英語で味わう狂歌 大田南畝-6
Enjoying Kyoka in English: Nanpo Ota-6
年号は 安く長くと 変われども 諸色(ｼｮｼｷ)*高くて 今は明和九(ﾒｲﾜｸ; 迷惑)
よみびとしらず
Though the name of the era is, duly,
To become ‘Annei’, meaning,
Long and peaceful, literally,
It is still now in the 9th year of ‘Meiwa’**, or the year annoying,
As the prices of goods and services are high and rising.
Anonymous
* いろいろな品; 物価; prices
** Meiwa 9; meiwa ku
年号が 令和となりて 計算が さらに複雑 平成(ﾍｲｾｲ､ﾍｲｾｰ; 平静)失う
中湖 康太
Hearing the name of the era is, duly,
To become ‘Reiwa’, or beautiful harmony,
Sourced from ‘Manyoshu’, serenely,
I will lose my ‘Heisei’, or equanimity,
As the conversion to western calendar will become more complicated inevitably.
Such as it is. お粗末
By Kota Nakako
(コメント)
田沼時代は、開放的な、今でいえば景気刺激型の政策がとられ、文化も栄えました。狂歌が盛んになった背景には、当時の自由な気風があります。一方、数年来の天災の頻発に加え、明和9(1772)年には江戸で大火事があり、物不足もあり諸物価が高騰しました。そのため元号が安永に変わりました。明和9年をもじったもの。
In Tanuma period, the culture flourished because of its open and stimulative policy. Behind the flourishment of Kyoka lied the free atmosphere it nurtured. On the other hand, there was a big fire in Edo in Meiwa 9 (1772), in addition to several natural disasters in the preceding years, which caused the shortage of various commodities. The general price levels increased. The name of an ear changed from Meiwa (light and harmony) to Anei (stable and eternal), accordingly. It makes a pun on Meikwa 9, pronounced ‘meiwaku’ or annoyance.
(注) 狂歌(きょうか)とは、風刺、皮肉、しゃれ、滑稽を盛り込み、五・七・五・七・七の音で構成した諧謔形式の短歌。
Note: Kyoka is satirical, ironical or comical short Japanese poem, derived from Tanka, composed of 31 syllables, with a pattern of 5-7-5-7-7 sounds.
By Kota Nakako
2023/08/09
