| "Զարթի՛ր, լաօ/լաո" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| Language | Armenian |
| English title | Zartir lao |
| Written | Fahrat |
| Published | 1890s |
| Songwriter(s) | See text |
"Zartir lao" (Armenian: Զարթի՛ր, լաօ) is a popular Armenian revolutionary folk song. Composed in the 1890s, it praises the prominent fedayi leader Arabo and is a wake up call for Armenian liberation supporters against the Turk-branch of the Ottoman Army.
Origin
The song was originally written by Fahrat, an Armenian ashugh from Mush. The song's hero is Arabo, the famed fedayi, who is now presented as a symbol of the Armenian liberation movement. He mainly operated in Mush Plain and Sasun. In 1893, while returning from the Caucasus, his group was surrounded in a gorge near Bulanikh. Everyone in his group was killed, including Arabo himself.
Over time its connection to Arabo's death was forgotten. This was traced in the evolution of the song's title: "Arabo's song" («Արաբոյի երգ»), "Brave Arabo's song" («Քաջ Արաբոյի երգ»), "Mshetsi's song" («Մշեցու երգ»), "Zartir lao" («Զարթիր լաօ»), etc.
Composition
The song is stylistically similar to other traditional Armenian lullabies, but with the purpose of a wake up call. The mother is the central character. She tells her son about the miserable conditions of Armenians and calls him to a military struggle against the genocidal Turks. The mother points out Arabo as an example for her son to enlist as a fedayi (resistance fighter) for the liberation of Armenia. The song's tone is revealed with the doublet line «զարթիր լաօ, մեռնիմ քեզի» ("Arise my child, I beseech you"; literally Arise my child, I will die for you), which is a call for struggle to all Armenians.
Recorded versions
- Hovhannes Shahbazyan (2004)
- KOHAR Symphony Orchestra and Choir (2008) video
In popular culture
- The song appears in 1967 film Triangle, directed by Henrik Malyan. Triangle is a story which takes place in Leninakan during World War II, and "Zartir lao" is used as a call to fight against Nazi Germany.
- During the 2013 Armenian anti-government protests opposition MP Zaruhi Postanjyan sang the song in front of the Presidential Palace in Yerevan.
Lyrics
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Mushclass=notpageimage| Mush (Moush), now Muş in modern Turkey
This one is the most common version of the song's lyrics in Armenian, its transliteration and the English translation:
| Armenian | Latin transcription | English translation |
|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Other variants
Many variants of the song exist nowadays.
«Քաջ Արաբոյի երգը»Գրող տանի քուրդ Հասոյին,
Դեն իրիշկե գալող ո՞րն է,
Ելեք կայնե՛ք, կտրիճ Խերան,
|
«Մշեցու երգը»Չուր ե՞րբ մնանք զէլու դռներ, Խըղք (Խեղճ) մշեցին մեռավ լալով, Գրող տանի քուրդ Հատոյին, Դեն իրիշկե՝ գալող ո՞րն ա, |
«Մշեցու մոր օրորոցային երգը»Խուժան ասկեր զգեզ պաշարե,
Ի՞նչ անիծեմ թուրք ըսկարին,
Չուր ե՞րբ մնամ էլու դռներ, |
«Մշեցու երգը»Խեղճ մշեցիք մնացին լալով, Զարթնի՛ր, զարթնի՛ր, գնա Սասուն, Բոբիկ ոտքով չուր Ախթամար, Գրողը տանի քուրդ Հասոյին, Զարթնի՛ր, զարթնի՛ր, գնա Սասուն, |
See also
References
- (in Armenian) «Մուրճ», 1895, համար 7, 1017-1018
- (in Armenian) «Հայ ժողովրդի պատմություն», հատոր 6-րդ, էջ 238-240
- (in Armenian) Ա. Բրուտյան, 1898, էջ 95-96
- (in Armenian) Ա. Մխիթարյան, էջ 39-40
- (in Armenian) «Վազգեն» երգարան, էջ 316
- (in Armenian) «Ծաղկեփունջ» երգարան, Թիֆլիս, 1907, էջ 141
- «Զարթիր, Լաո». երգը կատարում են Զարուհի Փոստանջյանը և Րաֆֆի Հովհաննիսյանի համակիրները (տեսանյութ) (in Armenian). 168 hours. 21 February 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
- 8 March 2013 protests
- "Զարթիր լաո" (PDF). Arak-29 Charitable Foundation. Retrieved July 15, 2012.
- Garabedian, Kerovbe. The Songbook of Daron,1930, p. 39
- Ghaziryan, A. (1989). Հայ ժողովրդական ռազմի և զինվորի երգեր] [Armenian folk military songs] (in Armenian). Yerevan: Armenian SSR Academy of Sciences Publishing. pp. 33–34, 146–148.