Herr Mannelig

Herr Mannelig (also known as "Herr Mannerlig" and "Bergatrollets frieri [The Courting of the Mountain Troll]"^[1]) is a medieval style Swedish ballad that tells the story of a female mountain troll who proposes marriage to a knight.

Plot

The troll is trying to convince Sir Mannelig (Swedish: Herr Mannelig) to marry her. She offers him many great gifts but he refuses her, because she is not a Christian woman but a troll (a dysphemism for a Pagan woman). She is desperate about her failure, because winning Sir Mannelig would have "freed her of her torment" (presumably of a curse).

"Manlig" is Swedish for "masculine", "manly". Thus, "Herr Mannelig" is likely translatable as either "Mr. Man" or "Mr. Manly"

Lyrics

Swedish[1] Bittida en morgon innan solen upprann Innan foglarna började sjunga Bergatrollet friade till fager ungersven Hon hade en falskeliger tunga Herr Mannelig herr Mannelig trolofven i mig För det jag bjuder så gärna I kunnen väl svara endast ja eller nej Om I viljen eller ej: Eder vill jag gifva de gångare tolf Som gå uti rosendelunde Aldrig har det varit någon sadel uppå dem Ej heller betsel uti munnen Eder vill jag gifva de qvarnarna tolf Som stå mellan Tillö och Ternö Stenarna de äro af rödaste gull Och hjulen silfverbeslagna Eder vill jag gifva ett förgyllande svärd Som klingar utaf femton guldringar Och strida huru I strida vill Stridsplatsen skolen I väl vinna Eder vill jag gifva en skjorta så ny Den bästa I lysten att slita Inte är hon sömnad av nål eller trå Men virkat av silket det hvita Sådana gåfvor jag toge väl emot Om du vore en kristelig qvinna Men nu så är du det värsta bergatroll Af Neckens och djävulens stämma Bergatrollet ut på dörren sprang Hon rister och jämrar sig svåra Hade jag fått den fager ungersven Så hade jag mistat min plåga Herr Mannelig herr Mannelig trolofven i mig För det jag bjuder så gärna I kunnen väl svara endast ja eller nej Om I viljen eller ej:

English Early one morning before the sun rose up Before the birds began to sing The mountain troll proposed to the handsome young man She had a false tongue Herr Mannelig, herr Mannelig, will you be betrothed to me? For that, I offer you gifts very gladly Surely you can answer but yes or no If you wish to or not To you I wish to give the twelve steeds That go in the grove of roses Never has there been any saddles upon them Nor bridles in their mouths To you I wish to give the twelve mills That stand between Tillö and Ternö The stones are made of the reddest gold And the wheels are silver-laden To you I wish to give a gilded sword With a blade of fifteen gold rings And battle how you will [well or badly] The battle you would surely win To you I wish to give a shirt so new The best you will want to wear It [literally: she] was not sewn by needle or thread But crocheted of white silk Such gifts I would surely accept If thou wert a Christian [or: pious] woman However, thou art the worst mountain troll The spawn of a Neck (water spirit) and the Devil The mountain troll ran out the door She shakes and wails hard Had I got the handsome young man I would have got rid of my plight Herr Mannelig, herr Mannelig, will you be betrothed to me? For that, I offer you gifts very gladly Surely you can answer but yes or no If you wish to or not

Adaptations

The ballad has recently been performed and recorded by the following notable artists: In Extremo, Garmarna, Hedningarna, Annwn (in Swedish), Haggard (in Italian), Heimataerde (in German), Chur and Litvintroll (in Belarusian), Cronica (in Polish), Tibetrea, Les Compagnons du Gras Jambon and AeternA (in Swedish).

References

1. Haminson, A., ed. (1877). "Bergatrollets friari". Bidrag till Södermanlands äldre kulturhistoria [Contributions to Södermanland's older Cultural History] (PDF) (in Swedish). I. Södermanland's Forminnesförening. pp. 21–23.

External links

• Herr Mannelig Original text and English translation