"Ellan Vannin" is a Manx patriotic song based on a poem written by Eliza S. Craven Green in 1854. The title means 'Isle of Man' in the Manx language. The song is often regarded as the alternative to "Arrane Ashoonagh Vannin"—the Manx national anthem.
Lyrics[]
Original poem[]
Manx version[]
Tra ta'n laa souree ec jerrey
As imneaghyn lhie ersooyl
mish my hoie fo ny rollageyn,
slane my lomarcan as skee
Eisht ta girree gollrish ashlish,
Loandyr gial as dooghyssagh
she oo hene o Ellan Vannin,
Lesh croink glassey rish y cheayn.
Ta mee clashtyn tharmane tonnyn
Myr t'ad nish paagey yn traie ;
As heese dowin fo'n ushtey geayney
Kiaulleeagh foast ta'n ven-varrey ;
As ta'n Ellan soilshean aalin
Myr ve ayns my aegid hene ;
My heer deyr, shenn Ellan Vannin
Lesh croink glassey rish y cheayn.
Nish ta smooinaght millish meiyghagh
Cheet myr kiaulleeaght gys my chree ;
Jeh ny cree'ghyn va ayns Mannin
Foddey roie hug graih da mee ;
Ta mee coyrt lesh jeir as bannaght
Nish my smooinaght share dhyt hene ;
My heer deyr, shenn Ellan Vannin,
Lesh croink glassey rish y cheayn.[1]
English version[]
When the summer day is over
And its busy cares have flown,
I sit beneath the starlight
With a weary heart, alone,
Then rises like a vision,
Sparkling bright in nature's glee,
My own dear Ellan Vannin
With its green hills by the sea.
Then I hear the wavelets murmur
As they kiss the fairy shore,
Then beneath the em'rald waters
Sings the mermaid as of yore,
And the fair Isle shines with beauty
As in youth it dawned on me,
My own dear Ellan Vannin
With its green hills by the sea.
Then mem'ries sweet and tender
Come like music's plaintive flow,
Of the hearts in Ellan Vannin
That lov'd me long ago,
And I give with tears and blessings,
My own fondest thoughts to thee,
My own dear Ellan Vannin
With its green hills by the sea.
The Bee Gees version[]
The Bee Gees recorded a version for Isle of Man charities. They also included the song in their world-tour as a show of pride in the place of their birth. It was recorded in 1997, and released and re-released as a single, 1998–1999.
When the summer day is over,
Its busy cares have flown,
I will sit beneath the starlight,
With a weary heart alone.
Then it rises like a vision
Sparkling bright it shines for me
My own dear Ellan Vannin
With its green hills by the sea.
Let me hear the ocean murmur
Let me watch your stormy sky
Then above the emerald waters
Sings the seagull as she flies.
Then arising like a vision
Sparkling bright it shines for me
My own dear Ellan Vannin
With its green hills by the sea.
And in all my times of sorrow
And on some lonely shore
I'll go back to Ellan Vannin
To my childhood days once more.