When Martin was a boy

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Martin Luther as a caroled singer in Eisenach (emergency money from the city of Eisenach, 1921)

When Martin was a boy is a traditional song with which children, especially in Lower Saxony, go from door to door on the evening of November 10th and ask for sweets. In the 19th century, attempts were made in Protestant regions to redirect the customs associated with Saint Martin of Tours to Martin Luther ( martin singing instead of martin singing ); that is the background to this song of Martin.

Emergence

The song When Martin was still a boy was written by Wilhelm Konrad Fischer from Gellersen . Since 1830 he had a job as a school teacher, sexton and organist in Hämelschenburg . In 1877 Fischer wrote down his memoirs, the original of which is stored in the Hämelschenburg estate archive and of which Pastor Adolf Kleine made a copy.

According to these autobiographical memories, another song was common on the eve of Martin's Day before Fischer's intervention in Hämelschenburg, of which he only mentions the first verse and which he found unsuitable:

“Marten, Marten, gaud man who doesn't do the best, apples and berries are never needed. Leiwe Fräu, giff ösch wat, lat ösch not dew long stahn. The Himmelriek is uppedahn, because schöll wi all henningahn with all use guests. Your leiwe God is the best! "

This chant was also performed by the landlord and pastor.

Fischer wanted to change that for educational reasons. Since he could not find a more suitable song, he wrote "When Martin was still a boy". With this he succeeded in completely suppressing the older Heischelied in Hämelschenburg.

text

This song is widespread in northern Westphalia and Lower Saxony. The Hannoversche Sonntagsblatt published by the Inner Mission made the following version of the text "for the children who like to sing apples and nuts" known to a larger audience in 1869 and 1871:

1.
When Martin was still a boy,
he sang many a year in
front of strange people's doors.
He sang so beautifully, he sang so gently,
So entirely in the pious children's way,
So it could well move a heart.

2.
We sing, dear people, also
according to pious morality and old custom;
So you don't want to scold us.
And if you consider us abundantly, give us
beautiful apples,
God will reward you.

3.
So listen to our supplication
and take the most beautiful thanks from us
for your mild gifts:
We wish you Luther's faith,
then you will
have eternal life in the kingdom of heaven .

content

Luther's table speeches contain a reminder of the reformer's time at school in Eisenach : “Don't despise the fellows who say 'panem propter deum' for thur and sing the bread rows ... I was one of those party stallions and I have the bread for Taken from the heusern, especially at Eisenach in my dear city… “The Párteke was a piece of bread or an alms in general. It was common in Luther's youth for schoolchildren to go on begging tours singing. Middle Latin parteca is “presented” and probably comes from the begging cry partem “a piece”.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Alexander Tacke: Martinslied originated in Hämelschenburg. In: szlz.de. Retrieved November 10, 2018 .
  2. ↑ Dietmar Sauermann: From Advent to Epiphany. Christmas in Westphalia . Waxmann, Münster / New York 1996, p. 57 .
  3. ↑ Hannoversches Sonntagsblatt , No. 45, November 5, 1871, p. 234, urn : nbn: de: bvb: 12-bsb11034995-2
  4. ↑ Partekenhengst , m . In: Jacob Grimm , Wilhelm Grimm (Hrsg.): German dictionary . tape 13 : N, O, P, Q - (VII). S. Hirzel, Leipzig 1889 ( woerterbuchnetz.de ).
  5. ↑ parteke. In: Early New High German Dictionary. Retrieved November 10, 2018 .