Elfenlied

English translation by W.G. Thomas (1859)W. G. Thomas (trans.), The Minor Poetry of Goethe. A Selection from His Songs, Ballads and Other Lesser Poems (1859), p. 105.

{{Verse translation|lang=de|

Um Mitternacht, wenn die Menschen erst schlafen,

Dann scheinet uns der Mond,

Dann leuchtet uns der Stern;

Wir wandeln und singen

Und tanzen erst gern.

Um Mitternacht, wenn die Menschen erst schlafen,

Auf Wiesen, an den Erlen

Wir suchen unsern Raum

Und wandeln und singen

Und tanzen einen Traum.

|At midnight, when asleep are men at length,

Then shines for us the moon,

Then gleams for us the star,

We rove and dance and sing

Nor gay till then we are.

At midnight, when asleep are men at length,

We seek the alder grove,

And in the pale moonbeam,

We rove about and sing,

And gaily dance a dream.

}}

{{Verse translation|

{{lang|de|Bei Nacht im Dorf der Wächter rief: {{indent|15}}Elfe!

Ein ganz kleines Elfchen im Walde schlief,{{indent|15}}Wohl um die Elfe;"wohl um die Elfe" is part of the traditional call by night watchmen, combined with short religious verses, such as Um elf Uhr sprach der Herr das Wort: 'Geht auch in meinen Weinberg fort' — Wohl um die Elfe ("At eleven o'clock the Lord spake the word: 'Go forth unto mine vineyard' — just around eleven". Cited in Franz Georg Brustgi, Eningen unter Achalm: Bildnis e. altwürttemberg. Handelsortes (1976), p. 144.

Und meint, es rief ihm aus dem Thal

Bei seinem Namen die Nachtigall,

Oder SilpelitSilpelit is a female elf in "Mörike's private mythology".

Both the character and the poem were incorporated into "Der letzte König von Orplid" ("The last King of Orplid"), an interlude in Mörike's novel "Maler Nolten" ("Painter Nolten"). Eric Sams, The Songs of Hugo Wolf (2011), [https://books.google.com/books?id=l27Qr8RD1W8C&pg=PT111 no. 28]. hätt' ihn gerufen.

Reibt sich der Elf' die Augen aus,

Begibt sich vor sein Schneckenhaus

Und ist als wie ein trunken Mann,

Sein Schläflein war nicht voll gethan,

Und humpelt also tippe tapp

Durch's Haselholz in's Thal hinab,

Schlupft an der Weinbergmauer hin,

Daran viel Feuerwürmchen glühn:so in the 1838 publication; variant [1832?] "Schlupft an der Mauer hin so dicht / Da sitzt der Glühwurm Licht an Licht."

"Was sind das helle Fensterlein?

Da drin wird eine Hochzeit seyn;

Die Kleinen sitzen beim Mahle,

Und treiben's in dem Saale.

Da guck' ich wohl ein wenig 'nein!"

— Pfui, stößt den Kopf an harten Stein!

Elfe, gelt, du hast genug?{{indent|15}}Gukuk! Gukuk!}}

|

At night in the village the watchman shouted {{indent|15}}"Elf!"

A tiny little elf was asleep in the wood – {{indent|15}}Just around eleven;

And he thinks that from the dale

He was called by his name by the nightingale,

Or that Silpelit might have called him.

So the elf rubs his eyes,

Steps out before his snail-shell house,

And is much like a drunken man,

His sleep not fully completed;

And he hobbles thusly, tippy-tap,

Through the hazel wood down to the dale,

Slips along the vineyard wall,

On which many fireflies are glowing.

"What are those bright windows?

There must be a wedding inside;

The little people are sitting at the feast,

And make merry in the hall.

So I'll just take a peep inside!"

— Fie! he hits his head on hard stone!

Well, elf, had enough, have you?{{indent|15}}Cuckoo! Cuckoo!Cf. a word-by-word translation in Berton Coffin, Werner Singer, Pierre Delattre, Word-By-Word Translations of Songs and Arias, Part I: German and French Scarecrow Press, 1 Mar 1994, [https://books.google.com/books?id=5gSt1U-4x2EC&pg=PA572 p. 572f].}}

The poem is the namesake of the anime and manga series Elfen Lied.

{{wikisourcelang|de|Elfenlied}}

• Der Erlkönig
• Elveskud
• Elfen Lied (2002 manga)

{{reflist}}

Category:German poems

Category:German humorous poems

Category:Poetry by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Category:1780 poems

Category:1832 poems