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Maria Caté  
(Mary Caté)
Traditional Christmas carol from County of Nice.
| 1st verse |
— Maria Caté, leve-ti lèu,
Vai mouse lou tiéu average.
Veses que lou temp si fa bèu
E pi n’en faren de froumage ;
Iéu pouorterai lou miéu bidoun
E tu pouorteras la lanterna.
Cau calà davau au valoun (twice)
Per lou camin de la Giberna. (twice) | | — Mary Caté, stand up, quickly,
Go and milk your flock.
You will see the weather going fine
And then we will make cheese;
I’ll carry my milk-churn
And you will carry the lantern.
We have to go down below in the small valley (twice)
By the lane of the “Cartridge pouch”. (twice) |
2nd verse |
— Ma, per plesì, regarj’ un pau
Que de mounde li a en li plana !
Que de lume, que de fanau,
Sembla quasi de caravana.
Iéu li vesi tant de caméu
Toui encargat de merchandisa.
— A, vai, fouola ! qu’acò es d’agnèu ! (twice)
Ti farìas dire de sotisa. (twice) | | — But, please, just look
How many people there is in the plains!
What a lot of lights, what a lot of lanterns,
It seems almost caravans.
I see so many camels
All of them loaded with goods.
— Ah! You, stupid! It’s lambs! (twice)
You should do to say silly things. (twice) |
3rd verse |
— Pisc’ acò se ne va ensin,
Anan manjà doui, tre salada.
Si còu remplì ben lou couffin
Per anà veire l’acouchada.
Si còu pas mètre per camin
Embé lou ventre à l’espagnola !
Si còu bèure un fiasco de vin, (twice)
Manjà acò de la casserola. (twice) | | — Since it isn’t going this way,
Let’s go and eat two, three salads.
It’s necessary to well fill the “straw basket (1)”
To go and see the new mother.
We have not to set out
With stomach “Spanish-style”!
We have to drink a wine flask (2), (twice)
To eat [what is in] the saucepan. (twice) |
4th verse |
— Laissa-mi entrà iéu lou prumié
Que n’ai pau mai de poulitessa,
E tu, noun staire en darrié,
Noun faire la maire abadessa.
Vautri, frema, lou diéu ben,
N’avès un pau tròu de charra.
Que n’en dirìon aqueli gent (twice)
S’anessias faire la zinzara ? (twice) | | — Let me come in first
As I have a bit more politeness,
And you, don’t stay behind,
Making Mother abbess.
All of you, women, I well say it,
Have a bit too much the gift of the gab.
What would say these people (twice)
If you went and “do the mosquito (3)”? (twice) |
5th verse |
Lou mes de mars qu’aven passat
Es estate l’anounciada.
À Maria, l’ange a ’nounciat
Que de Diéu es la preferada
E venguet naiss’ à Betelèn
Dins un’ estable, sus la dura ;
Ma cinque li a de ben certèn, (twice)
Qu’es d’una Vierge touta pura. (twice) | | The (during) month of March we have spent
Has been [done] the Annunciation.
To Mary, the angel announced
That, of God, she is the favourite
And [he] came and be born in Bethlehem
In a cowshed, sleeping on the ground;
But what is well certain, (twice)
It is from a pure Virgin. (twice) |
1. I.e. the stomach!
2. The fiasco is a bottle with a long neck and wide belly wrapped with woven wicker (or bulrush), used particularly in Italy.
3. To make an erratic noise as does the zinzaliera, i.e. the mosquito.
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© 2001-2025 Jean-Gabriel Maurandi.
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