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Lu Doui Àe  
(The Two Donkeys)
Nissart lyrics and music by Louis Genari. Traditional from County of Nice.
The French original lyrics by Georges Delrieu are not reproduced here. The text given corresponds to the literal translation from the version in Nissart.
| Chorus |
Coum’aquéu de Bertoumiéu,
Ai un àe, ai un àe,
Ma lou siéu es pas lou miéu
E lou miéu es pas lou siéu ! | | As the one of Bartholomew,
I’ve got a donkey, I’ve got a donkey,
But his own is not mine
And mine is not his own! |
1st verse |
An toutei doui meme coua,
Una e una, acò fa doua.
Vieston lou meme pel gris,
Per la divisa, tambèn li fa bis.
An parièri li auriha
Que fa quatre... à la maniha
E lu meme pichoui pèn :
Acò fa vuèch quoura si trovon ensèn ! | | Both of them have same tail,
One and one, this makes two.
They are dressed in same grey hair,
For the livery, this means equally greyish-brown.
They get similar ears
This makes four... at manille (1)
And same little feet:
This means eight when they are together! |
2nd verse |
Per puada o per valièra,
S’arnescon parié : testièra,
Cascavèu em’ au poumpoun.
Dintre l’estable, an lou meme briloun.
De vé’ lou bast, cadun suda
E de pourtà, sènsa ajuda,
Mèstre, berioun o fai,
An pòu parièra dòu meme travai. | | By uphill slope or by small valley,
They are harnessed likewise: headstall (2),
Little spherical bells with bobbles.
In the cowshed, they get same snaffle.
When seeing the packsaddle, each of them sweats
And to carry, without help,
Master, hay sheaf or bundle of firewood,
They are afraid in the same way by the same work. |
3rd verse |
Quoura un raia, l’autre raia ;
Mastegon la meme paia
E’n la marrida sesoun
Un pau de bauca ’mb’un pau de peloun.
Meme barriéu sus l’esquina,
Espantegon un’ òudou fina.
Faiòu, cougourda, raïn,
Tant li emplisson lu meme gourbin. | | When one brays, the other brays;
They chomp the same straw
And, during winter months,
A little grass with a bit of meagre fodder (3).
Same cask on the backbone,
They spread out a fine smell.
Beans, gourds, grapes,
As well fill up same baskets (4). |
4th verse |
Ma se quaucun mi demanda
De croumpà lou miéu rounsin,
Li diéu, sènsa fà de landa :
« Li a soun fraire en lou cal dòu vesin. »
Ben que vièi mé proun de vici,
Tant es brave e fà servìci
Qu’en lou perdènt, paure o ric,
Mi semblerìa que pèrdi un amic. | | But if somebody asks me
To buy my brown donkey,
I tell him, without making a fuss:
“There is its brother in the neighbour’s cottage.”
Although old with many vices,
So much it is brave and does good turns
That, losing it, poor or rich,
It could seem me I lose a friend. |
5th verse |
Aquesta cansoun v’empare
Que, bèn que noun sigue rare,
C’en qu’es vouostre a quaucarèn
De mai dòu rèsta, qu’en lou couor vous tèn.
Mouostra, fusiéu o pipeta,
Àe, sauma o fremeneta,
Lu cau saupre bèn tratà
E, soubretout, a degun lu prestà. | | This song learns you
That, though not rare,
What is yours gets something
More than the rest, that is close to your heart.
Watch, shotgun or pipe,
Donkey, beast of burden or little wife,
It’s necessary to know how to well treat them
And, above all, to nobody lend them. |
1. Maniha or manilha: hasp, lever, manille (card game), or basket-handle.
2. Testièra: headstall (part of the harness).
3. Peloun: meagre fodder, blended with pine needles and serving as bedding.
4. Gourbin: packsaddle basket.
| Bibliography | | • | Delrieu (Georges), Anthologie de la chanson niçoise (Anthology of the Song from Nice), Nice, publisher Delrieu & Co, 1960, p. 128-129. | | • | Tosan (Albert), Princivalle (Gaël) and d’Hulster (Frédéric), Anthologie de la chanson du comté de Nice (Anthology of the Song from County of Nice), Nice, Serre publisher, series “Encyclopædia niciensis – Patrimoine régional”, volume III, 2001, p. 94-95. | | • | revue Lou Sourgentin, Nice, n° 156, 2003, p. 52. |
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