Nukata no Ookimi (a.k.a. Princess Nukata, 630-690 AD)
Winter hides
And spring has come.
The birds that haven’t chirped
Begin to sing
And the closed up flowers
Begin to bloom.
The mountains grow with thicket
And I can join, but do not want to;
The grass grows deep
And I can touch, but do not want to.
In autumn
I see the
mountain trees
mountain trees
And the
leaves change to yellow and red;
leaves change to yellow and red;
I pluck
them and remember.
them and remember.
I take these
green leaves,
green leaves,
But drop
them and lament;
them and lament;
It is a
shame,
shame,
But I am
with the autumn mountains.
with the autumn mountains.
Original Text |
Modern Text |
Pronunciation |
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額田王
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額田王
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Nukata no Ookimi
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冬木成
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冬こもり
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Fuyu komori
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春去来者
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春さり来れば
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Haru sari kure ba
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不喧有之
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鳴かずありし
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Nakazu arishi
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鳥毛来鳴奴
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鳥も来鳴きぬ
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Tori mo ki nakinu
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不開有之
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咲かずありし
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Sakazu arishi
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花毛佐家礼抒
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花も咲けれど
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Hana mo sake do
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山乎茂
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山を茂み
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Yama wo shigemi
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入而毛不取
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入りても取らず
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Iritemo torazu
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草深
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草深み
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Kusa-fukami
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執手母不見
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取りても見ず
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Toritemo mizu
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秋山乃
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秋山の
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Aki-yama no
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木葉乎見而者
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木の葉を見ては
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Konoha wo mite ha
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黄葉乎婆
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黄葉をば
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Momichi wo ba
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取而曽思努布
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取りてぞ偲ふ
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Toritezo shinou
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青乎者
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青きをば
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Aoki wo ba
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置而曽歎久
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置きてぞ嘆く
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Okite zo nageku
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曽許之恨之
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そこし恨めし
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Sokoshi urameshi
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秋山吾者
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秋山吾は
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Akiyama ware ha
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Translation Notes
冬こもり
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Winter shut-up/hidden
[Winter has passed]
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春さり来れば
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Spring does come as
[Spring has come]
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鳴かずありし
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Chirp not are
[Birds which have not sung for awhile]
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鳥も来鳴きぬ
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Birds too come sing finished
[Birds come out and sing]
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咲かずありし
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Blossom not are
[Flowers not blooming]
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花も咲けれど
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Flowers too bloom and
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山を茂み
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Mountains overgrown/thicket
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入りても取らず
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Enter yet touch not
[Can get in but do not want to touch]
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草深み
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Grass deep
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取りても見ず
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Touch yet see not
[Can touch but do not want to see]
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秋山の
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Autumn mountain ’s
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木の葉を見ては
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Tree ’s leaves see
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黄葉をば
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Yellow leaves
[Can also mean red leaves or autumn-colored
leaves] |
取りてぞ偲ふ
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Pick and remember.
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青きをば
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Green leaves
[which had fallen before turning yellow]
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置きてぞ嘆く
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Put-them-back lament
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そこし恨めし
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That is shame but
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秋山吾は
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Autumn mountain I
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