Chrząszcz (beetle, chafer) by Jan Brzechwa is a tongue-twister poem famous for being considered one of the hardest-to-pronounce texts in Polish literature. It may cause problems even for adult, native Polish speakers.
The first few lines of the poem:
| ⓘ | Phonemic transcription | English translation |
|---|---|---|
| W Szczebrzeszynie chrząszcz brzmi w trzcinie | /f ʃt͡ʃˌɛbʒɛʃˈɨɲʲɛ xʃˈɔ̃ʒd͡ʒ bʒmˈi f tʃt͡ɕˈiɲʲɛ/ | In Szczebrzeszyn a beetle buzzes in the reeds |
| I Szczebrzeszyn z tego słynie. | /i ʃt͡ʃɛbʒˈɛʃɨn s tˌɛɡɔ swˈɨɲʲɛ/ | And Szczebrzeszyn is famous for this. |
| Wół go pyta: „Panie chrząszczu, | /vˈuw ɡˈɔ pˈɨta "pˈaɲʲɛ xʃˈɔ̃ʃt͡ʃu"/ | An ox asks him: "Mr. Beetle, |
| Po cóż pan tak brzęczy w gąszczu?" | /pɔ t͡sˈuʃ pˈan tˈaɡ bʒˈɛnt͡ʃɨ w ɡˈɔ̃ʃt͡ʃu?/ | What are you buzzing in the bushes for?" |
The first line "W Szczebrzeszynie chrząszcz brzmi w trzcinie" (In Szczebrzeszyn a beetle buzzes in the reed) is a well-known Polish tongue-twister and dates to at least the 19th century.
Thanks to the poem, the town of Szczebrzeszyn is widely known in Poland. Two monuments to the beetle were erected there, and a yearly sculpture festival has been held there ever since.[citation needed]
Chrząszcz was translated into English by Walter Whipple as Cricket (whose Polish equivalent, świerszcz, is also considered difficult to pronounce for non-Polish speakers).
See also
- Strč prst skrz krk, Czech and Slovak tongue twister and shibboleth
References
- ^ Kwapisz, Jan; Petrain, David; Szymanski, Mikolaj (2012-12-06). The Muse at Play: Riddles and Wordplay in Greek and Latin Poetry. Walter de Gruyter. p. 1. ISBN 978-3-11-027061-7.
- ^ a b Niesporek-Szamburska, Bernadeta (2010). "Zabawy brzmieniem we współczesnych wierszach dziecięcych". Język Artystyczny (in Polish) (14): 141–156. ISSN 0209-3731.
- ^ 10 Craziest Polish Tongue Twisters
External links
- ""Chrząszcz brzmi w trzcinie" - J. Tuwim, W. Literackie, 1933". Retropress (in Polish). 2016-05-26. Archived from the original on 2022-10-30. Retrieved 2023-04-18.
