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Micki

Το σχολείο

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Looking forward to evening school today, inspired me to give it a try.

The things I learnt today ...

Το σχολείο // The school

Μουσική : Γιώργος Μουφλουζέλης // Music : Georgos Mouflouzelis

Στίχοι : Γιώργος Μουφλουζέλης // Lyrics: Georgos Mouflouzelis

Εγώ δεν έχω βγάλει το σχολείο // I havent gone to school

ούτε έχω μάθει γράμματα πολλά // nor have I learnt many letters

ξέρω όμως ένα κι ένα κάνουν δύο // but I do know that one and one is two

και πως τα φωνήεντα είναι εφτά // and that there are seven vowels

Τόσο καιρό μαζί μου και δεν έχεις μάθει // So much time with me and you havent learnt

τα δικά μου χούγια και τα φυσικά // my own habits and my nature

η προπαραλήγουσα ποτέ δεν περισπάται // the proparalygousa * never gets a tone

όταν η λήγουσα είναι μακρά // when the ligousa ** is makra ***

Εσύ που κάνεις όλα πως τα ξέρεις // You who thinks that knows everything

κι όλο εξυπνάδες έχεις στο μυαλό // and your mind is full of smart comments

πες μου για να μάθω ποιο έχει γίνει // tell me I want to learn what has happened

πρώτα η κότα ή το αυγό // first the hen or the egg

Τόσο καιρό μαζί μου και δεν έχεις μάθει // So much time with me and you havent learnt

τα δικά μου χούγια και τα φυσικά // my own habits and my nature

η προπαραλήγουσα ποτέ δεν περισπάται // the proparalygousa never gets a tone

όταν η λήγουσα είναι μακρά // when the ligousa is makra

Εγώ δεν έχω βγάλει το σχολείο // I havent gone to school

ούτε έχω μάθει γράμματα πολλά // nor have I learnt many letters

ξέρω όμως ένα κι ένα κάνουν δύο // but I do know that one and one is two

και πως τα φωνήεντα είναι εφτά // and that there are seven vowels

Τόσο καιρό μαζί μου και δεν έχεις μάθει // So much time with me and you havent learnt

τα δικά μου χούγια και τα φυσικά // my own habits and my nature

η προπαραλήγουσα ποτέ δεν περισπάται // the proparalygousa never gets a tone

όταν η λήγουσα είναι μακρά // when the ligousa is makra

grammar lesson from the professor economy :D :

* the third syllable from the end

** same as proparaligousa but this time the last syllabe

*** doesn't mean really anything, it's a characterization invented for grammatical reasons

Micki

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ποτέ δεν περισπάται // the proparalygousa * never gets a tone

όταν η λήγουσα είναι μακρά // when the ligousa ** is makra ***

* the third syllable from the end

** same as proparaligousa but this time the last syllabe

*** doesn't mean really anything, it's a characterization invented for grammatical reasons

Micki

ποτέ δεν περισπάται // never gets a circumflex tone

όταν η λήγουσα είναι μακρά // when the last syllable is long

*** doesn't mean really anything, it's a characterization invented for grammatical reasons

Of course it means something, Micki. It was an orthographical rule before there was a spelling reform of Greek some years ago: there used to be three types of accents or tones, + 2 "pnevmata". The spelling rules with the 3 tones and the 2 pnevmata were very complicated: they did not represent any pronunciation any more (except for ancient Greek) and children were losing too much time at school learning them, until one day, a PASOK MP, Mr Koutsocheras, presented his reform which was at last voted by Parliament in the years 1980...

Mouflouzelis' verse is of course extremely funny !!!

The song is really one of the last (1960 I think) great and best rebetika I have ever heard. I know three versions of it: Mouflouzelis', which is out of this world and the best one, Dalaras', which is quite correct, and Bithikotsis', which I don't appreciate that much although I like Bithikotsis a lot and although his voice was still good when he recorded it.

Mouflouzelis is not very well-known, unfortunately, but he wrote quite a number of very moving songs, and he sang old songs by Batis and Delias. A great rebetis who devoted most of his life to the education of his son.

Thanks a lot Micki for having translated "Το σχολείο" for those who don't understand Greek.

Btw, is the song on GD's CD? I can send the original version to anyone who would like to hear it.

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I'm aware of the spelling reform in the Greek language. Nice reminder.

Happens in Dutch too. I wondered last time when they did that if the reason was to sell more of those little green books : List of words of the Dutch language (with the spelling rules).

Well, the professor economy taught me in this song and he is Greek, grew up with the Greek language. The reason why I ask Greek people to help me with translations, it's natural.

Besides,

it's a characterization invented for grammatical reasons
that's something isn't it? Put in an economical way.

Micki

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it's a characterization invented for grammatical reasons

In fact, it was invented a long long time ago (I couldn't tell you when exactly) to help foreigners pronounce the Greek language properly or in an understandable way. In those times, Greek was an international language, and its pronunciation was far more complicated than today.

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Just a bit of information: the reason that Mouflouzelis' verse is so funny(for someone who is aware of the rules of greek pronunciation) is that the third syllable from the end never gets a circumflex tone in any case and it doesn't matter whether the last syllable is long or not!!!!!!!You can see that by this grammatical lapsus ,Mouflouzelis proves completely the first verse of his song :D

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