Beidh Aonach Amárach
A child's plea to attend a fair in County Clare.
This Irish folk song, whose title means “there will be a fair tomorrow,” is especially popular with young children learning to speak and with students of Irish Gaelic. No one knows who wrote it, but its style comes from the troubadour and trouvère traditions that began in 12th-century France.
Quick Facts
- Title (english translation)
- there will be a fair tomorrow
- Genre
- Irish folk song
- Origin of style
- troubadour and trouvère styles, 12th century France
Facts from the source article.
Did You Know?
- The girl in the song is only ten or eleven years old, according to her mother.
- Altan's 2000 recording pairs the song with a reel titled 'Bean a'ti ar lar' ('the woman of the house on the floor').
Synopsis
The lyrics depict a young girl asking her mother for permission to travel to a fair the following day in County Clare, Ireland, while also stating that discussion is pointless as she likely will not go. She confesses her infatuation with the cobbler (shoemaker) and asks if she may marry him, saying she would rather be with him than any army sergeant or officer. Her mother replies that she is only ten years old and will be old enough to decide when she turns thirteen, then chuckles at having a daughter in love with a shoemaker. The girl continues to pine for the man and request permission to attend the fair. Irish singer Joe Heaney claimed that in the original song, the girl loves the cobbler because she owns no shoes and was enticed by his handiwork.
More in Irish Folk Songs
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