Changgan Ballad 1, Cui Hao (Tang Shi #253)

[lnhammer]

O where, dear sir, might your house be?
This one lives in Heng Tang precinct.
Please pause your boat a moment, sir—
Might we be from the same hometown?

长干行 首一
君家何处住，
妾住在横塘。
停船暂借问，
或恐是同乡。

This took me down a couple rabbit holes, one of them because many editions of this collection place this (and the rest of this section in my base text) in a different section, the folk-style songs, and some use a different title, with song instead of ballad. (FWIW, they certainly fit in style with the folk songs. I don’t know enough yet to know whether I should rethink my choice of base texts.)

Another rabbit hole: Changgan is not Chang’an the capital, but a city now within the borders of modern Nanjing—on the banks of the Yangzi, with lots of canals.

The speaker uses a humble I used by women talking with men, and an honorific form for requesting he stop. “Precinct” is a guess, added by way of a gloss.

—L.

Comments

[sartorias]

Yeah this one definitely has the character for gan, rather than an for the city name. (I'm fumbling and struggling way behind you)

[larryhammer]

Yup. Despite that, I've seen at least (more than?) one translation render it as the capital.