Saturday 2 September 2017

Heartache, heartache, heartache… happiness? Nope, helplessness.

Today I bring you a Min song I met in my second year of studying Chinese. A very sad song, to top off this series of heartache songs… oh wait. Next post is basically even sadder :). Anyway, the translation dates to 29/8/2017 evening. The "just" in the last line of the English was originally not there. Here we go then!
给看得懂中文的人的注意 (note to those who read Chinese):也有这张网页解释这首歌,帮忙了我明白。

三声无奈

一时贪着阿君仔1漂亮
痴情目睭眼睛假微微2
为君仔1假爱来
害阮3目屎眼泪四喃垂涕泗横流
二更4过了月斜西
想阮3怎么生命这么不好
花开啊专望期望阿君仔1
无疑不料侥心变心不应该

在窗边啊
攑头举头看天星
哎哟心酸悲
害阮3每日
为伊目屎眼泪
哎哟啊喂
心肝我苦啊
哎哟心肝
哎哟我苦啊喂

三声无奈哭悲哀
月娘月亮是否知阮2心内
失恋伤心流目屎眼泪
好花变成相思植物

Sann siann bô-nāi

Tsi̍t-sî tham-tio̍h a-kun-á suí
Tshi-tsîng ba̍k-tsiu ké bui-bui
Uī kun-á ké-ài lâi tsia̍h-khui
Hāi gún ba̍k-sái sì-làm-suî
Lī kinn kuè-liáu gue̍h tshiâ sai
Siūnn gún ná ē miā tsiah pháinn
Hue khui--ah tsuan-bāng a-kun-á tshái
Bô-gî hiau-sim put ing-kai

Tiàm tsāi thang pinn--ah
Gia̍h-thâu khuànn thinn tshinn
Ai-iō sim-sng-pi
Hāi gún muí-li̍t
Uī i ba̍k-sái tih-sī
Ai-iō-ah-uê
Sim-kuann guá khóo--ah
Ai-iō sim-kuann
Ai-iō guá khóo--ah-uê

Sann siann bô-nāi khàu pi-ai
Gue̍h-niû kám tsai gún sim lāi
Sit-luân siong-sim lâu ba̍k-sái
Hó hue piàn-sîng siunn-si tsai


1 「阿君仔」指歌手的爱人。「阿X仔」闽南语中用来创造亲爱的称谓。
2 「假微微」指示「因为痴迷就眼不全开而看不到爱人的真面目」。
3 闽语的人称代词 闽语有七个人称代替:「我 | guá」,就是「我」;「你 | lí」,就是「你」;「伊 | i」,就是「他、她、它」;「阮 | guán / gún」,意思是「我们、不包括你」;「咱」,就是「咱们」,意思是「我们、也包括你」;「恁 | lín」,就是「你们」;「亻因 | in」,就是「他们」。在歌曲里常常只有一个我和一个你而没有别人,所以「阮」常常跟「我」一样、「咱」常常跟「你我」一样。
4 古代将一夜分为五更,没更约二小时。



Completely helpless

One moment craving, you’re handsome1, oh!
I didn’t know you, love made me blind.
Thanks to your false love I have grieved,
You made me cry my eyes out.

It’s near midnight, the moon’s going down,
I think of why my life’s so bad.
I’m blooming now, please come pluck me!
You should not have changed your mind!

By the window I sit,
I look up to the stars,
My whole heart’s grieving, ah!
For him every day
My tears keep falling,
Ay, goodness me!
Darling, I grieve, oh,
My only love,
Ay me, how much I grieve!

Completely helpless in sadness I cry,
Does the moon know what I feel?
I have lost my love, I cry on,
Once a blossom, just pining now.

1 This is referred to your significant other (or hypothetical s.o. anyway), so change "handsome" to "beautiful" depending on their gender.

3 comments:

  1. Nice translation! BTW, 阿君仔 (a-kun-á) should be one word. It's in that 阿X仔 construction, used in endearing appellations.

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    Replies
    1. I see. Is there an analogous construction in Mandarin (for the interline glosses)?

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    2. Fixed the transliteration and update the explanatory note. Did I explain the construction well in Chinese?

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