[1710] Cuckoo Song
Sumer is icumen in,
Lhude sing cuccu!
Groweth sed, and bloweth med,
And springth the wude nu-
Sing cuccu!
Awe bleteth after lomb,
Lhouth after calve cu;
Bulluc sterteth, bucke verteth,
Murie sing cuccu!
Cuccu, cuccu, well singes thu, cuccu:
Ne swike thu naver nu;
Sing cuccu, nu, sing cuccu,
Sing cuccu, sing cuccu, nu!
-- Anon. (Middle English, 13th cent.)
|
GLOSS: lhude] loud. awe] ewe. lhouth] loweth. sterteth] leaps. swike]
cease.
I stumbled across this the other day, while trying to find out more about
cuckoos; why they sing, that sort of thing. I now realise it's the origin of
the phrase most usually rendered as "summer is a-comin' in", which is
interesting. What I like about it is that the anonymous author (or more
likely, authors) was hearing the same noise that I am, some 800 years later.
Here in Scotland the cuckoos call most insistently in the month of May.
Since they sing as long as there's daylight, that's a long time this far
north. The minstrels who would have passed this around would tap into the
same feelings we have when we we're outdoors now at this time: it's nice to
hear the cuckoo song ("well sings thu, cuccu") but they don't half go on
("ne swike thu naver nu")! Hope it's not too obscure.
Bill Whiteford.
[Links and Stuff]
Here's the Columbia Encyclopedia on today's poem:
"Sumer Is Icumen In", an English rota or round composed c.1250. It is the
earliest extant example of canon, of six part music, and of ground bass.
Four tenor voices are in canon and two bass voices sing the pes, or ground,
also in canon. The secular text is in Wessex dialect, and in the same
manuscript source, from Reading Abbey in England, is a Latin text to adapt
the tune for church use. The attribution to the monk John of Fornsete, who
kept the records of Reading Abbey, is no longer credited.
-- http://www.bartleby.com/65/su/SumerIsI.html
For a picture of the original illuminated manuscript, follow this link:
http://www.soton.ac.uk/~wpwt/harl978/sumer.htm
The above website also includes a translation into "modern" English, notes,
a full glossary, and a lengthy bibliography. Plus instructions on how to
sing the song karaoke-style, from the original manuscript.
Richard Thompson opened his "1000 Years of Popular Music" tour with a
version of this song; see
http://www.richardthompson-music.com/catch_of_the_day.asp?id=117
[this poem is archived, accessible and awaiting your comments at]
http://www.cs.rice.edu/~ssiyer/minstrels/poems/1710.html
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From: "Mallika Chellappa" <mchellappa@>
I couldn't resist sharing this interpretation=0Aof the poem with all of you:=0A=0A><much snippage>=0A>>The song is several thousands of years old, and record an attack on=0A>>the British isles by the ancient Sumerians. The mighty armada of Sumer=0A>>is sailing towards the British coast (Sumer is icumen in), and the=0A>>warning cries and call to arms, like the cries of the cuckoo, must be=0A>>sounded loudly (llude sing cucu!). At first people grow sad (groweth=0A>>sed), but then they get raging mad and angry (bloweth med). With loud=0A>>cries of 'Cuckoo' they spring out of the woods to meet the invader=0A>>Sumerians (and springeth the wude nu, Sing cucu!)=0A>=0A>With all due respect, I must point out a slight misinterpretation here: the=0A>phrase "springeth wude nu" in fact refers to the springing of the=0A>woad-covered, nude Britons [upon the muddy, maddened Mesopotamian maritime=0A>military]. Hope this helps!=0A=0AA most interesting interpretation. The constantly repeated "cucu"=0Abring the listener's attention to the woods, however. Could this be an=0Ainstance of subtle double-meanings, where several meanings are packed=0Ainto one single word?=0A=0AOne additional piece of information should also be brought to your=0Aattention. Since the British men fought so valiantly for their wives=0Aand children under the war-cry "Cucu"
during this renowned battle, it=0Ahas later become one of the highest honours to be bequeathed upon a=0ABritish husband to wear the title "Cuckoo", or, for the older=0A"Cuckoos", "Cuckold".=0A--=0A=0Asee more at=0Ahttp://afs.wu-wien.ac.at/earlym-l/logfiles/earlym-l.log9808b=0A=0AHere is my own rendition=0A=0ASummer is acoming in=0ALoud sings the cuckoo=0AThe sedge grows, the meadow blows =0AAnd springs the wood anew=0ASing cuckoo!=0A=0AThe ewe bleats after the lamb,=0A Lows after calf the cow; =0AThe bullock starts, the buck ..,=0A Merry sing cuckoo! =0A=0Acuckoo, cuckoo, well sing you, cuckoo:=0A Don't cheat thou never now; =0ASing cuckoo, now, sing cuckoo, =0A
Sing cuckoo, sing cuckoo, now!=0A=0A--=0A=0AMallika=0A=0A
From: "Mallika Chellappa" <mchellappa@>
I couldn't resist sharing this interpretation=0Aof the poem with all of you:=0A=0A><much snippage>=0A>>The song is several thousands of years old, and record an attack on=0A>>the British isles by the ancient Sumerians. The mighty armada of Sumer=0A>>is sailing towards the British coast (Sumer is icumen in), and the=0A>>warning cries and call to arms, like the cries of the cuckoo, must be=0A>>sounded loudly (llude sing cucu!). At first people grow sad (groweth=0A>>sed), but then they get raging mad and angry (bloweth med). With loud=0A>>cries of 'Cuckoo' they spring out of the woods to meet the invader=0A>>Sumerians (and springeth the wude nu, Sing cucu!)=0A>=0A>With all due respect, I must point out a slight misinterpretation here: the=0A>phrase "springeth wude nu" in fact refers to the springing of the=0A>woad-covered, nude Britons [upon the muddy, maddened Mesopotamian maritime=0A>military]. Hope this helps!=0A=0AA most interesting interpretation. The constantly repeated "cucu"=0Abring the listener's attention to the woods, however. Could this be an=0Ainstance of subtle double-meanings, where several meanings are packed=0Ainto one single word?=0A=0AOne additional piece of information should also be brought to your=0Aattention. Since the British men fought so valiantly for their wives=0Aand children under the war-cry "Cucu"
during this renowned battle, it=0Ahas later become one of the highest honours to be bequeathed upon a=0ABritish husband to wear the title "Cuckoo", or, for the older=0A"Cuckoos", "Cuckold".=0A--=0A=0Asee more at=0Ahttp://afs.wu-wien.ac.at/earlym-l/logfiles/earlym-l.log9808b=0A=0AHere is my own rendition=0A=0ASummer is acoming in=0ALoud sings the cuckoo=0AThe sedge grows, the meadow blows =0AAnd springs the wood anew=0ASing cuckoo!=0A=0AThe ewe bleats after the lamb,=0A Lows after calf the cow; =0AThe bullock starts, the buck ..,=0A Merry sing cuckoo! =0A=0Acuckoo, cuckoo, well sing you, cuckoo:=0A Don't cheat thou never now; =0ASing cuckoo, now, sing cuckoo, =0A
Sing cuckoo, sing cuckoo, now!=0A=0A--=0A=0AMallika=0A=0A