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Un ange dòu cèu es vengu  
(An angel from heaven came)
Lyrics by Nicolas Saboly, known as Micoulau Sabòli. Traditional from Provence.
Tune dei boudougno.
Christmas carol published post-mortem Nicolas Saboly. It appears with number 66 in the Fr. Seguin’s new edition.
| 1st verse |
Un ange dòu cèu es vengu (twice)
Que nous a toutes esmougu. (twice)
Dessus nòstei mountagno,
A di qu’anue dins Betelèn
Un Diéu es na dessus lou fen,
Dins la raso campagno.
Me siéu d’abord mes en camin,
En jougant de moun tambourin,
E pan! pan! pan!
Patatin! patatan!
Sènso cregne l’eigagno. | | An angel from heaven came (twice)
Who stirred all of us. (twice)
On our mountain,
He said we have to go to Bethlehem
A God was born on hay,
In open country.
I first set out,
Playing my [galoubet-]tambourin,
And bang! bang! bang!
And so on! and so forth!
Not afraid by morning dew. |
2nd verse |
Veici veni lou gros serpènt (twice)
Vers l’estable de Betelèn (twice)
Pèr troubla nosto fèsto;
Pastre, descendès eiçavau,
Dounen sus aquest animau,
Jouguen-li de soun rèsto;
Aro es lou tèms, o jamai noun,
Que li fau douna d’un bastoun,
E zòu! zòu! zòu!
Patati! patatòu!
Esclapen-li la tèsto! | | Here is coming the big snake (twice)
Toward the cowshed of Bethlehem (twice)
To disturb our feast;
Shepherds, come down here,
Strike this animal,
Play it without it murmurs;
Now it’s time, oh never no,
We have to give it stick,
And shoo! shoo! shoo!
And so on! and so forth!
Let us split it head open! |
3rd verse |
Eiçô’s aquéu vilèn Satan (twice)
Qu’embrenè la raço d’Adam (twice)
De la plus fino rougno;
Soun venin èro tan marrit
Que nous avié toutei pourri,
A nosto grand vergougno;
Pièisque nous a tan mautrata
A noste tour lou fau grata.
E zòu! zòu! zòu!
Patati! patatòu!
Fen-li milo boudougno. | | Here is the ugly Satan (twice)
That he was sullying Adam’s race (twice)
With the finest rage;
His venom was so bad
That we all had rotted,
To our great shame;
As he has so manhandled us
In turn, we have to scrape him.
And shoo! shoo! shoo!
And so on! and so forth!
Let us make him thousand bumps (1). |
4th verse |
Despièi mai de quatre milo an (twice)
Es altera de noste sang, (twice)
E chasque jour s’en lipo.
A tan empli soun casaquin
De car, de graisso e de sahin,
Que la panso li estripo!
Sarié pecat de l’espargna,
Eu que nous a tan sagagna.
E zòu! zòu! zòu!
Patati! patatòu!
Derraben-li lei tripo. | | Since more than four thousand years (twice)
He was quenching his thirst with our blood, (twice)
And every day he licks his lips.
He so has filled his chest (2)
With flesh, fat and lard,
That his paunch rips open!
It would be a sin to spare him,
We that he so has hustled (3).
And shoo! shoo! shoo!
And so on! and so forth!
Let us pull out his guts. |
5th verse |
Emé l’ajudo dòu bon Diéu, (twice)
Lou fau escourtega tout viéu, (twice)
Coume uno anguielo fino,
E pièi chapoutaren sa chair,
Plus menu que de caulet verd
Que donon ei galino.
Pastres, aco’s trop counsulta,
Faudrié que fusse sagata,
E zòu! zòu! zòu!
Patati! patatòu!
Espeien-li l’esquino. | | With God’s help, (twice)
We have to skin him alive, (twice)
As a thin eel,
Then we will mince his flesh,
Tinier than green cabbage
We give to hens.
Shepherds, this is to much consult,
We would have to cut his throat,
And shoo! shoo! shoo!
And so on! and so forth!
Let us skin his backbone. |
6th verse |
De sa pèu faren un garrot, (twice)
Pièi la pendoularen au cro (twice)
De quauque bouticaire.
Toutei lei gènt que passaran
Diran: “Vequi lou gros Satan,
Aquéu vilèn manjaire,
Que pèr avé trop rousiga,
Lei pastre l’an escourtega.”
E zòu! zòu! zòu!
Patati! patatòu!
Garden-nous de mau faire. | | With his skin we will make a shop sign (4), (twice)
Then we will hang it at the hook (twice)
Of some apothecary.
All people passing
Will say: “Here is the fat Satan,
This ugly greedy pig,
Because he too much nibbled,
Shepherds have skinned him.”
And shoo! shoo! shoo!
And so on! and so forth!
Let us beware to bad doing. |
1. Boudougno: bump, cuff, lump, bruise, contusion, tumour.
2. Casaquin: chest, camisole, woman’s loose blouse, short-sleeved shirt/blouse. Here, means “the belly”, “the paunch”.
3. Sagagna: to break, to destroy, to hustle, to pull, to shake, to smash, to tear, to tug.
4. Garrot: shin of pork or mutton chunk, used as shop sign for butchers and pork butchers.
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