Walking at Night (Stodola Pumpa)

DESCRIPTION: "Walking at night along the meadow way, Home from the dance beside my maiden gay.... Stodola, stodola, stodola pumpa," " Nearing the woods, we heard a nightingale," "Many the stars that brightly shown above, But none so sweet as her one word of love,"
AUTHOR: Independent English translation by A. D. Zanzig (source: mudcat.org thread "Origins/ADD: Stodola Pumpa / Stodole Pumpa (Czech)") and Frank Kubina/"R. H." (source: "The New Blue Book of Favorite Songs")
EARLIEST DATE: 1938 (Carl E. Zander and Wes H. Klusman, Camp Songs)
KEYWORDS: love courting bird campsong
FOUND IN:
REFERENCES (7 citations):
Silber/Silber-FolksingersWordbook, p. 328, "Walking at Night" (1 text)
Averill-CampSongsFolkSongs, p. 146, 149, 234, 239, "Walking at Night" (notes only)
Tobitt-TheDittyBag, p. 23, "Walking at Night" (1 text, 1 tune)
Zander/Klusmann-CampSongsPopularEdition, p. 46, "Walking at Night" (1 text)
BoyScoutSongbook1997, p. 88-89, "Walking at Night" (1 text, 1 tune)
SongsOfManyNations, "Walking at Night" (1 text, 1 tune) (CC edition, p. 26) (12th edition, p. 39)
33MuchLovedSongs, p. 15, "Walking at Night" (1 text, 1 tune)
NOTES [90 words]: Listed as a Czech folk song, but I have not found the original, unless it is just "Stodola Pumpa." Which means "barn pump," so I'd guess the translation isn't much like the original. The two translations appear to be rather free renderings of the same original, but both use the words "Stodola Pumpa."
Tobitt's and Zander's versions clearly derive from the same translation, but Tobitt spells the key word "stodole," not "stodola," and she has a verse not in Zander. So there may be some complex history behind the English translations. - RBW
Last updated in version 6.5
File: ACSF146N

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