 Cover of the first (and only) edition | |
| Authors | J. R. R. Tolkien,E. V. Gordon, et al. |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Privately printed in the Department of English,University College, London |
Publication date | 1936 |
Songs for the Philologists is a collection of poems byE. V. Gordon andJ. R. R. Tolkien as well as traditional songs.[1] It is the rarest and most difficult to findTolkien-related book.
The professors of languageE.V. Gordon andJ. R. R. Tolkien formed aViking Club atLeeds University in the 1920s. It read and discussedOld Icelandic texts, and less seriously invented and sang songs onpub evenings.[2][3][4] The Leeds philologistAlaric Hall stated in 2015 that the tradition still continued in the department.[5]
A collection of typescripts was compiled by Gordon in 1921–1926 for the students of the University of Leeds. In 1935 or 1936, this was given by A. H. Smith ofUniversity College London, a former student at Leeds, to a group of students to be printed privately. It was printed in 1936 with theimpressum "Printed by G. Tillotson, A. H. Smith, B. Pattison and other members of the English Department, University College, London."
Since Smith had not asked permission of either Gordon or Tolkien, the printed booklets were not distributed.[4] Most copies were destroyed in a fire started by aSecond World War bomb,[6] and only a few, perhaps around 14, survived. The book is accordingly "extremely rare", according to the University of Leeds, which has a copy.[4]
In 2014, the estate of Gordon's eldest daughter Bridget Mackenzie sold a group of manuscripts written by Tolkien and owned by Gordon, some of which are manuscript version of texts printed inSongs for the Philologists.[7][8]
Of the 30 songs in the collection, 13 were contributed by Tolkien:
1 "From One to Five", to the tune of "Three Wise Men of Gotham".
2 "Syx Mynet" (Old English: Six Pennies), to the tune of "I Love Sixpence".
3 "Ruddoc Hana" (Old English: Cock Robin), to the tune of "Who Killed Cock Robin".
4 "Ides Ælfscýne" (Old English: Elf-fair Lady), to the tune of "Daddy Neptune" byThomas John Dibdin.
5 "Bagmē Blōma" (Gothic: Flower of the Trees), to the tune of "Lazy Sheep" (byMantle Childe, after an old French air). The poem displaysTolkien's love of trees, and of language.[10]
6 "Éadig Béo þu!" (Old English: Good Luck to You), to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star".[10]
7 "Ofer Wídne Gársecg" (Old English: Across the Broad Ocean), to the tune of "The Mermaid".
| Ofer wídne gársecg | Across the broad ocean (prose translation) | "The Mermaid", a traditional folksong |
|---|---|---|
Þa ofer wídne gársecg wéow unwidre ceald, | When the cold blast was blowing across the broad ocean, | Oh 'twas in the broad Atlantic, mid the equinoctial gales |
8 "La Húru", to the tune of "O'Reilly".
9 "I Sat upon a Bench", to the tune of "The Carrion Crow".
10 "Natura Apis: Morali Ricardi Eremite", also to the tune of "O'Reilly".
11 "The Root of the Boot", to the tune of "The Fox Went Out".
12 "Frenchmen Froth", to the tune of "The Vicar of Bray".
13 "Lit' and Lang'", to the tune of "Polly Put the Kettle On". In the Department of English at the University of Oxford where Tolkien worked, teaching was divided into two streams. "Lit'" meant "English Literature", i.e. the study of works from Shakespeare to modern times, whereas "Lang'" meant "English Language", meaning the philological study of Old English texts such asBeowulf, andMiddle English, such asSir Gawain and the Green Knight. Tolkien and Gordon were philologists and firmly in the "Lang'" camp, but they could see that it was dying out.
Once there were two little groups, |
The remaining 17 songs were:
1 Grace. To be sung to the tune of "The King of France".
2Fara Með Víkingum. [Icelandic: To go with the Vikings]. This text is actually two unrelated stanzas ofskaldic verse fromEgils saga Skallagrímssonar,[14] of which the first reads:
| Egill Skallagrímsson | 1893 translation by W. C. Green |
|---|---|
Þat mælti mín móðir, | Thus counselled my mother, |
3Já, láttu gamminn. [Icelandic] ByHannes Hafstein
4 Bring Us In Good Ale.
5Björt Mey Og Hrein. [Icelandic] Translation of a Polish folk song by Stefán Ólafsson
6Rokkvísa. [Icelandic: Song about rocks]
7Ólafur Liljurós. [Icelandic: a man's name]. The folk song tells of a man who meets anElvish maiden.
| Icelandic | Translation |
|---|---|
Ólafur reið með björgum fram | Ólafur rode with hills ahead |
8Gaudeamus. [Latin: Let us rejoice]
9 Icelandic Song [Það liggur svo makalaust]. [Icelandic: It's so incomparable] To be sung to the tune of "O' Reilly". By Bjarni Þorsteinsson
10Su Klukka Heljar. [Icelandic: That Bell of Hell] To be sung to the tune of "The Bells of Hell". ByE. V. Gordon
11Gubben Noach. [Swedish: Old Man Noah], one ofFredman's Songs byCarl Michael Bellman, accompanied by Icelandic translation by Eiríkur Björnsson
| Carl Michael Bellman, 1791 | Translation |
|---|---|
Gubben Noach, Gubben Noach | Old man Noah, old man Noah |
12Bí, bí Og Blaka. [Icelandic lullaby] BySveinbjörn Egilsson
13Guþ let vaxa. [Icelandic] ByHannes Hafstein. To be sung to the tune of "Laus Deo" byJosef Haydn.
14Salve! [Latin: Greetings!]
15Hwan ic béo déad. [Old English, Scots, and Gothic: When I'm Dead]
16Vísur Íslendinga. [Icelandic: Icelandic Song] ByJónas Hallgrímsson
17Gömul Kynni. [Icelandic] By Árni Pálsson, imitatingRobert Burns
