| Verse | word or phrase |
|---|---|
| O I forbid you, maidens a' That wear gowd on your hair To come or gae by Caterhaugh, For young Tam Lin is there. |
a' - all gowd - gold gae - go Carterhaugh - area near Selkirk, Scotland. |
| There's nane that gaes by Carterhaugh But they leave him a wad, Either their rings, or green mantles, Or else their maidenhead. |
nane - none wad - something of value mantle - outer garment, cloak maidenhead - hymen, virginity |
| Janet has kilted her green kirtle A little aboon her knee, And she has broded her yellow hair A little aboon her bree, And she's awa to Carterhaugh, As fast as she can hie. |
kilted - to tuck up kirtle - skirts aboon - above broded - braided bree - eyebrow awa - away hie - go, run |
| When she came to Carterhaugh Tam Lin was at the well, And there she fand his steed standing, But away was himsel. |
at the well - under enchantment fand - found steed - horse |
| She had na pu'd a double rose, A rose but only twa, Till up then started young Tam Lin, Says, Lady, thou's pu nae mae. |
na - not pu - pulled twa - two nae - no mae - more |
| Why pu's thou the rose, Janet, And why breaks though the wand? Or why comes thou to Carterhaugh Withoutten my command? |
thou - you wand - branch, stem withoutten - without |
| 'Carterhaugh, it is my ain, My daddie gave it me; I'll come and gang by Carterhaugh, And ask nae leave at thee.' |
ain - own gang - go leave - permission |
| Janet has kilted her green kirtle A little aboon her knee, And she has broded her yellow hair A little aboon her bree, And she is to her father's ha, As fast as she can hie. |
ha - hall, house |
| Four and twenty ladies fair Were playing at the ba, And out then cam the fair Janet, Ance the flower amang them a' |
ba - ball, a game amang - among |
| Four and twenty ladies fair Were playing at the chess, And out then cam the fair Janet, As green as onie glass. |
onie - any green as glass - off-color, sick |
| Out then spak an aul grey knight, Lay oer the castle wa, And says, Alas, fair Janet, for thee But we'll be blamed a'. |
spak - spoke aul - old oer - over wa - wall |
| 'Haud your tongue, ye auld fac'd knight, Some ill death may ye die! Father my bairn on whom I will, I'll father nane on thee.' |
haud - hold bairn - baby nane - none thee - you |
| Out then spak her father dear, And he spak meek and mild; 'And ever alas, sweet Janet,' he says, 'I think thou gaes wi child. |
gaes wi child - pregnant |
| 'If that I gae wi child, father, Mysel maun bear the blame; There's neer a laird about your ha Shall get the bairn's name. |
maun - must neer - never, none laird - lord get the bairn's name - see symbols |
| If my love were an earthly knight, As he's an elfin grey, I wad na gie my ain true-love For nae lord that ye hae. |
elfin - elven grey - see interpretation wad na - would not hae - have |
| 'The steed that my true-love rides on Is lighter than the wind; Wi siller he is shod before, Wi burning gowd behind.' |
siller - silver |
| Janet has kilted her green kirtle A little aboon her knee, And she has broded her yellow hair A little aboon her bree, And she's awa to Carterhaugh As fast as she can hie. |
|
| When she cam to Carterhaugh, Tam Lin was at the well, And there she fand his steed standing, But away was himsel. |
|
| She had na pu'd a double rose, A rose but only twa, Till up then started young Tam Lin, Says Lady, thou pu's nae mae. |
|
| Why pu's thou the rose, Janet, Amang the groves sae green, And a' to kill the bonnie babe That we gat us between? |
sae - so gat - got |
| 'Oh tell me, tell me, Tam Lin,' she says, 'For's sake that died on tree, If eer ye was in holy chapel, Or Christendom did see? |
sake that died on tree - Christ eer - ever Christendom - Christianity |
| Roxbrugh he was my grandfather, Took me with him to bide, And ance it fell upon a day That wae did me betide. |
ance - perchance bide - wait wae - woe betide - occur as if fated |
| 'And ance it fell upon a day, A cauld day and a snell, When we were frae the hunting come That frae my horse I fell; The Queen o Fairies she caught me, In yon green hill to dwell |
cauld - cold snell - piercing, windy frae - from yon - yonder |
| 'And pleasant is the fairy land, But, an eerie tale to tell, Ay at the end of seven years We pay a tiend to hell; I am sae fair and fu o flesh, I'm feard it be myself |
end of seven years - see symbols tiend - tithe, payment |
| 'But the night is Halloween, lady, The morn is Hallowday; Then win me, win me, an ye will, For weel I wat ye may. |
halloween - - see symbols hallowday - all saint's day win - capture an - if weel - well |
| 'Just at the mirk and midnight hour The fairy folk will ride, And they that wad their true-love win, At Miles Cross they maun bide.' |
mirk - dark wad - would |
| But how shall I thee ken, Tam Lin, Or how my true-love know Amang sae mony unco knights The like I never saw? |
ken - know unco - unknown, unfamiliar |
| 'O first let pass the black, lady, And syne let pass the brown, But quickly run to the milk-white steed, Pu ye his rider down. |
syne - then, afterwards |
| 'For I'll ride on the milk-white steed, And ay nearest the town; Because I was an earthly knight They gie me that renown. |
gie - give renown - fame |
| 'My right hand will be glovd, lady, My left hand will be bare, Cockt up shall my bonnet be, And kaimd down shall my hair, And thae's the takens I gie thee, Nae doubt I will be there. |
cockt - tilted bonnet - hat kaimed - combed thae - that takens - tokens, gie - give |
| 'They'll turn me in your arms, lady, Into an esk and adder; But hold me fast, and fear me not, I am your bairn's father |
esk - eft (a newt) or lizard adder - snake |
| 'They'll turn me to a bear sae grim, And then a lion bold; But hold me fast, and fear me not, As ye shall love your child. |
grim - fierce, savage |
| 'Again they'll turn me in your arms To a red het gaud of airn; But hold me fast, and fear me not, I'll do to you nae harm. |
het - hot gaud - rod airn - iron |
| 'And last they'll turn me in your arms Into the burning gleed; Then throw me into well water, O throw me in wi speed. |
gleed - a coal or glowing wand wi - with |
| 'An then I'll be your ain true-love, I'll turn a naked knight; Then cover me wi your green mantle, And cover me out o sight. |
|
| Gloomy, gloomy was the night, And eerie was the way, As fair Jenny in her green mantle To Miles Cross she did gae. |
Miles Cross - area near Selkirk |
| About the middle o the night She heard the bridles ring; This lady was as glad at that As any earthly thing. |
bridles ring - faerie horses wore silver rings on the bridle see interpretations |
| First she let the black pass by, And syne she let the brown; But quickly she ran to the milk-white steed, And pu'd the rider down. |
see above |
| Sae weel she minded whae he did say, And young Tam Lin did win; Syne coverd him wi her green mantle, As blythe's a bird in spring. |
blythe - joyous |
| Out then spak the Queen o Fairies, Out of a bush o broom: 'Them that has gotten young Tam Lin Has gotten a stately groom.' |
bush o broom - probably a bush of family cytisus |
| Out then spak the Queen o Fairies, And an angry woman was she: 'Shame betide her ill-far'd face, And an ill death may she die, For she's taen awa the bonniest knight In a' my companie. |
taen - taken bonniest - best |
| 'But had I kend, Tam Lin,' she says, 'What now this night I see, I wad hae taen out thy twa grey een, And put twa een o tree.' |
kend - known een - eye |
The best known version of Tam Lin is the Child 39A version, which has quite a bit of Scottish dialect in it and may therefore not be the easiest to understand to folks outside that time and culture.
For Tam Lin translated into non-English languages, please see translations in the transformative section.