Värttinä – Liigua. Lyrics and translation courtesy of Lumipuna, below the fold.
Liigua
Toivoisin tasaista miestä liigua, liigua, miestä mielehistä
Kuletella komiaista, liigua liigua, komiammanlaista
Vaan en löydä lemminkäistä liigua, liigua, lemmenlohdullista
Komiaista kulkemahan liigua, liigua, viereen kulkemahan
Toivoisin tasaista miestä liigua, liigua, miestä mielehistä
Kuletella komiaista liigua, liigua, komiammanlaista
Tuomikosta tuomen, tuomen torkian
Varvikosta virven vihannomman
Vaan en löydä lemminkäistä liigua, liigua, lemmenlohdullista
Komiaista kulkemahan liigua, liigua, viereen kulkemahan
Sain suolta suovariksen, aijalta ajoharakan,
lepän pökkelön lehosta, haapakannon kankahalta
Sain suolta suovariksen, aijalta ajoharakan
lepän pökkelön lehosta, haapakannon kankahalta
Tervaskannon tien kylestä, katajaisen kuusikosta
pihkapölkyn pellon päältä, käpykämmin kiven alta
Tervaskannon tien kylestä, katajaisen kuusikosta
pihkapölkyn pellon päältä, käpykämmin kiven alta
Suostuin suolavaivasehen liigua, liigua, suolavaivasehen
Rajakenkähän rakastuin liigua, liigua, rangaton rakastuin
Suostuin suolavaivasehen liigua, liigua, suolavaivasehen
Rajakenkähän rakastuin liigua, liigua, rangaton rakastuin
En kätehen saanut kultaa kulkemaan
En kätehen saanut kulkemahan
Sain suolta suovariksen, aijalta ajoharakan,
lepän pökkelön lehosta, haapakannon kankahalta
Sain suolta suovariksen, aijalta ajoharakan,
lepän pökkelön lehosta, haapakannon kankahalta
Tervaskannon tien kylestä, katajaisen kuusikosta,
pihkapölkyn pellon päältä, käpykämmin kiven alta
Tervaskannon tien kylestä, katajaisen kuusikosta,
pihkapölkyn pellon päältä, käpykämmin kiven alta
Mitähän minäkin mietin liigua, liigua, mietin mielessäni
Ketä kurjaa toivottelin liigua, liigua, toivoin tosissani
Mitähän minäkin mietin liigua, liigua, mietin mielessäni
Ketä kurjaa toivottelin liigua, liigua, toivoin tosissani
En kätehen saanut kultaa kulkemaan
En kätehen saanut kulkemahan
I wish for a matching man, a man to my mind
To walk with a handsome one, with one who’s fairly handsome
But I can’t find a lover, no comfort of love
No handsome one to walk with me, to walk beside me
I wish for a matching man, a man to my mind
To walk with a handsome one, with one who’s fairly handsome
A fresh bough from the bird cherries
The leafiest twig from thicket
But I can’t find a lover, no comfort of love
No handsome one to walk with me, to walk beside me
I got a crow from the mire, a scare-magpie from the top of fence,
a rotten alder from among hardwoods, an aspen stump from pine heath
I got a crow from the mire, a scare-magpie from the top of fence,
a rotten alder from among hardwoods, an aspen stump from pine heath
A tarry stump from the roadside, a juniper from among spruces,
a tarry fencepost from the end of field, a pinecone from under rock
A tarry stump from the roadside, a juniper from among spruces,
a tarry fencepost from the end of field, a pinecone from under rock
I agreed to a destitute fellow, a destitute fellow
I fell in love with one of worn-out shoes, recklessly fell in love
I agreed to a destitute fellow, a destitute fellow
I fell in love with one of worn-out shoes, recklessly fell in love
I never got a sweetheart to walk hand in my hand
I never got one to walk hand in my hand
I got a crow from the mire, a scare-magpie from the top of fence,
a rotten alder from among hardwoods, an aspen stump from pine heath
I got a crow from the mire, a scare-magpie from the top of fence,
a rotten alder from among hardwoods, an aspen stump from pine heath
A tarry stump from the roadside, a juniper from among spruces,
a tarry fencepost from the end of field, a pinecone from under rock
A tarry stump from the roadside, a juniper from among spruces,
a tarry fencepost from the end of field, a pinecone from under rock
What was I even thinking, thinking in my mind
Who in the world did I wish for, honestly hoped for
What was I even thinking, thinking in my mind
Who in the world did I wish for, honestly hoped for
I never got a sweetheart to walk hand in my hand
I never got one to walk hand in my hand
What does ‘liigua’ mean? A lot of Latvian midsummer songs have the refrain ‘līgo’, which seems to be pronounced similarly (‘o’ is a ‘uo’ diphthong), and it means something like to sway (literally) but has a kind of ritual ‘bringing good luck’ meaning, I suppose.
In the email, Lumipuna noted that Liigua seems to be a nonsense filler word.
(see here)
I think it’s more traditional than senseful these days, like ‘tradiralla’, but in Latvian folk music it is definitely a seasonal one.
Thanks for the appreciation!
The lyrics are a bit too regional/archaic/metaphoric for a random native speaker like me. There’s another translation at the Värttinä fan site (link on Youtube), but it’s less literal and harder to connect with the Finnish lyrics. I did get some insight from there, like the notion that pihkapölkky (lit. “resinous log”) actually refers to a fencepost (aidantolppa).
I hadn’t ever heard the word “liigua” before, and context here doesn’t imply any meaning. From rq’s mention of “swaying” being used as a lyrical filler, it sounds faintly plausible that there’s a Baltic loan origin and similar meaning. Rather intriguingly, same etymological origin could lead to standard Finnish verb liikkua (“move”). I can’t do the research right now, though.
Indeed, the usage and pronunciation in rq’s linked video is eerily similar.
I would propose the opposite loaning -- that it’s a possible loan from the Liv language (a relative of Estonian and Finnish with less than 300 speakers remaining). The Livs were pushed out of other areas by the Letts/Latvians (who also variously subdivide), but they’ve left a lot of language influence (e.g. puika = boy). So it could be an artefact of that, since the idea of ‘sway’ has never made much sense, while a connection to ‘move’ would be more reasonable, as that implies direction, and if the word has ritualistic significance. Then again, it’s language, so who really knows! But it was interesting to hear it elsewhere.