Love song · date unknown · Europe

Under der linden

A song-poem from the Middle Ages by the German poet Walther von der Vogelweide, with a word in it that copies a nightingale's song.

Words: Walther von der Vogelweide
Music: not known (the melody is lost)
Culture: medieval German courtly lyric poetry
Language: Middle High German
Date: the lifetime of Walther von der Vogelweide
Type: Love song
The words: Public domain (words by the medieval poet Walther von der Vogelweide)

This song is about hard things from the past, like war, cruelty or death. You can read about it with a grown-up.

The story

"Under der linden" is a well-known poem by the medieval German lyric poet Walther von der Vogelweide, written in Middle High German. It was a song: its four strophes are preserved in only two manuscripts, the Weingarten Manuscript and the Manesse Codex.

Neither manuscript holds a melody, so the tune Walther's audience heard is not known. The melody of an anonymous Old French song, "En mai au douz tens novels", fits the metre of the poem, and this suggests that "Under der linden" may be a contrafactum: new words written to an existing French tune. One word of the poem imitates the song of the nightingale.

What it says

A song of four strophes, in which one word imitates the song of the nightingale. The mood is light and musical.

The words

Under der lindenUnder the linden

an der heide,on the heath,

dâ unser zweier bette was,where the bed of us two was,

dâ muget ir vindenthere you may find,

schône beidelovely, both

gebrochen bluomen unde gras.broken flowers and grass.

vor dem walde in einem tal,Before the forest, in a valley,

tandaradei,*tandaradei,*

schône sanc diu nahtegal.sweetly sang the nightingale.

Ich kam gegangenI came walking

zuo der ouwe:to the meadow:

dô was mîn friedel komen ê.my beloved had come there before.

dâ wart ich empfangenThere I was received,

hêre frouwenoble lady! —

daz ich bin sælic iemer mê.so that I am blessed for evermore.

kust er mich? wol tûsentstunt:Did he kiss me? A thousand times, surely:

tandaradei,tandaradei,

seht wie rôt mir ist der munt.see how red my mouth is.

Dô hete er gemachetThen he had made,

alsô rîcheso richly,

von bluomen eine bettestat.a bed of flowers.

des wirt noch gelachetAt that there will still be laughter,

inneclîche,from the heart,

kumt iemen an daz selbe pfat.if anyone comes along that same path.

bî den rôsen er wol macBy the roses he may well,

tandaradei,tandaradei,

merken wâ mirz houbet lac.make out where my head lay.

Daz er bî mir læge,That he lay with me,

wesse ez iemenif anyone knew it

(nu enwelle got!), so schamte ich mich.(may God forbid it now!), I would be ashamed.

wes er mit mir pflæge,What he did with me,

niemer niemennever, no one

bevinde daz wan er und ichshall find that out but he and I

und ein kleinez vogellîn:and a little bird:

tandaradei,tandaradei,

daz mac wol getriuwe sîn.that one can surely be trusted.

Original: Walther von der Vogelweide; the Middle High German text as quoted in Wikipedia's article. Text from Wikipedia; public domain.

The English is the Institute’s own translation, made from the original for this page.

Notes on the translation (5)

'tandaradei' imitates the nightingale's song and is kept as it is; the asterisk is in the source.
2.5: 'hêre frouwe' is disputed: an exclamation ('noble Lady!', perhaps 'Holy Virgin!') or 'as a noble lady' (she was received like a fine lady).
2.6: 'sælic' is blessed, happy, blissful.
3.4-3.5: 'des wirt noch gelachet inneclîche' is literally 'at that there will still be laughing, inwardly / heartily'.
4.9: 'getriuwe' is faithful, loyal: the bird will keep the secret.

Listen

On YouTube, from the channel Augsburg Early Music Ensemble - Topic. Pressing play loads YouTube’s player. Watch on YouTube

What it drew on

En mai au douz tens novels (anonymous Old French song)its melody fits the poem's metre; the poem may be a contrafactum of it

People, places and events

Walther von der Vogelweide

Sources

Wikipedia, "Under der linden", https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Under_der_linden

Cite this page

APA: The Epoch Institute. (2026). Under der linden. In Songs in History. https://the-epoch-institute.org/songs/under-der-linden
MLA: “Under der linden.” Songs in History, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/songs/under-der-linden. Accessed .
Chicago: The Epoch Institute. “Under der linden.” Songs in History. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/songs/under-der-linden.
Harvard: The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Under der linden’, Songs in History. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/songs/under-der-linden (Accessed: ).

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