən, yar,     I love you, darling, you, darling,
sevirəm, yar aman.                 I love you, darling, have mercy on me!

[Sevirəm, sevirəm, yar!           This variant adds yalqızam = I am lonely
Səni mən, yar!                        and can = soul
Yalqızam, yar can!
Aman, aman, sevirəm, yar!
Səni mən, yar!
Yalqızam, yar can!]

Qubadan alma aldım, ay gülüm,     I took an apple from Guba, my darling
Yarıma yola saldım. (2 dəfə)          I sent (it) to my lover.

Yarım gələnə kimi, ay gülüm,         Until my love comes, my darling,
Heyva kimi saraldım.                    I blanch with pain [Lit: I turn yellow like a quince].

Nəqarat

7 comments:

balkanika said...

Hi Ms.Colleen,

Congratulations! Your translation is super. Encouraged by your advice expectation, I’ll make a few contributions. The verse you are unsure about

● “Yarım gələnə qalıb, yaramın sağalması” can be interpreted as “healing of my (heart’s) wound is up to her coming” and also points out that “my wound will not heal if my lover does not come.”

● “Yarımı yola saldım” = I sent off my lover. “Yarıma yola saldım.” = I sent (something) to my lover.

I believe your blog is very helpful for Azeri Language learners.

Prof Coline said...

Wonderful! Now I owe the blog a sound recording to go along with this... I will get a friend to play this on the piano and record it soon.

balkanika said...

Dear Ms.Colleen,

The original verse is “Yarıma yola saldım”

So “Qubadan alma aldım, Yarıma yola saldım” = “I bought apple(s) from Quba, and I sent (them) to my lover”

I also hope it will be very nice for Azerbaijani learners to hear this beautiful song.

Thanks.

Prof Coline said...

Hello. A music teacher told me that yarmıma was wrong, that it should be yarımı...

balkanika said...

Hi Ms.Colleen,

If you make a search on internet you will find that all Azeri sources record the words of this song as “Yarıma yola saldım”.

With my best regards

http://hungama.ratedesi.com/video/K_r_LHcClBg

http://forum.azeri.net/fatma-mehreliyeva-qubanin-ag-almasi-t11099.html

Prof Coline said...

Thanks again. I am convinced that you are right about this and I've changed the post.

Teymur said...

thanks from native speakers too, for reminding us this song. it is beautiful, and the chorus so simple and still so lyrical and soft with its repeating "ə". sounds good with guitar too