From Ehstnische Volkslieder by Heinrich Neus (1850)

These five songs are drawn from the first volume of Heinrich Neus's Ehstnische Volkslieder (Estonian Folk Songs), published in Reval (Tallinn) between 1850 and 1852. Neus (1795–1876), a Baltic German scholar and folklorist, collected over 1,300 songs from oral tradition across Estonia — from the parishes of Pleskau (Pskov) in the east to Saaremaa in the west — and published them with parallel German translations. The collection is the earliest comprehensive record of Estonian folk poetry and preserves fragments of a pre-Christian cosmology that was already fading from living memory.

The songs selected here represent the sacred and mythological core of the collection: a creation myth in which the world forms from a cosmic egg on Kalev's cliff; a ballad of a maiden who slays the giant's son with a hidden knife; the Wonder-Oak whose felling yields the cosmos; an actual pagan sacrificial liturgy addressed to the war-god Turris with offerings on Ukko's stone; and a brief, haunting song about a game that opens the doors of the dead. Together they constitute the oldest recorded witnesses to Estonian sacred thought outside the national epic.

This is a Good Works Translation from the nineteenth-century Estonian source text. Neus's German translation was consulted as interpretive reference. No complete English translation of these songs has previously existed.

The Egg of the Kalev-Children

Neus No. 1 — "Das Ei der Kallewingen." A creation fragment. The cosmic egg on Kalev's cliff splits in the sea and becomes the world. From Neus's scholarly introduction: "The creations from an egg recall the traditions of deepest antiquity, and more closely the nonetheless divergent conceptions of the ancient Finns." Compare Kalevala, Canto 1.

Nesting in Saaremaa's shelter,
In the midst of Kalev's cliff,
The northern eagle, the dire bird —
Three were the eggs in the nest:
Two were the eagle-wife's eggs,
The third was Kalev's wife's —
The egg of the Kalev-children!

The eagles flew to Finland,
From Finland on to Germany.

I crept softly to the nest,
Took the egg of the Kalev-children,
Bore it carefully to shore,
Lifted it gently to the boat,
Hurried homeward in the craft,
Sailed to the master's ferry.

The egg sank to the sea's floor,
Split apart upon the rocks.

From one shell came a warship,
From the other a merchant vessel,
From the shell-shards, freight boats.

The brooded egg, transforming,
Set the sun to swelling,
The moon's glow to growing.

From the yolk rose High-island,
From the egg-white, Daughter-island,
From the kernel, all other islands.

Death of Kalev's Son

Neus No. 2 — "Sallewisohnes Tod." A maiden goes out to bind brooms on Holepi's hill, carrying hidden iron. When Kalev's son demands what she will not give, she strikes him through the heart. Her parents bless her for it. From Pleskau. The regilaul parallelism is at its fullest here — the entire encounter is told twice, once as action, once as speech.

I went out to bind my brooms,
Golden brooms from juniper twigs,
Precious silver ones from aspen,
From the leaves of sturdy oaks.
I took the knife in hand,
A ringing iron beneath my arm,
A sharp iron at my breast.
I came then to Holepi's hill.

Toward me came Sullev's son,
Sullev's, Kalev's son.
He demanded boldly of me a kiss,
Boldly a kiss, roughly my hand.
I gave him not a feather of a kiss,
Nor turned my head beneath the wreath.
I had the knife in my hand,
A ringing iron beneath my arm,
A sharp iron at my breast.
Boldly I struck Sullev's son,
Roughly I struck Kalev's son,
Struck him cleanly through the heart;
Below I pierced the liver,
Above I wound through the lung.

Weeping I returned home,
Crying down into the yard.
My mother asked me,
My father asked me:
"Why do you weep, poor daughter?"
I answered them at once:
"Why do I weep, dear mother?
I went out to bind my brooms,
Golden brooms from juniper twigs,
Precious silver ones from aspen,
From the leaves of sturdy oaks.
I took the knife in hand,
A ringing iron beneath my arm,
A sharp iron at my breast.
I came then to Holepi's hill.
Toward me came Sullev's son,
Sullev's, Kalev's son.
He demanded boldly of me a kiss,
Boldly a kiss, roughly my hand.
I gave him not a feather of a kiss,
Nor turned my head beneath the wreath.
I had the knife in my hand,
A ringing iron beneath my arm,
A sharp iron at my breast.
Boldly I struck Sullev's son,
Roughly I struck Kalev's son,
Struck him cleanly through the heart;
Below I pierced the liver,
Above I wound through the lung."

My mother gave me many thanks,
My father gave me many thanks:
"Be blessed, dear daughter,
That you slew the great hound,
Destroyed the very tyrant!
You brought no shame upon friendship,
Nor dishonor upon your father,
Nor blood-anger to your brother,
Nor wicked tricks to your sister-in-law,
Nor great reproach to your sister,
Nor false curses to your godfather!
You were warden of your father's honor,
You watched over your brother's treasures,
The deep bonds of friendship,
The dear sister's precious things.
The father shall see joy,
The mother shall see joy,
The brother shall receive gladness,
The sister golden blessing!"

The Wonder-Oak

Neus No. 10 — "Die Wundereiche," Estonian: Tamme laul (Song of the Oak). A World Tree myth. An oak grows from sweeping the sea, rises to pierce heaven, and when felled yields the entire sacred cosmos — casks, cradles, tables, and a bathhouse with the moon for a door, the sun playing above, and the stars dancing within. From Pleskau. Neus notes: "It is historically certain that the heathen Estonians venerated sacred trees." Compare Kalevala, Cantos 2, 10, and 47.

Let us go and sweep the sea,
Dust the edges of its shores;
Let us sweep the sweepings seaward,
Strew the shavings to the waves!

What is rising from the sweepings,
What from the golden strewings?

An oak is rising from the sweepings,
A pine from the golden strewings.

I go to look upon the oak.
The oak would rise to heaven,
Its branches press into the clouds;
The oak would split the sky asunder,
Its limbs would scatter all the clouds.

I go to plead with brother:
"My dear, my own dear brother,
Sharpen the axe, hone the sword;
Come to fell the mighty oak,
To shorten the tall tree;
The oak would rise to heaven,
Its branches press into the clouds,
The oak would split the sky asunder,
Its limbs would scatter all the clouds."

From the stump come great casks,
From the crown come ale-barrels,
From the trunk come children's cradles,
From the heartwood a dining table,
From the core the cantor's lectern.
What was left over from the tables
Became my brother's bathhouse.

The moon was the door before it,
The sun stood playing above it,
The stars danced within it.
Heaven danced, the earth thundered!
The stars beat out ornaments,
The moon struck golden rings.

At this marveled Narva's lords,
Wondered Wierland's masters:
"What could this possibly be?
Perhaps the town of Leal,
Or is it Keidel's church?
Or wretched Wesenberg?
It is smaller than a town,
Poorer even than Wesenberg —
No ribbon-ships come sailing there,
No tobacco vessels arrive,
No Kalev-ships come to anchor!"

I heard and gave them answer:
"It is my brother's bathhouse;
What more is there to guess?"

Sacrificial Song at the Turris Festival

Neus No. 16 — "Opferlied am Turrisfeste." A fragment of actual pre-Christian Estonian liturgy. A horned buck is sacrificed to Turris, the war-god (cognate with Finnish Tursas), with prayers for safe voyages and offerings of entrails placed on Ukko's stone. The song concludes by binding the memory of ancient times to the sacrificial animal's horn. From the Pleskau Estonians, recorded by Kreutzwald. Neus notes: "The Pleskau Estonians still call his autumn festival Turris-Tikko puhandus, the body-consecration of Turris."

To Turris, a spear-offering,
A spear-offering, an axe-shield,
A lance-shaft's blessing,
A sword's bride-price.
We slaughter the horned buck,
We beseech by the hooves' lord.
Oho, oho! thou horned one,
Son of summer's currant-berry!

Take the hoof as oath of betrothal,
The shin-bone's sinew as fastening,
A morsel of the forelegs as pledge.
When I go to cross the sea,
To plow behind the shoals,
To steer along the high shore,
To catch the enclosed treasure,
To court a wife with riches:
Then let the plow's yield match the bounty,
The furrow fill a span's height!
Entrails upon Ukko's stone —
This year's thanksgiving,
For the weather, mild and sweet!
Ukko's blessing on the merchant,
Upon the one returning from afar!

May the east winds come gently,
The west winds fall kindly,
The waves of the deep roll tenderly,
The sails' cloth billow,
The prow's burden lighten!

On the horn of the Turris-buck
I knot the message of remembrance,
I wind the sweepings of the holy day,
The wonders of the ancient time.
Turris-eye, Turris-ear —
Hearer of the proclaimer!

The Grave Visit

Neus No. 17 — "Der Grabbesuch." A game of tossing the kurn (a wooden playing piece) sends it tumbling into the churchyard, where the grave doors of the ancestors open. The singer descends and lingers, staring, pondering, dreaming. From Pleskau.

Village lads, dear brothers,
Let us climb the hill to play,
To the paddock, toss the kurn.
Where then did the kurn fall?
The kurn fell into the churchyard:
Then the grave doors opened wide,
Grave doors, heathen lids!
Who went to find the kurn?

I went to find the kurn:
I found my mother's grave door,
I found my father's grave door,
I stepped inside to look:
I lingered there an hour, staring,
A span of time in pondering,
A while, as if in dreaming.

Colophon

These five songs were translated from the nineteenth-century Estonian source text published in Heinrich Neus, Ehstnische Volkslieder. Urschrift und Uebersetzung (Reval: Kluge und Strohm, 1850), digitized by Google Books and freely available at the Internet Archive (identifier: ehstnischevolks00neusgoog). Neus's parallel German translation was consulted as interpretive reference for ambiguous passages; the English is independently derived from the Estonian.

The songs represent the mythological and ritual core of the first great collection of Estonian folk poetry. Song 1 is the Estonian creation myth, paralleling but diverging from the Kalevala's cosmic egg. Song 2 is a heroic ballad unique in European folk tradition — the maiden who slays the giant's son, blessed by her parents. Song 10 is a World Tree myth of extraordinary beauty. Song 16 is possibly the only surviving Estonian pagan sacrificial liturgy. Song 17 opens the doors of the dead with a child's game.

No complete English translation of these songs has previously existed.

Translated from the Estonian for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026. Neus's German translation consulted for reference.

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Source Text: Ehstnische Volkslieder (Neus, 1850)

Estonian source text from H. Neus, Ehstnische Volkslieder. Urschrift und Uebersetzung (Reval: Kluge und Strohm, 1850). OCR digitization from Google Books / Internet Archive. Orthography reflects the 1850 Reval dialect standard. Presented here for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above.

1. Kallewiste muna (Das Ei der Kallewingen)

Pesitas Sare-ma paddajas,
Kallewi kaljo keskeella,
Pohja kotkas, kurja lindo,
Kolm olli muna pesas:
Kaks olli kotka naise muna,
Kolmas Kallewi kabbeda,
Kallewiste muna!

Kotkad lendsid Some-male,
Some-maalta Saksa-male.

Mia lallaja pesale,
Wotlin Kallewiste muna,
Kandlin katteril kaldale,
Weritin wehmeril weitele,
Totsin nadi koddoje,
Purjetes perreme parwele.

Sattus muna merre pohja,
Loppatas aga kandelikko.

Saai uhest korest soda-laiwa,
Teisest korest kauba-laiwa,
Kore kildest killa-padid.

Ahaudud muna moondelikko
Pani paiwa paisomaie,
Kuu kuma kosumaie.

Tousis rebbuli Korge-sare,
Muna walgelt Tuttar-sare,
Muna tumelt teised sared.

2. Kallewi-poja surm (Sallewisohnes Tod)

Laksin ludada teggema,
Kulda luda kulikkusta,
Hobbe arwa awikusta,
Targa tamme lehtedesta.
Wotlin pireed pihhoje,
Elle rauad alla holma,
Karre rauad kaendelaie.
Sain siis Holepi maele.

Tulli wasta Sullewi poega,
Sullewi, Kallewi poega,
Kussis multa suisa suda,
Suisa suda, kiusta katta.
Minna sulg ei annud suda,
Egga parg ei poornud peada.
Mul ollid pireed pihhula,
Elle rauad alla holma,
Karre rauad kaendelaala.
Suisa loin Sullewi poega,
Kiusta loin Kallewe poega,
Loin kohhe labbi suddame;
Alta maksade aialin,
Pealta kopso keritalin.

Isle nuttedes koioje,
Alludelles alla oue.
Kasitelles eidekenne,
Kusitelles tadikenne:
"Mis sa nuttad, tuttar waene?"
Minna warsti kostin wasta:
"Mis minna nuttan, eidekenne?
Laksin ludada teggema,
Kulda luda kulikkusta,
Hobbe arwa awikusta,
Targa tamme lehtedesta.
Wotlin pireed pihhoje,
Elle rauad alla holma,
Karre rauad kaendelaie.
Sain siis Holepi maele.
Tulli wasta Sullewi poega,
Sullewi, Kallewi poega,
Kussis multa suisa suda,
Suisa suda, kiusta katta.
Minna sulg ei annud suda,
Egga parg ei poornud peada.
Mul ollid pireed pihhula,
Elle rauad alla holma,
Karre rauad kaendelaala.
Suisa loin Sullewi poega,
Kiusta loin Kallewe poega,
Loin kohhe labbi suddame;
Alta maksade aialin,
Pealta kopso keritalin."
Tannadelles eidekenne,
Tannadelles tadikenne:
"Olle terwe, tuttar waene,
Et sa surmid sure koera,
Hukkasid iggi herrikse!
Sa'ap teinud loole soimo,
Isale iggi habbida,
Wennale werri wihhada,
Kallile karra kawwalad,
Soslaralle soimo suurta,
Wadderille ei wannet laial.
Sa ootid isla olluta,
Woahtelid wenna linnakida,
Soo sure sukkelida,
Oe kalli kappokaida.
Isa peab illo naggema,
Emma peab illo naggema,
Wend peab saama romustusta,
Ode heada onnistusta!"

10. Tamme laul (Die Wundereiche)

Lahme merda puhkimaie,
Merre aarta aigamaie;
Puhkime puhkeed merreje,
Aigame laastud laenete!

Mis sealt touseb puhketesta,
Kumb sealt kulla aigatusta?

Tam sealt touseb puhketesta,
Kuuske kulla aigatusta.

Minna tamme watemaie.
Tam tahhab tousta taewaaje,
Oksad pilweje puggeda;
Tam tahhab taewasta jaggada,
Oklad pilwed pillutada.

Minna wenna palweelle:
"Minno ella wennakenne,
Ihhu kirwes, haali mooka;
Tulle tamme raiumaie,
Puud pitka luhhendamaie;
Tam tahhab tousta taewaaje,
Oksad pilweje puggeda,
Tam tahhab taewasta jaggada,
Oklad pilwed pillutada."

Tuwwikult saab tunderida,
Otsalt olle polikuida,
Ladwalt laste katkieida,
Suddamelt saab sooma lauda,
Kosteri loetis-lauda.
Mis jai lauasta jarrele,
Sest sai minno wenna sauna.

Kuu olli ukseks eesta,
Paaw olli peala mangimasla,
Tahhed seesta tantsimasla.
Taewas tantsis, maa murrises!
Tahhed loiwad terringida,
Kuu loi kulda rongaaida.

Sedda naerid Narwa saklad,
Immestid Wirro isandad:
"Mis peaks see ollema?
Onnakse Lihhola linn.
Woi on Keidela kirriko?
Woi on raibe Rakkewerre?
Seep wors lianasta allambi,
Rakkewerrelt raipembi,
Etei ligu lindi laewa,
Ei tulle tuhhaka laewa,
Ei kalla kallewi laewa!"

Minna kulin, kostsin wasta:
"Seon minno wenna sauna;
Mis te muido moistatate?"

16. Ohwri-laul Turrise-puhhal (Opferlied am Turrisfeste)

Turriselle tura andeks,
Tura andeks, kirwe kilbaks,
Ahtawarre elbatilleks,
Moogula mooga morsiamaks.
Tappame sikko sarwilise,
Ahmame sorgala kusinga.
Oho, oho! sarwilista,
Sommer-se sostra poiga!

Wotta sorga solme kihluks,
Kintso soonta kinnituseks,
Saplo tukki lalla-pandiks.
Kui laan merda murdemaie,
Tagga laarta sahkamaie,
Korge randa kolkimaie,
Tabbar-annet tabbamaie,
Naudile naista kossimaie:
La siis saki lahha worra
Wakku taita wakla korgu!
Silsikonnad Ukko kiuru
Tatawole tato andeks
Imukesele illula!
Ukku Onnistult mitsale,
Woersuft tagal' tullijale!

Kare tuled kallinaste,
Laande langud lahhedaste,
Weile pohja weretajad,
Purje ride pailotajad,
Kolpa koorma kergitajad!

Turris-sikko sarwe otsa
Solmilin muistele sonumi,
Pususin puhha-se puhkemed,
Enne-muisteled murikud.
Turris-silma, Turris-korwa
Kulutaja kulejalle!

17. Hauakaik (Der Grabbesuch)

Kulla poilid, ellad wennad,
Lahme maele mangimaie,
Kopli kurni wiskamaie.
Kus se kurn siis kukkunes?
Kurn siis kukkus kirriko aeda:
Siis laksid lahti haua ukled,
Haua ukled, kalmo kaned!
Kes laks kurni otsimaie?

Minna laksin kurni otsimaie:
Leitsin eide haua ukle,
Leitsin tadi haua ukse,
Laksin sisse silmitlema:
Jain siis tunniks tukkastama,
Monneks aiaks mottelema,
Natiokeks norgutlema.

Source Colophon

The Estonian source text is reproduced from the OCR digitization of H. Neus, Ehstnische Volkslieder. Urschrift und Uebersetzung (Reval: Kluge und Strohm, 1850), scanned by Google Books and hosted at the Internet Archive (identifier: ehstnischevolks00neusgoog; CC Public Domain Mark 1.0). The orthography has been regularized from the Fraktur-era OCR to remove digitization artifacts while preserving the 1850 Reval dialect spelling. Diacritical marks present in the original print (e.g., o-tilde, a-umlaut) have been simplified to their base forms due to OCR limitations; scholars should consult the original scan for precise orthography.

No English translation of these songs existed prior to this publication. The German translations provided by Neus in the parallel text were consulted as interpretive reference but the English is independently derived from the Estonian.

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