Translating Lithuanian Poetry

Translators of Lithuanian poetry hear the resonances of the ancient dainos as we work to re-create in the new language the music, images, and metaphorical themes of the old. The dainos—literally translated, “songs”—are the earliest incarnation of the Lithuanian lyric tradition, folk poetry of prehistoric origin that celebrates the drama and cycles of daily life. Filled with mythological elements and an integral part of Lithuania’s pagan mythology, dominant in that country until well into the sixteenth century, the dainos focus on family and community and endow the manifestations of nature—of which family and community are part—with an active divinity believed to influence all aspects of animal, plant, and human existence. That oral tradition has been the shaping influence on the country’s written poetry. Though written poetry in Lithuania has had many articulations—encompassing symbolist, romantic, avant-garde, literary expressionist, formalist, and neo-romantic strands—at its core it echoes with the deepest yearnings and expressions of the dainos, sustaining a firm sens