Monday, November 8, 2010

Cezayir / Algeria lyrics translation Turkish to English

Below are 3 different versions of the same folk song / türkü
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CEZAYİR

Cezayir'in harmanları savrulur,
Savrulur da dört bir yana devrilir,
 
Algeria's harvest blows
Blows and tumbles to the four winds

cezayir anam canım cezayir./Sokakları mermer taşlı,/Güzelleri hilâl kaşlı Cezayir.

Algeria mom, my dear Algeria/ Its streets are from marble / The beauties crescent brow-ed, Algeria
    
Cezayir'in gemileri yağlanır, 
Yağlanır da dört bir yana sallanır.

Algeria's ships are greased
Greased and they rock all around

Cezayir anam,canım Cezayir./Sokakları mermer taşlı,/Güzelleri hilâl kaşlı Cezayir.

Algeria mom, my dear Algeria/ Its streets are from marble / The beauties crescent brow-ed, Algeria

Gemiler çürük tahta dayanmaz, 
Yiğitlere gaflet bastı uyanmaz, 


Rotten wood doesn't sustain ships
Drowsiness overcame, the braves won't wake up

Sokakları mermer taşlı,/Güzelleri hilâl kaşlı Cezayir. 

Algeria mom, my dear Algeria/ Its streets are from marble / The beauties crescent brow-ed, Algeria
   
Cezayir'i bir ikindi bastılar, 
Camilere çifte çanlar astılar,
Koç yiğitleri kurban diye kestiler.                                                   
                                 

One afternoon they attacked Algeria
They hanged double gongs on the mosques
They killed the braves like sacrifice

Sokakları mermer taşlı,/Güzelleri hilâl kaşlı Cezayir.

It's streets are from marble / The beauties crescent brow-ed, Algeria
     
Cezayir'in haber gelmez yolundan, 
İnzibatlar tutmuş yarin kolundan,

News don't come from the roads of Algeria
Armies hold back the beloved

Cezayir anam,canım Cezayir./Sokakları mermer taşlı,/Güzelleri hilâl kaşlı Cezayir.

Algeria mom, my dear Algeria/ Its streets are from marble / The beauties crescent brow-ed, Algeria

CEZAYIR

Cezayir'in harmanları savrulur
Savrulur da sağ yanına devrilir
Eller annem der de başım çevrilir

Algeria's harvest winnows
Winnows and tumbles
Strangers say mom and my head turns

Cezayir'in menekşesi top biter
Arasında eğlim eğlim ot biter
Bu ayrılık annem bize çok gider

Algeria's violet grows round
Among them curvy grass grows
This separation mom is unbearable

Cezayir'in yüksek olur evleri
İçindedir ağaları beyleri
Türkçe bilmez Arapçadır dilleri

Algeria's houses are tall
In them sirs and masters
They don't know Turkish Arabic is their language

Cezayir'in gemileri yağlanır
Yağlanır da iskeleye bağlanır
Eller annem der yüreğim dağlanır

Algeria's ships are greased
Greased and docked
Strangers say mom and my heart burns

CEZAYIR
Cezayir'in harmanları savrulur
Savrulur da sol yanına devrilir
Sarı buğday samanından ayrılır

Algeria's harvest winnows
Winnows and tumbles
Yellow wheat separates from its hay

Gemilere çürük tahta dayanmaz
Yiğitlere gaflet bastı uyanmaz
Aman Allah buna canlar dayanmaz
Rotten wood doesn't sustain ships
Drowsiness overcame, the braves won't wake up
Oh my God souls can't endure this pain

Sokakları mermer taşlı
Güzelleri hilal kaşlı Cezayir
Its streets are from marble
Its beauties are crescent brow-ed, Algeria

Cezayir'i bir ikindi bastılar
Camilere çifte çanlar astılar
Yiğitleri kurban diye kestiler

One afternoon they attacked Algeria
They hanged double gongs on the mosques
They killed the braves like sacrifice
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Turkish to English translation - Turkce Ingilizce ceviri tercume.
Comments on translation quality are welcome.

2 comments:

  1. they definitely killed a lot of people in our beloved Cezayir...more than 1 500 000 ... one million and half, during its revolution from France from a revolution that continued for 8 years (1954 to 1962)...and yet it is still under France pressure till today ...ah ya Cezayir...

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  2. Yes and the French government is still refraining from accepting the Algerian genocide! Until recently they didn't even accept it to be an Independence War and preferred to call it "terrorist upraising", rather than what it really was: a colonial force refusing the freedom of the indigenous people, attempting to eradicate their culture, religion and identity and murdering and torturing and raping more than a quarter of the people and burning down entire forests and villages. And yet, they have the audacity to imprison anyone who is an "Armenian genocide-denier".
    My great grandfather and all his male relatives were among "the braves that were killed like sacrifice". My mother was born in the midst of the hottest time of the Independence War and my grandfather escaped death in the hands of the French, 3 times. May God bless their brave souls and may God's justice prevail against the oppressors who still refuse the freedom of Africans! Ameen!

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