Renée Chardier

Saint-Jean-de-Luz, or Donibane Lohizune, referred to in the songtext, is a commune in the French Basque Country and a place known for »the sugar-and-egg-white macaroon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaroon) offered to Louis XIV and his young bride, the Spanish princess María Theresa, on their wedding day, May 8, 1660, in Saint-Jean-de-Luz. Ever since, the macaroon has been a specialty of that Basque port at the mouth of the Nivelle.« (Mark Kurlansky, The Basque History of the World)

English translation by Ceil Herman

Traduzione finlandese / Finnish translation / Traduction finnoise / Finsk översättning / Suomennos: Juha Rämö

* ) Saint-Jean-de-Luz on Biskajanlahden pohjukassa Ranskan Pohjoisella Baskimaalla sijaitseva 14 000 asukkaan kunta ja satamakaupunki, jonka baskinkielinen nimi on Donibane Lohizune. Mark Kurlansky kirjoittaa kirjassaan The Basque History of the World (Baskien maailmanhistoria), että kun Ludvig XIV ja hänen nuorikkonsa espanjalainen prinsessa María Theresa vierailivat Donibane Lohizunessa hääpäivänään 8.5.1660, heille tarjottiin macaron-leivoksia. Tuosta päivästä lähtien tuo maailmankuulu leivonnainen on ollut tämän Urdazuri-joen suulla sijaitsevan baskilaisen kaupungin erikoisuus.

The right French spelling is "Renée", not "Renèe". Written stress marks can't be put at random in French ("é" shows closed pronunciation, "è" open pronunciation, as in Italian: "pèsca" = peach, "pésca" = fishing); so I've changed the stress throughout introduction, lyrics and translations. Of course, it's not your fault: I saw a lot of lyrics sites show "Renèe", and many people, both in France and Italy, use only one stress mark type. This is uncorrect, however.

Merci beaucoup pour les corrections, Riccardo, de quelqu'un qui a appris le français à l'école depuis deux ans il y a cinquante ans.

Thanks for your corrections, Ricardo. I had no idea that the accent was wrong. I want these songs of Björn Afzelius to be correct. His work means a great deal to me.

Merci à tous les deux, Ceil and Juha. Je vous demande pardon si je suis décidément tatillon à propos de l'ortographe des langues utilisées dans ce site, mais c'est un peu ma façon de respecter les auteurs et les personnages des chansons, et les histoires qui y sont racontées. C'est peut-être aussi un souvenir de mon enfance, quand on m'a mis à l'école française de l'île d'Elbe à l'âge de six ans et on m'a appris le français à force de punitions lorsque je me trompais sur un accent ou sur un mot. Ce n'était sûrement pas une méthode très pédagogique, mais elle a été vachement efficace. Blagues à part, ne m'en voulez pas, et merci encore.

Thank you both, Ceil and Juha. I apologize if I'm definitely fussy about the spelling of the languages used in this site, but it's a bit my way of showing respect to the authors and characters of the songs, and to the stories that are told in them. It may also well be a memory of my childhood, when I was put into the French school of the Island of Elba at the age of six, and I learned French by force of punishments when I made faults in accents or words. Certainly, the method wasn't based that much on pedagogical principles, but it was awfully effective. Jokes aside, please do not blame me, and thanks again!

Funny that you mentioned learning French by punishment. My experience is exactly the opposite, i.e. learning by gentleness. I learned French for two years at the upper secondary school. Our teacher, an amicable young woman, was well aware of the fact that two years with an hour and a half a week was not enough to work wonders. Therefore, she chose another path. Besides and instead of grammar and things she taught us French songs most of which I still know by heart. She also decided to give us a glimpse of French culture by organizing tastings of French cheese and wine which, of course, was strictly out of line. But she was brave and wise and gentle. I remember one French class when we were all nervous about a test coming up in an hour and dealing with something called Church History. She came in and in no time she had realized how things were. This is what she said: "My father is a clergyman so forget about French, take your history books and start preparing."