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Sof​ð​u, unga ástin m​í​n

from amma (Songs for my Grandmother) by Svavar Knútur

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Sofðu unga ástin mín

Útlendingar reka upp stór augu þegar ég útskýri fyrir þeim söguna og textann í þessu dökka ljóði Jóhanns Sigurjónssonar, sem Halla syngur fyrir barn sitt áður en hún kastar því í foss í leikritinu um Fjalla-Eyvind. Vögguvísa allra íslenskra barna, eins mikið grundvallarsálarfóður og hafragrautur og lýsi.

Sleep my young love

It is always a shock for foreigners when I translate the lyrics of this dark poem by Johann Sigurjonsson. A lullaby about death and horror and the tragic sadness of the world and the people that inhabit it, it is sung to almost every Icelandic child from an early childhood.

lyrics

Sofðu unga ástin mín

Sofðu unga ástin mín,
úti regnið grætur.
Mamma geymir gullin þín,
gamla leggi og völuskrín.
Við skulum ekki vaka um dimmar nætur.

Það er margt sem myrkrið veit,
minn er hugur þungur.
Oft ég svartan sandinn leit,
svíða grænan engireit.
Í jöklinum hljóða dauðadjúpar sprungur.

Sofðu lengi, sofðu rótt,
seint mun best að vakna.
Mæðan kenna mun þér fljótt,
meðan hallar degi skjótt,
að mennirnir elska, missa, gráta og sakna.

credits

from amma (Songs for my Grandmother), released November 17, 2010
Lyrics: Jóhann Sigurjónsson
Music: Icelandic Folk song

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Svavar Knutur

A troubadour of humble beginnings and rural upbringing, Svavar Knútur's music tells stories of love, tragedies, sadness and redemption, looking back at his country's sad and shame-filled history. His voice always seem to strike a chord with his audiences, along with his decadently charming on-stage persona, his concerts at times comprised of stories within stories and songs within songs. ... more

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