Arabic Love Poetry
Hi there everyone.
I remember when I was studying Shakespeare in the US how difficult it was to grasp the meanings of old English. I do remember struggling with the history and language trying to understand what I was reading. I mean imagine that I read some lines, then watch the play recorded on a video tape and then discover that there was a joke said and that I could even guess it was a joke. I remember that it usually took me two weeks of continuous reading to finish reading one play. I am talking here about reading the text not the criticism and the history of the play.
I tried hard to translate some Arabic lines of poetry to you. Being no poet at all, this was very difficult. I then chose to ask our great friend Google about some trials of translating Arabic poetry to English. I found a great site and want to tell you about it. On this site, a hundred Arabic love lines of poetry are translated into English. You may love them, you may not. Remember that this is a different culture than yours. Remember also that it is very difficult to translate a line of poetry to another language. I mean we are not taking about translating words. Read here to know what is invloved in translating poetry:
“Poetry translation may be defined as relaying poetry into another language. Poetry's features can be sound-based, syntactic or structural or pragmatic in nature. Apart from transforming text, poetry translation also involves cognition, discourse, and action by and between human and textual actors in a physical and social setting. A poetry translation project usually aims to publicize a poet or poets. Poetry translation is typically overt. Poetry translators are concerned to interpret a source poem's layers of meaning, to relay this interpretation reliably, and/or to ‘create a poem in the target language which is readable and enjoyable as an independent, literary text. Poetry translation involves challenges and these are highlighted in this article. Poetry accounts for a tiny proportion of world translation output. Case studies and examples taken from poetry, however, have dominated theory-building in translation studies at the expense of more frequently translated genres.”
www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/97801992393...
I chose some lines from this site vb.3dlat.com/showthread.php?t=140764 I did include the Arabic line of poetry and the translation of it. I Hope you enjoy these lines:
وما كنتُ ممن يدخلُ العشقُ قلبَهُ = ولكنّ من يُبصِرْ جفونكِ يَعشقُ
Love was never able to enter my heart; but seeing your eyes one inevitably falls in love
وما عجبي موت المحبينَ في الهوى = و لكن بقاءَ العاشقينَ عجيبُ
I never wonder why lovers die of love; but I am amazed how those who fall in love can remain alive
وإني لأهوى النومَ في غير حينهِ = لعلَ لقاءً في المنامِ يكونُ
O, how I desire to fall asleep at any moment, perchance I may see the beloved in my dreams
نقـّلْ فؤادكَ حيث شئتَ من الهوى = ما الحبُّ إلا للحبيبِ الأولِ
Let your heart roam and browse in fields of affection, true and lasting love, however, belongs only to the first love.
إذا شئتَ أن تلقى المحاسنَ كلها = ففي وجه من تهوى جميعُ المحاسنِ
If you wish to see all the charming and beautiful things in the world, you need not look beyond the face of your beloved.
رأيتُ بها بدراً على الأرض ماشياً = ولم أرَ بدراً قـّط يمشي على الأرض
In her, I saw a full moon walking on earth, though never before have I seen a moon on earth walking
ضممتكِ حتى قلتُ ناري قد انطفتْ = فلمْ تـُطفَ نيراني وزيدَ وقودها
When I embraced you so close, I thought the fire of my passion would die down; my fires never subsided, their flames roared instead
و قلتُ شهودي في هواكِ كثيرة ٌ = وأَصدَقهَا قلبي ودمعي مسفوحُ.
I said there are many who bear witness to my love for you; most truthful are my heart and my copious tears
Arabic Love Poetry
Hi there everyone.
I remember when I was studying Shakespeare in the US how difficult it was to grasp the meanings of old English. I do remember struggling with the history and language trying to understand what I was reading. I mean imagine that I read some lines, then watch the play recorded on a video tape and then discover that there was a joke said and that I could even guess it was a joke. I remember that it usually took me two weeks of continuous reading to finish reading one play. I am talking here about reading the text not the criticism and the history of the play.
I tried hard to translate some Arabic lines of poetry to you. Being no poet at all, this was very difficult. I then chose to ask our great friend Google about some trials of translating Arabic poetry to English. I found a great site and want to tell you about it. On this site, a hundred Arabic love lines of poetry are translated into English. You may love them, you may not. Remember that this is a different culture than yours. Remember also that it is very difficult to translate a line of poetry to another language. I mean we are not taking about translating words. Read here to know what is invloved in translating poetry:
“Poetry translation may be defined as relaying poetry into another language. Poetry's features can be sound-based, syntactic or structural or pragmatic in nature. Apart from transforming text, poetry translation also involves cognition, discourse, and action by and between human and textual actors in a physical and social setting. A poetry translation project usually aims to publicize a poet or poets. Poetry translation is typically overt. Poetry translators are concerned to interpret a source poem's layers of meaning, to relay this interpretation reliably, and/or to ‘create a poem in the target language which is readable and enjoyable as an independent, literary text. Poetry translation involves challenges and these are highlighted in this article. Poetry accounts for a tiny proportion of world translation output. Case studies and examples taken from poetry, however, have dominated theory-building in translation studies at the expense of more frequently translated genres.”
www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/97801992393...
I chose some lines from this site vb.3dlat.com/showthread.php?t=140764 I did include the Arabic line of poetry and the translation of it. I Hope you enjoy these lines:
وما كنتُ ممن يدخلُ العشقُ قلبَهُ = ولكنّ من يُبصِرْ جفونكِ يَعشقُ
Love was never able to enter my heart; but seeing your eyes one inevitably falls in love
وما عجبي موت المحبينَ في الهوى = و لكن بقاءَ العاشقينَ عجيبُ
I never wonder why lovers die of love; but I am amazed how those who fall in love can remain alive
وإني لأهوى النومَ في غير حينهِ = لعلَ لقاءً في المنامِ يكونُ
O, how I desire to fall asleep at any moment, perchance I may see the beloved in my dreams
نقـّلْ فؤادكَ حيث شئتَ من الهوى = ما الحبُّ إلا للحبيبِ الأولِ
Let your heart roam and browse in fields of affection, true and lasting love, however, belongs only to the first love.
إذا شئتَ أن تلقى المحاسنَ كلها = ففي وجه من تهوى جميعُ المحاسنِ
If you wish to see all the charming and beautiful things in the world, you need not look beyond the face of your beloved.
رأيتُ بها بدراً على الأرض ماشياً = ولم أرَ بدراً قـّط يمشي على الأرض
In her, I saw a full moon walking on earth, though never before have I seen a moon on earth walking
ضممتكِ حتى قلتُ ناري قد انطفتْ = فلمْ تـُطفَ نيراني وزيدَ وقودها
When I embraced you so close, I thought the fire of my passion would die down; my fires never subsided, their flames roared instead
و قلتُ شهودي في هواكِ كثيرة ٌ = وأَصدَقهَا قلبي ودمعي مسفوحُ.
I said there are many who bear witness to my love for you; most truthful are my heart and my copious tears