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Di Shvue (The Oath)
This is Di Shvue (The Oath), the anthem of the Jewish Labour Bund. Sung in Yiddish, with English subtitles.
The lyrics were written in Yiddish by S. Ansky. Composer unknown.
The Bund was a popular Jewish socialist organization based in Eastern Europe, founded at the end of the 19th Century.
They sang this song at every meeting. Every meeting, they sang to swear an oath of blood and tears, life and death, to free everyone from capitalism and authoritarian repression. They swore an oath to each other, that they would fight evil together and live, or fight evil together and die.
Maybe someone will hear me sing this song, and learn it so that when I can’t sing it anymore, someone will still be singing.
Heaven and Earth will hear us
The stars will be our witnesses
A promise made of blood, a promise made of tears
We swear, we swear, we swear.
Di Shvue
Tayere kinder fun arbet un noyt
Ale vos zaynen tsezeyt and tsephreyt
Tsuzamen, tsuzamen, di fon is greyt,
Zi flatert fun tsorn, fun blut iz zi royt
A shvue a shvue af lebn un toyt
(Dear children of work and hardship,
All who are now scattered in pieces,
Come together, together, the flag is ready,
It waves in anger, it's red with blood.
An oath, an oath of life and death.)
Chorus:
Himl un erd vet undz hern
Eydes di likhtike shtern
A shvue fun blut, un trern
Mir shvern mir shvern, mir shvern
(Heaven and Earth will hear us,
The shining stars we will be our witnesses.
An oath of blood, an oath of tears,
We swear, we swear, we swear!)
Mir shvern tsu kempfn far frayhayt un rekht
Mit ale tiranen un zeyere knekht
Mir shvern bazign di finstere makht
Oder mit heldnmut faln in shlakht
(We swear to fight for freedom and what's right
Against all tyrants and their servants.
We swear to defeat the forces of darkness,
Or, with a hero’s courage, fall in battle.
An oath, an oath of life and death.)
Mir shvern tsu himl a blutiker has
Tzum merder un royber fun arbeter klas
Dem keyser, di hersher di capitalistn
Mir shvern zey alemen farnikhtn farvistn
A shvue a shvue af lebn un toyt
(We swear to heaven a bloody hatred
For the murderers and robbers of the working class.
The Czar, the rulers, the capitalists,
We swear to wipe them all out.
An oath, an oath of life and death.)
Mir shvern a trayhayt on grenetsn tsum bund
Nor er ken bafrayen di shklafn atsind
Di fon, di royte is hoykh un breyt
Zi flatert fun tsorn fun blut iz zi royt
A shvue a shvue af lebn un toyt
(We swear an endless loyalty to the Bund.
Only it can free the slaves now.
The red flag is high and wide.
It waves in anger, it's red with blood!
An oath, an oath of life and death.)
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By This is Di Shvue (The Oath), the anthem of the Jewish Labour Bund. Sung in Yiddish, with English subtitles.
The lyrics were written in Yiddish by S. Ansky. Composer unknown.
The Bund was a popular Jewish socialist organization based in Eastern Europe, founded at the end of the 19th Century.
They sang this song at every meeting. Every meeting, they sang to swear an oath of blood and tears, life and death, to free everyone from capitalism and authoritarian repression. They swore an oath to each other, that they would fight evil together and live, or fight evil together and die.
Maybe someone will hear me sing this song, and learn it so that when I can’t sing it anymore, someone will still be singing.
Heaven and Earth will hear us
The stars will be our witnesses
A promise made of blood, a promise made of tears
We swear, we swear, we swear.
Di Shvue
Tayere kinder fun arbet un noyt
Ale vos zaynen tsezeyt and tsephreyt
Tsuzamen, tsuzamen, di fon is greyt,
Zi flatert fun tsorn, fun blut iz zi royt
A shvue a shvue af lebn un toyt
(Dear children of work and hardship,
All who are now scattered in pieces,
Come together, together, the flag is ready,
It waves in anger, it's red with blood.
An oath, an oath of life and death.)
Chorus:
Himl un erd vet undz hern
Eydes di likhtike shtern
A shvue fun blut, un trern
Mir shvern mir shvern, mir shvern
(Heaven and Earth will hear us,
The shining stars we will be our witnesses.
An oath of blood, an oath of tears,
We swear, we swear, we swear!)
Mir shvern tsu kempfn far frayhayt un rekht
Mit ale tiranen un zeyere knekht
Mir shvern bazign di finstere makht
Oder mit heldnmut faln in shlakht
(We swear to fight for freedom and what's right
Against all tyrants and their servants.
We swear to defeat the forces of darkness,
Or, with a hero’s courage, fall in battle.
An oath, an oath of life and death.)
Mir shvern tsu himl a blutiker has
Tzum merder un royber fun arbeter klas
Dem keyser, di hersher di capitalistn
Mir shvern zey alemen farnikhtn farvistn
A shvue a shvue af lebn un toyt
(We swear to heaven a bloody hatred
For the murderers and robbers of the working class.
The Czar, the rulers, the capitalists,
We swear to wipe them all out.
An oath, an oath of life and death.)
Mir shvern a trayhayt on grenetsn tsum bund
Nor er ken bafrayen di shklafn atsind
Di fon, di royte is hoykh un breyt
Zi flatert fun tsorn fun blut iz zi royt
A shvue a shvue af lebn un toyt
(We swear an endless loyalty to the Bund.
Only it can free the slaves now.
The red flag is high and wide.
It waves in anger, it's red with blood!
An oath, an oath of life and death.)