Oum Kalthoum was born in Tamay ez-Zahayra village in El Senbellawein, Dakahlia Governorate, Egypt. Her birth date is controversial, either 31 December 1898, 31 December 1904 or 4 May, 1904. She died 3 February, 1975.
At a young age, she showed exceptional singing talent. Her father, an Imam, taught her to recite the Qur'an, and she is said to have memorised the entire book. When she was twelve years old, her father disguised her as a young boy and entered her in a small performing troupe that he directed. At the age of sixteen she was noticed by Abol Ela Mohamed, a modestly famous singer, and by the famous oudist Zakariyya Ahmad, who invited her to Cairo. She waited until 1923 before accepting the invitation. She was invited on several occasions to the house of Amin Beh Al Mahdy, who taught her how to play the oud. She developed a very close relationship with Rawyeha Al Mahdy, daughter of Amin, and became her closest friend. Kalthoum even attended Rawheya's daughter's wedding, although she has always tried to avoid public appearances. Amin Al Mahdy introduced her to the cultural circles in Cairo.
At this point in her career, she was introduced to the famous poet Ahmad Rami, who wrote 137 songs for her. Rami also introduced her to French literature, which he greatly admired from his studies at the Sorbonne, Paris, and eventually became her chief mentor in Arabic literature and literary analysis. Furthermore, she was introduced to the renowned lute virtuoso and composer Mohamed El Qasabgi. El Qasabgi introduced Kalthoum to the Arabic Theatre Palace, where she would experience her first real public success. In 1932 her fame increased to the point where she embarked upon a large tour of the Middle East, touring such cities as Damascus, Baghdad, Beirut, and Tripoli, Lebanon.
By 1948 her fame had come to the attention of Gamal Abdel Nasser, who would later become the president of Egypt. At one point the Egyptian musicians guild of which she became a member (and eventually president) rejected her because she had sung for the then-deposed king, Farouk of Egypt. It was his favour that made the musicians' guild accept her back into the fold. In addition, Kalthoum had been a dedicated Egyptian patriot since the time of King Farouk.
Her songs deal mostly with the universal themes of love, longing and loss. A typical concert consisted of the performance of two or three songs over a period of three to six hours. In the late 1960s, due to her age, she began to shorten her performances to two songs over a period of two and a half to three hours. The duration of her songs in performance was not fixed, but varied based on the level of emotional interaction between the singer and her audience. A typical improvisatory technique of hers was to repeat a single phrase or sentence of a song's lyrics over and over, subtly altering the emotive emphasis and intensity each time to bring her audiences into a euphoric and ecstatic state. Thus, while the official recorded length of a song such as "Enta omri" (You Are My Life) is approximately sixty minutes, a live performance could extend to many hours, as the singer and her audience fed off each other's emotional energy. This intense, highly personalised creative relationship was undoubtedly one of the reasons for Kalthoum's tremendous success as an artist.
In 1967 Kalthoum was diagnosed with a severe case of nephritis. She gave her last concert at the Palace of the Nile in 1973. Tests at that time indicated that her illness was incurable. She moved to the United States, where she benefited for some time from the advanced medical technology, but in 1975, upon re-entering her home country, she required hospitalisation due to declining health. She died in a Cairo hospital on 3rd February 1975.
Her funeral was attended by over four million mourners – one of the largest gatherings in history – and descended into pandemonium when the crowd seized control of her coffin and carried it to a mosque that they considered her favourite, before later releasing the coffin for burial.
Enta Omry
Oum Kalthoum Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
علموني أندم على الماضي وجراحه
اللي شفته قبل ما تشوفك عنيه
عمر ضايع يحسبوه إزاي عليّ
انت عمري اللي ابتدي بنورك صباحه
قد ايه من عمري قبلك راح وعدّى
يا حبيبي قد ايه من عمري راح
ولا شاف القلب قبلك فرحة واحدة
ابتديت دلوقت بس أحب عمري
ابتديت دلوقت اخاف لا العمر يجري
كل فرحه اشتاقها من قبلك خيالي
التقاها في نور عنيك قلبي وفكري
يا حياة قلبي يا أغلى من حياتي
ليه ما قابلتش هواك يا حبيبي بدري
اللي شفته قبل ما تشوفك عنيه
عمر ضايع يحسبوه إزاي عليّ
انت عمري اللي ابتدي بنورك صباحه
الليالي الحلوه والشوق والمحبة
من زمان والقلب شايلهم عشانك
دوق معايا الحب دوق حبه بحبه
من حنان قلبي اللي طال شوقه لحنانك
هات عنيك تسرح في دنيتهم عنيه
هات ايديك ترتاح للمستهم ايديه
يا حبيبي تعالى وكفاية اللي فاتنا
هو اللي فاتنا يا حبيب الروح شويه
اللي شفته قبل ما تشوفك عنيه
عمر ضايع يحسبوه إزاي عليّ
انت عمري اللي ابتدي بنورك صباحه
يا حبيبي تعالى وكفاية اللي فاتنا
هو اللي فاتنا يا حبيب الروح شويه
اللي شفته قبل ما تشوفك عنيه
عمر ضايع يحسبوه إزاي عليّ
انت عمري اللي ابتدي بنورك صباحه
يا أغلى من أيامي
يا أحلى من أحلامي
خدني لحنانك خدني
من الوجود وابعدني
بعيد بعيد أنا وانت
بعيد بعيد وحدينا
ع الحب تصحى أيامنا
ع الشوق تنام ليالينا
صالحت بيك ايامي
سامحت بيك الزمن
نستني بيك آلامي
ونسيت معاك الشجن
ودعوني عنيك للأيامي اللي راحوا
علموني أندم على الماضي وجراحه
اللي شفته قبل ما تشوفك عنيه
عمر ضايع يحسبوه إزاي عليّ
The song Enta Omry by Oum Kalthoum is a passionate and poignant expression of love and devotion. The lyrics express a longing to return to the days before the lover was known and to regret past mistakes and hurts. The singer marvels at the depth and beauty of their love, which was absent from their life before the lover came along. The singer is determined to cherish and protect the love, even as they fear the passage of time and the possibility of loss. They implore the lover to stay close and not to let the past interfere with their future together.
Line by Line Meaning
رجعوني عنيك لأيامي اللي راحوا
Take me back to my past, which is lost in your eyes
علموني أندم على الماضي وجراحه
Teach me to regret my past and its wounds
اللي شفته قبل ما تشوفك عنيه
What I saw before I saw you is a life wasted, and how could they even count it?
عمر ضايع يحسبوه إزاي عليّ
My lost years, how can they be accounted for?
انت عمري اللي ابتدي بنورك صباحه
You are my life, which began with the light of your radiance at dawn
قد ايه من عمري قبلك راح وعدّى
How much of my life disappeared before you came and promised me a new dawn
يا حبيبي قد ايه من عمري راح
My love, how much of my life has passed?
ولا شاف القلب قبلك فرحة واحدة
My heart has not seen a single joy before you
ولا داق في الدنيا غير طعم الجراح
My heart has only known the taste of wounds in life
ابتديت دلوقت بس أحب عمري
I start now, but I still love my life
ابتديت دلوقت اخاف لا العمر يجري
I start now, but I am afraid that time will fly by
كل فرحه اشتاقها من قبلك خيالي
Every joy I imagine, I dreamt of before I knew you
التقاها في نور عنيك قلبي وفكري
I found them in the light of your eyes, in my heart and thoughts
يا حياة قلبي يا أغلى من حياتي
Oh, the life of my heart, you are more precious to me than my own life
ليه ما قابلتش هواك يا حبيبي بدري
Why didn't I meet your love, my beloved, earlier in life
الليالي الحلوه والشوق والمحبة
The sweet nights, yearning, and love
من زمان والقلب شايلهم عشانك
My heart has carried them for so long because of you
دوق معايا الحب دوق حبه بحبه
Taste with me the love, taste it by loving it
من حنان قلبي اللي طال شوقه لحنانك
From my heart's tenderness that has yearned so long for your tenderness
هات عنيك تسرح في دنيتهم عنيه
Let your eyes wander through their world again
هات ايديك ترتاح للمستهم ايديه
Let your hands rest in their embrace
يا حبيبي تعالى وكفاية اللي فاتنا
My love, come and let go of the past
هو اللي فاتنا يا حبيب الروح شويه
What we missed, my beloved, was just a little bit of time
يا أغلى من أيامي
You are more precious to me than my life
يا أحلى من أحلامي
You are more beautiful than my dreams
خدني لحنانك خدني
Take me to your tenderness
من الوجود وابعدني
Take me away from existence
بعيد بعيد أنا وانت
Far away, just you and me
بعيد بعيد وحدينا
Far away, just us alone
ع الحب تصحى أيامنا
Our days awaken to love
ع الشوق تنام ليالينا
Our nights sleep to yearning
صالحت بيك ايامي
You fixed my days
سامحت بيك الزمن
You forgave my time
نستني بيك آلامي
I wait for you to heal my pains
ونسيت معاك الشجن
And I forgot my sorrow with you
Contributed by Abigail S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@theblackdeath4398
English Translation
Enta 'Omri
You Are My LIfe
0:00 - 8:06
Muqadimmah (Musical Introduction)
8:07 - 11:25
Your eyes returned me back to the days which have passed,
They taught me to regret the past and its wounds.
That which I saw before my eyes saw you
It was a life that was wasted. How can [that time] be counted on me?
You are my life, whose morning began with your light.
12:11 - 15:47 (Audience makes her repeat the previous section)
16:03 - 17:44
Second Musical Theme
17:45 - 22:37
How much of my life has passed before [meeting] you
My love, how much of my life has passed?
Never did my heart see a single moment of happiness,
Nor did it taste anything in this world other than bitter wounds.
Only now have I begun to love my life,
Only now have I begun to fear that my life will begin to run out.
Every joy I had ever imagined,
My heart and mind found it in the light of your eyes.
Oh [you who is] the life of my heart,
Oh [you who is] more precious than my life,
Why, why, why didn’t I fall in love with you sooner?
24:18 – 27:11 (Audience makes her repeat previous section)
27:17 – 28:45
That which I saw before my eyes saw you
It was a life that was wasted. How can [that time] be counted on me?
You are my life, whose morning began with your light.
29:11 – 30:55
Third Musical Theme
30:56 – 33:49
Sweet nights, desire and passion,
For ages my heart saved them for you.
Taste with me love, bite by bite,
From the tenderness of my heart whose desire extended to yours.
33:50 – 35:05
Fourth Musical Theme
35:06 – 36:38
Give me your eyes so that I can rest my eyes on the world that is in them
Give me your hands so that I can relax my hands upon their touch.
My love, come, and forget that which has passed us.
36:38 - 40:15 (Audience interrupts with applause to force her to repeat previous section)
40:15 – 40:56
Musical Interlude
41:00 – 43:05
My love, come, and forget that which has passed us.
43:05 – 44:34
That which I saw before my eyes saw you
It was a life that was wasted. How can [that time] be counted on me?
You are my life, whose morning began with your light.
45:03 – 46:25
Fifth Musical Theme
46:26 – 47:52
Oh [you who is] more precious than my days,
Oh [you who is] sweeter than my dreams,
Take me tenderly, take me far away from Being.
Far away, you and I, far away, as one together,
Upon love shall we wake up our days,
And upon desire shall we sleep our nights.
47:53 – 54:15 (Audience interrupts with applause to force her to repeat previous section several times)
54:16 – 58:08
By you, I have reconciled with my days,
By you, I have forgiven Time,
With you, I have forgotten my pains,
With you, I have forgotten sorrow.
Your eyes returned me back to the days which have passed,
They taught me to regret the past and its wounds.
That which I saw before my eyes saw you
It was a life that was wasted. How can [that time] be counted on me?
You are my life, whose morning began with your light.
@ossamadjama6199
@@user-ef8cf4bp3z 🤚🤚🤚أسمي
تخيلي أنتي الأن تحت التراب مذا يفيدكي هذا الغناء وسوف تقفين أمام ربك ويقول لماذا لم تنهين عن المنكر وتأمرين بالمعروف مذا ستكون أجبتيه أنا من الجيل الذهبي 😂😂
يلكم من أغبياء أنا فقط أوضح بعض العبراة بدون معنا
لتفهمين كلمي جيذا
في مثل هدا الفديوهات ليجب أن تتغلب علينا مشاعر الطفولة سمعتي مثل أغاني سبيستون القديم فكلنا نحبها وتشتاق إليها
ولكن تبقا حرام ويجب أن نتوقف عن سماعها
فنحن نعيش في زمن الفتن
فشيء الحرام يبقي حرام ولو عمله كل الناس
🕌🕌🤲✅️✅️✅️
@theblackdeath4398
English Translation
Enta 'Omri
You Are My LIfe
0:00 - 8:06
Muqadimmah (Musical Introduction)
8:07 - 11:25
Your eyes returned me back to the days which have passed,
They taught me to regret the past and its wounds.
That which I saw before my eyes saw you
It was a life that was wasted. How can [that time] be counted on me?
You are my life, whose morning began with your light.
12:11 - 15:47 (Audience makes her repeat the previous section)
16:03 - 17:44
Second Musical Theme
17:45 - 22:37
How much of my life has passed before [meeting] you
My love, how much of my life has passed?
Never did my heart see a single moment of happiness,
Nor did it taste anything in this world other than bitter wounds.
Only now have I begun to love my life,
Only now have I begun to fear that my life will begin to run out.
Every joy I had ever imagined,
My heart and mind found it in the light of your eyes.
Oh [you who is] the life of my heart,
Oh [you who is] more precious than my life,
Why, why, why didn’t I fall in love with you sooner?
24:18 – 27:11 (Audience makes her repeat previous section)
27:17 – 28:45
That which I saw before my eyes saw you
It was a life that was wasted. How can [that time] be counted on me?
You are my life, whose morning began with your light.
29:11 – 30:55
Third Musical Theme
30:56 – 33:49
Sweet nights, desire and passion,
For ages my heart saved them for you.
Taste with me love, bite by bite,
From the tenderness of my heart whose desire extended to yours.
33:50 – 35:05
Fourth Musical Theme
35:06 – 36:38
Give me your eyes so that I can rest my eyes on the world that is in them
Give me your hands so that I can relax my hands upon their touch.
My love, come, and forget that which has passed us.
36:38 - 40:15 (Audience interrupts with applause to force her to repeat previous section)
40:15 – 40:56
Musical Interlude
41:00 – 43:05
My love, come, and forget that which has passed us.
43:05 – 44:34
That which I saw before my eyes saw you
It was a life that was wasted. How can [that time] be counted on me?
You are my life, whose morning began with your light.
45:03 – 46:25
Fifth Musical Theme
46:26 – 47:52
Oh [you who is] more precious than my days,
Oh [you who is] sweeter than my dreams,
Take me tenderly, take me far away from Being.
Far away, you and I, far away, as one together,
Upon love shall we wake up our days,
And upon desire shall we sleep our nights.
47:53 – 54:15 (Audience interrupts with applause to force her to repeat previous section several times)
54:16 – 58:08
By you, I have reconciled with my days,
By you, I have forgiven Time,
With you, I have forgotten my pains,
With you, I have forgotten sorrow.
Your eyes returned me back to the days which have passed,
They taught me to regret the past and its wounds.
That which I saw before my eyes saw you
It was a life that was wasted. How can [that time] be counted on me?
You are my life, whose morning began with your light.
@krisautumn2224
Thank you 🙂
@user-nv2yk3vx1g
مجهودك جبار جدع يا عم
@ramzymetwaly812
Well done,good job!
@theopapa6559
THANK YOU SO MUCH,!!
@Sona_610
❤❤❤
@moesmiley
ومازال .. الذوق الاصيل .. ❤والفن الجميل .. مطلب كل عاشق .. وكل رايق .. وكل شخص يحب ان يبتعد عن مشاكل الكون وهموم الدنيا كلها .. ويستمع لام كلثوم متجاهلاً جميع مايؤلمه ❤ كل التحيه والحب ❤ ٢٠٢٣/١٠/٢٩ .. ربنا ينصر غزة 🇵🇸🇵🇸
@Renove31Renove31
اللهم امين يارب ❤🇵🇸🇩🇿
@faresmorii
الموسيقا بتقشعر البدن
بتذكرني ببلدي الغالية الجميلة سوريا
يا رب يفرجا على بلدي وعلى كل الناس
@user-ts8gs9qi6i
اللهم امين يارب العالمين