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Innou Seguran  
(Anthem for the Seguran) (1)
Nissart lyrics by Alexandre Menu, music by Carlo Germano. Traditional from County of Nice.
Dedication “À monsieur Louis Artiny, conseiller municipal de Nice”. Édition Paul Decourcelle, Nice, 1913.
The bugadiera (laundress) Catherine Segurane, an heroine of the siege to the city of Nice in 1543, and some other celebrities appear in this nostalgic “place of memory”. See also Ma qu era Catarina Segurana?
Illustration published in La Ratapignata (The Bat) of Novembre, 15th 1934.
Commemorative plate set by the Coumitat dei tradissioun nissardi (Committee of the traditions from Nice) on November, 25th 1923 in the Babazouk. | | 1st verse |
Terra doun l’eroisme poussa,
Brès de Massena e de Pepin,
Tu qu’as vist fuge Barbaroussa
Davan la massa de Catin,
O Nissa, la tan bèn noumada,
Filhola dei fier Phoucean,
Escout’ ancuei dei tiéu enfan
Toui lu laut e li allegri chamada. | | Land where grows heroism,
Birthplace of Masséna (2) and Joseph (3),
You that saw Barberousse (4) to run away
In front of the hammer (5) of Catherine,
O! Nice, the so well named (6),
Goddaughter of the proud Phocaeans,
Listen today from your children
All the praises and the merry dawn serenades. |
Chorus |
Flou dòu païs ligour,
Nissa, lou nouostr’ amour,
Ti saludan
E ti cantan :
« Viva lu Seguran ! » (twice) | | Flower from the Ligurian country,
Nice, our love,
We salute you
And sing you:
“Long live the Séguran (1)!” (twice) |
2nd verse |
Que d’armada ai tiéu bort campèron (7),
Dai Rouman au Corsou toundut ;
Que de fès lu nemic bramèron :
« Sauva ! que Paioun es vengut ! »
Tala una liouna rabiousa
Scarta la manega de can.
Malur ! qu’un ti toquesse au flanc,
Piousella, dòu tiéu cors jiloua ! | | What a lot of armies camped on your edge,
From the Romans to the close-cropped
Corsican (8);
Many times the enemies shouted:
“Save [yourselves ]! Paillon has come!”
Like a furious lioness
She (9) push aside the pack (10) of dogs.
Hell! Just one’d better not start touch your side!
Maiden, from your body jealous! |
3rd verse |
Au pouort de Limpia s’estremavon
Tartana, galèra e batèu,
Bei alcyon que s’assoustavon
Souta l’ala dòu tiéu castèu !
E lou fier escrivèu coursari,
D’en mar descurben[t] lou dounjoun,
Su lou còu, viran[t] lou timoun,
S’alountanava dai tiéu barri. | | In the Lympia Harbour shut themselves up in a
safe place
Tartans, galleys and boats,
Beautiful halcyons which supported each other
Under the wing of your castle!
And the proud corsair kestrel,
From the sea discovering the donjon,
Outright, turning the rudder,
Spread itself along your outer walls. |
4th verse |
Que de França o que de Savoia
Fousses (11) en la vassalità,
Aujaves, en corou de joia,
Cantà la santa libertà !
Soubre la tourre floutejava,
Couma un bèu lys [e]spouscat de sanc,
La bandièra de satin blanc
M’au siéu aigla que flambejava ! | | From France or from Savoy
Would you be in the vassalage,
You were daring, in a choir of joy,
To sing the holy liberty!
On the tower was flying,
As a beautiful lily spattered with blood,
The banner of white satin
With its flaming eagle! |
5th verse |
Mai proun rediren la tiéu gloria,
Nobla Nicæa civitas !
Tu que, en filla de la vitoria,
De trofèu n’as counquist de tas.
Su d’una coucha triounfala
Facha de drapèu estrangié,
Pantaies dei jou de dangié,
Negada en l’or que dòu ciel cala ! | | We shall never enough say again your glory,
Noble Nicæa civitas (12)!
You who, as a daughter from the victory,
Conquered lots of trophies.
[Lying] on a triumphant bed
Made of foreign flag,
You are dreaming about the days of danger,
Drowned in the gold falling from sky! |
6th verse |
En lou marmou – perla nissardi –
Fisses de noum que n’en soun car :
Cassini, Rancher, Leotardi,
Risso, Papacin – sciensa e art.
Roussi abilha de la tiéu rusca
T’acampavon de touti flou
Sigue lou pastel de Van Loo
O lou vert abaguié de Rusca ! | | In the marble – pearls from Nice –
You fix our loved names firmly:
Cassini (13), Rancher, Léotardi (14),
Risso (15), Papascendi (16) – sciences and art.
Ginger bees from your hive
Were carrying you from the whole flowers
Either the pastel of Van Loo (17)
Or the green laurel of Rusca (18)! |
7th verse |
Luse en lou tem l’obra acabada ;
Pauve-ti, maire, en longa pas ;
Capite un jou la mauparada
E Nissart, bravan lou trapas,
Eretié dòu passat sublime
Que t’a mès la paumoula au front,
Per ti gardà dòu mendre affront
Seren pront à l’esfouors ultime ! | | Gleam in the time the achieved work;
Rest, mother, in a long peace;
Would happen a day the waste (19)
And the Nice inhabitants, braving death,
Heirs to the sublime past
Which has put palm to your forehead,
To protect you from the slightest affront
Will be ready to the ultimate effort. |
1. Nice inhabitants are sometimes assimilated to Catherine Ségurane’s children.
2. André Masséna (Nice, 1758 - Paris, 1817), Duke of Rivoli, Prince of Essling, Marshal of France. His nickname, the “darling of the victory”, was given him by Napoleon the Ist.
3. Giuseppe Garibaldi, known as Pepin (Nice, 4 juillet 1807 - Caprera, 2 juin 1882).
4. Khizir Khayr al-Dîn, known as Barberousse.
5. The beetle or battledore (washerwoman hammer): Catherine Ségurane worked as a bugadiera (laundress).
6. Although the place was occupied since the Palaeolithic (Paleolithic) – Terra Amata, about -400 000 years – by Homo erectus, history considers that Nice was found on 4th century BC by Massaliotes, the Phocaean settled in Massilia (Marseilles), under the name of Nikaia (“the victory”, or more exactly “the one by whom victory comes”).
7. Campejà (to camp) is more frequent.
8. Napoléon Ier.
9. Catherine Ségurane.
10. Manega, pack or bunch of...
11. Fouguèsses is the complete form in the imperfect tense of the subjunctive mood!
12. Nicæa civitas fidelissima, motto of City of Nice, “The very faithful (to the House of Savoy) city of the victory”, reduced to Nicæa civitas in 1860, at the time of the second annexion of County of Nice into France.
13. Family of French scientists, with Italian roots. Giovanni Domenico Cassini (Perinaldo, 8 juin 1625 - Paris, 14 septembre 1712), known as Cassini I, is the founding father of the dynasty and the creator of the French astronomy.
14. It would appear to be:
- whether Jean Léotardi, born in Nice. He wrote a poem in several cantos, La Niceade, written in Italian and printed in Chambéry on 1530;
- or the baron Honoré de Sainte-Agnès Léotardi, born in Nice, died on 17 février 1660. Author of numerous poems written in Italian and Latin.
15. Joseph-Antoine Risso, known as Antoine Risso (1777-1845).
16. François-Antoine Papascendi (Sospel, 19 avril 1656 - ?).
17. Family of French painters, with Dutch roots (17th-19th cent.). Here, it could be César Van Loo (Paris, 1743 - Paris, 1821).
18. Jean-Baptiste Rusca (La Brigue, 1759 - Soissons, 1814).
19. Mauparada, waste, confusion, the worse turn of events.
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© 2001-2025 Jean-Gabriel Maurandi.
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