I got a fun challenge recently – the wonderful local dancer Naharin asked me if I could find out what the song “Ölü Tavuk/Çeribaşı Istanbul” was about. After searching fruitlessly for a while, I managed to dig up the lyrics in Turkish, and had a go at translating them with the help of Google translate. I’ve posted them below, my translation in English, followed by the original Turkish.
Çeribaşı is a city name in Turkey. It appears there are two; I’m going to guess the song is about the one in Edirne province on the European side. I believe “turn the lamb’s head” refers to roasting it on a spit, and “dale dale” is just a nonsense sound like “tra la la”. Naciye is a girl’s name.
This is a fun song to dance to. There are several recorded versions; you can find one with vocals here:
http://www.amazon.com/Olu-Tavuk-Ceribasi-Kasilama/dp/B00CKUS8N4/
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They cooked the chicken
Brought it to our table
Daughters of Çeribaşı
We drank the wine and the rakı
Ah Naciye Naciye coquettish Naciye
Ah Naciye Naciye coquettish Naciye
Come to me
Come to me
Çeribaşı Çeribaşı
What beautiful eyebrows
When it comes to the holiday feast
Turn the lamb’s head
Ah Naciye Naciye coquettish Naciye
Ah Naciye Naciye coquettish Naciye
Come to me
Come to me
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Ölü tavuk pişirdiler
Soframıza getirdiler
Çeribaşı kızları
Rakı şarap içirdiler
Ah Naciye Naciye cilveli Naciye
Abe dale das dale gel bana das dale
Abe dale dale dale gel bana ah dale
Çeribaşı çeribaşı
Ne güzeldir gözü kaşı
Bayramları gelince
Çevirirler kuzu başı
Ah Naciye Naciye cilveli Naciye
Abe dale das dale gel bana das dale
Abe dale dale dale gel bana ah dale