A poem and translation for Advent: “Promise”, by Hugo von Hofmannsthal (1874 – 1929)
Ein Gedicht und Übersetzung zum Advent: Verheißung, von Hugo von Hofmannsthal (1874 – 1929)
“Promise”
Can you feel the winters’ story Underneath, the morning sleeps Do you hear resounding words |
Verheißung
Fühlst Du durch die Winternacht, Drunten schläft der Frühlingsmorgen, Hörst Du aus der Worte Hall, |
Translation note for language geeks like me: von Hofmannsthal could have used the world Versprechen to title this poem. The word also means “promise”. One of the reasons he might have used the word Verheißung is that it sounds a lot like the German word heiß, which means “hot”. It’s a much better word to associate with the promise of spring!