A Czech question: the meaning of the original Czech title of "Fireman's Ball"

[David Powelstock]

Whoops, I posted at the same time as Martin, whose explanation is
authoritative. I didn't know about the song reference. Thanks, Martin! I'm
the wiser for it!

David


-----Original Message-----
From: SEELANGS: Slavic & East European Languages and Literatures list
[mailto:SEELANGS at bama.ua.edu] On Behalf Of Martin Votruba
Sent: Monday, June 14, 2010 4:39 PM
To: SEELANGS at bama.ua.edu
Subject: Re: [SEELANGS] A Czech question: the meaning of the original Czech
title of "Fireman's Ball"

> Does this mean in Czech simply "Burn, my doll"

More like "It's burning, my baby..."  It is a verse from a brass-band tune
(typical of Czech popular culture) that goes: "My heart is burning for you,
my baby, the flame is flashing from the earth up to the sky..."  Because of
the association with "burning," it was among the repertoire played at
firemen's social events.

Because the subject comes after the verb (Hori, ma panenko, srdce moje pro
tebe...), the first word used in the title without the rest of the verse
acquires the potential meaning of an alarm call -- "Fire!" (Hori!, i.e.,
literally, "It's burning!").


Martin

votruba "at" pitt "dot" edu

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