英語で味わう狂歌大田南畝-41 Enjoying Kyoka in English: Nanpo Ota-41

中湖康太

英語で味わう狂歌大田南畝-41
Enjoying Kyoka in English: Nanpo Ota-41

みほとけに　産湯(ｳﾌﾞﾕ)かけたか　郭公(ﾎﾄﾄｷﾞｽ)　天上天下　たったひと声

大田南畝

A little cuckoo might have given Buddha his first bath,
As he just uttered his first cry; ‘Throughout heaven and earth.’

Ohta Nampo

Translated by Kota Nakako

(注) 狂歌(きょうか)とは、風刺、皮肉、しゃれ、滑稽を盛り込んだ5-7-5-7-7形式の短歌。江戸時代後期(18世紀後半)に隆盛し、天明狂歌として黄金期を迎える。大田南畝(蜀山人ｼｮｸｻﾝｼﾞﾝ; 1749-1823)は、その代表的文人、狂歌師。

Note: Kyoka is satirical, ironical or comical short Japanese poem, derived from Tanka, composed of 31 syllables, with a pattern of 5-7-5-7-7 sounds. It flourished and marked a golden age in the late Edo period in the late 18th century as Tenmei Kyoka. Ota Nampo, Shokusanjin (1749-1823), is one of the leading Kyoka poets.

2024/01/03