Καλογριά μαγέρευε

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A nun was frying fish and a voice,
a shrill high voice, kept telling her again and again :
‘Stop cooking, old maid,
and Constantinople will turn Turkish
and Muhabbet will ride into the City astride his mount’.
‘When the fish leap out and come back to life
then the Turk will enter in
and Constantinople will be Turkish’.
Well, the fish leapt out, the fish came back to life
and the Amir rode into the City astride his mount.

Translated by Michael Eleftheriou

Photo: Theophilos Hatzimichail, Konstantinos Palaiologos in battle (1453), Mytilene, Theophilos Museum. Offered by the Mytilini municipality.

Καλογριά μαγέρευε

Καλογριά μαγέ- μαγέρευε ψαράκια στο τηγάνι
και μια φωνή, ψιλή- ψιλή φωνή, απάνωθε της λέγει.

«Πάψε γριά το μαγερειό κι η Πόλη θα τουρκέψει,
κι ο Μουχαμπέτης1 θε να μπει στην Πόλη καβαλάρης».
«Όταν τα ψάρια πεταχτούν και βγουν και ζωντανέψουν
τότε κι ο Τούρκος θε να μπει κι η Πόλη θα τουρκέψει».
Τα ψάρια πεταχτήκανε, τα ψάρια ζωντανέψαν
κι ο Αμιράς2 εισέβηκεν στην Πόλη καβαλάρης.

1 Μουχαμπέτης ή Μουχαμέτης: ο Μωάμεθ
2 Αμιράς: Στρατηγός, ηγέτης (από το αραβικό amir ή τουρκοπερσικό emir)

Φωτ. Θεόφιλος Χατζημιχαήλ, Ο Κωνσταντίνος Παλαιολόγος εις μάχην 1453. Μυτιλήνη, Μουσείο Θεοφίλου.  Παραχωρήθηκε από τον Δήμο Μυτιλήνης.

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Recording information

Studio recording, 2004.

Based on Simon Karas' recording which belongs to the Association for the Dissemination of Greek National Music.

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