~ Wer nicht liebt Wein, Weib, Gesang ~ | |
This rhyming verse makes sense to me on a 1/2 L. etched/glazed,
light relief Mettlach stein #2130 dated 1896.
The cognate "Tümmer" becomes "dumber" in English. Note that "th", "t" and "d" are
interchangeable in German and English and often have the same sound.
There is a significant variation on the second line of the first verse on the porcelain Hauber & Reuther (#170) stein from the late 1800's shown below. In my mind there should be a third variation which is more apropos: "....and doesn't live at all". | |
Wer nicht liebt Wein, Weib, Gesang, der bleibt ein Narr sein Leben lang. Doch wer nicht liebt ein gut Glas Bier, der kommt mir noch viel Tümmer für. |
Who does not love wine, women, song, remains a fool his whole life long. Yet who doesn't love a good glass of beer, is much dumber, it seems to me. |
Translation: First verse - Les Hopper Compilation Second verse - George Schamberger Photo credit: unknown |
Wer nicht liebt Wein, Weib, Gesang, der spart sein Geld und lebt recht lang. |
Who loves not wine, women (and) song, saves his money and lives very long. |
Translation: Les Hopper compilation Photo credit: unknown |