Date: Wed, 24 Sep 1997
From: Tripp Gwyn (tgwyn@infoave.net)
I've recently had a discussion with someone who says that Enya's lyrics on Pax Deorum and La Sonadora, don't exactly make sense.
He was trying to tell me the the Latin in Afer Ventus made no sense and was just a bunch of nouns and stuff. I told him that that was how it was meant to be. So I know that one is correct, but what about the other two?
He told me that parts of La Sonadora translated like this
I; the autumn
I; the morning
I've been an echo
I'll be a wave
I'll be the Moon
I'd been everything, I'm me.
I; the summer
I; the ebony
I'm the dreamer.
And then he said that Pax Deorum when seperated made no sense. He also said something about half of it being a quote from someone's book.
Date: Sat, 27 Sep 1997
From: "Viviane \"Boadicea\" Reber" (reber@worldcom.ch)
So... being a Latinist myself (one of the rare ones left), I can answer you... First of all, all Enya's songs in Latin are based on sayings and short sentences, there isn't a "story" in the song. Let's take "Cursum Perficio", the translation is:
I end my journey (repeat)
a word for the wise man
the more they have, the more they want (repeat)
After the clouds, the Sun (Phoebus is also the name of Apollo, but its
poetic meaning is the Sun)
Iternum (this is debated: either it's "iterum": again and again, or
"aeternum": of eternity/eternal or "itinerum": of journeys)
As you can already see here, the song is more based on a collection of ideas than on a complete text. I like it this way, because Latin is typically a language where you can play around with words and use them to create a rhythm, and it's more this use that Enya makes of it. Now, on to "Afer Ventus":
Sea of Clouds. Umbriel.
Sea of Rains. Ariel.
And we go (impersonnal) to the stars (bis).
Sea of Waves. Io. Vela.
Stunning/Admirable to see. Admirable things.
Stunning/Admirable to hear. Admirable things.
And we go to the stars. (bis)
They are always green. A rose garden.
Afer Ventus. Zephyrus.
Volturnus. Africus. (these are all names of winds)
And we go to the stars (bis)
Etesiarum. Eurus. (again, these are names of winds)
running verse:
To each his tradition. To each his own.
To me, mine, to each his favourite/beloved.
Remember, daughter of the earth (or you were born from the earth, if you
consider that she left the verb out, which is not uncommon in Latin.
Perhaps it could also be "life is born from the earth")
Remember, life is short.
To me mine, to each his favourite tradition.
As your friend said, there is a large collection of words that don't make sense... it's more, I think, a way to show images, to be able to picture an atmosphere. And finally, "Pax Deorum"
"Domineoveniteosacramentum(discesm)eodeo" this is typically an enigmatic sentence, written in the style of ancient Romans, ie, with no punctuation or space between the words. There are a lot of elisions (vowels that disappear), which are typical of chanted texts. You have to "edit" it a little to find out which words Enya meant to use. the most probable is "Domine, eo venit sacramentum eo deo" which would mean "Lord, the oath to this God came here" (I admit that this is not terribly clear, and it might be because I misinterpret the text). Then you'll perhaps (or perhaps not ;)) ) notice a change of style in the last verse: "think that every day that is given to you is your last".
Now, your friend might say that all this is hogwash. But I think that in each one of these songs, there is a philosophical message. "Those who have the most want more", in "Cursum Perficio", the running verse in "Afer Ventus" and the last verse of "Pax Deorum" can teach us a few things, and sound (the latter is) typically Latin.
The quote from "Pax Deorum" (it's a shame that Enya didn't mention that) is from Horatio.
I preferred to send this to the list, so that everyone who can't read Latin (I'm still a student, which means that there might be a few translation mistakes, but givent the simplicity of Enya's Latin, I don't think so! ;) ) can get this translation. There is also a translation on the Web (Daniel Quinlan's, I think), which is very close to mine.
I already heard a lot of criticism on Enya's lyrics, not only the Latin/Spanish ones, but in general. Many people find them overly simple. I just don't care if they're simple. They carry very beautiful messages, in whichever language they're written in, and I feel that that is the most important. The person you showed the Latin songs to was maybe not a great fan, if he didn't understand why they were made of a collection of words. I find this extremely charming. I once saw a text by Roma Ryan (in "The Memory of Trees" music book, or collector box or whatever it was). It said: "These words. The Memory of Trees. My moments found a maze of worlds. My maze of memory is in my moments. These moments hold my maze of memory. This memento is a memory of my moments. This book is memento of The Memory of Trees." And I think that in a lot of songs in Latin, we find the same playfulness with words. That's what's so charming, even if it's senseless. You just have to place them into their context, and get the most out of their message and the sounds that Latin alone is able to create.
Date: Mon, 29 Sep 1997
From: Ron Rinner (RRinner@MTI-INFO.COM)
I sent this to Tripp originally; however, since we are discussing this publically, I thought I would add this to the discussion... Ron
Hi Tripp:
Your friend's statement that the lyrics "make no sense" is vastly overstated. Lyrics (and poetry) of this type are meant to paint an emotion or a feeling - and emotions and feelings often don't make sense in any "rational" sense. Lyrics like this can be compared to Zen Koans - rationality has no place when interpreting such things. Further, it is my thought that sometimes Roma Ryan's lyrics are chosen for their sound value (onomatopoetics) rather than meaning, or even a combination of the two - Pax Deorum is a good example of where the repetition of similar sounds and meaning can blend for a meaning that is greater than the sum of the parts. There are some better translations available through the Unofficial Enya Home Page (http://sunsite.auc.dk/enya) - if you choose "Translations" there is a link to another page (sorry, I didn't get the address) that contains detailed notes about the lyrics. ( Maintainer's note: It is Daniel Quinlan's site at http://www.pathname.com/enya). Sorry this was so long; I'm a former English teacher (I now work in the software industry) and it's been a while since I had a chance to discuss lyrics/poetry!