Iovano Iovanke
Phoenix Lyrics


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Iovano, Iovano
Krai vadarot sedish mori belo platno belish
Belo platno belish dusho se na gore
Gledash

Iovano, Iovano
Iovano, Iovano
Tvojata majka mori tebe ne te pushta
Kaj mene da dojdesh dusho srce moje




Iovano

Overall Meaning

The song "Iovano Iovanke" by Phoenix is a traditional Macedonian folk song that has been covered by many artists throughout the years.


The lyrics depict the story of a young man named Iovano, who is sitting and staring at a white cloth, lost in thought. The word "sedish" translates to "sitting," while "mori" is used as an addressing term, similar to "oh" or "hey." The cloth is described as being white, and Iovano is said to be contemplating or pondering something ("dusho se na gore," which could be translated as "soul to the mountain").


The second part of the song implies that Iovano is in love with someone, but his mother won't let him be with her ("Tvojata majka mori tebe ne te pushta"). He begs for her to come to him ("Kaj mene da dojdesh dusho srce moje," which means "Come to me, my soul, my heart"), but she is unable to because of the restrictions placed upon her. The repetition of Iovano's name throughout the song adds to the emotional weight of the lyrics.


Overall, the song expresses themes of longing, love, and the limitations placed upon people by societal norms and expectations.


Line by Line Meaning

Iovano, Iovano
Addressing and referring to someone named Iovano or expressing a call for attention


Krai vadarot sedish mori belo platno belish
Sitting near the river, you are embroidering a white cloth, dear


Belo platno belish dusho se na gore
Embroidering the white cloth with your soul rising up to heaven


Gledash
Looking intently, possibly admiring what you are working on


Tvojata majka mori tebe ne te pushta
Your mother, dear, does not allow you to come to me


Kaj mene da dojdesh dusho srce moje
But come to me, my soul and my heart urge you


Iovano
Repeating the name Iovano, possibly to express longing or affection




Contributed by Kaelyn W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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Most interesting comments from YouTube:

@bindea_miruna

Jovano, Jovanke
Kraj Vardarot sediš, mori
Belo platno beliš
Belo platno beliš, dušo
Sî na gore gledaš.

Jovano, Jovanke
Jas te tebe čekam, mori
Doma da mi dojdeš
A ti ne doađaš, dušo
Srce moe Jovano.

Jovano, Jovanke
Tvojata majka, mori
Tebe ne te pušta,
Kaj mene da dojdiš, dušo
Srce moe Jovano.



@lucianlucian8037

Jovano, Jovanke
Kraj Vardarot sediš, mori
Belo platno beliš
Belo platno beliš, dušo
Se na gore gledaš.

Jovano, Jovanke
Jas te tebe čekam, mori
Doma da mi dojdeš
A ti ne doagjaš, dušo
Srce moe Jovano.

Jovano, Jovanke
Tvojata majka, mori
Tebe ne te pušta,
Kaj mene da dojdeš, dušo
Srce moe Jovano.
Nu exista consoana đ in bulgara macedoneana, nici cand se scrie cu litere latinesti. De fapt, singura grafie oficiala este cea chirilica, la fel ca in limba bulgara din Bulgaria, spre deosebire de limba sarba care accepta ambele grafii.

Јовано, Јованке
Крај Вардарот седиш, мори
Бело платно белиш,
Бело платно белиш, душо
Сè нагоре гледаш.
Јовано, Јованке,
Јас тебе те чекам, мори
Дома да ми дојдеш,
А ти не доаѓаш, душо
Срце мое, Јовано.
Јовано, Јованке,
Твојата мајка, мори
Тебе не те пушта,
Кај мене да дојдеш, душо
Срце мое, Јовано.



All comments from YouTube:

@HorseloverFat1984

I'm amazed that the best interpretation of this old macedonian song comes from a romanian band!

@a0flj0

Cultural ties are strong and diverse across the Balkans, and stretching north of the Danube into Romania, even into Hungary, despite Hungary being one of the more nationalistic countries in Europe. Phoenix was a band forced into exile by the Romanian communist dictatorship, and came from one of the most ethnic diverse regions of Romania - Banat. While Romanians constitute the majority of the population, centuries old communities of Bulgarians, Croatians, Bohemians, Germans, Hungarians, Serbs and Ukrainians also live in the region. There's even one village in the region that was French at its origin. I believe this could be the explanation.

@lucianlucian8037

@@a0flj0 Wrong: many Banat Romanians like Serbs because they share the Eastern Orthodox faith, they usually hate Hungarians because they used to be under Hungarian domination and Hungarians are Catholics. All this while Serbs give no ethnic rights to the Romanians living in Serbia, especially the ones living in Timok river valley area. They don't even acknowledge them as Romanians, calling the Vlachs or Romanian-speaking Serbs. Also Serbs are usually considered a heroic nation in Romania for having tried to stand up to Muslim Turkish invaders at Kosovo Polje. Both Romania and Serbia were for a long time under Ottoman Turkish occupation.

@FlorinRadovanOficial

Superbă piesă! Trăiască veșnic Phoenix!

@alti1954

Exceptional!!! ... Probably one of the most refined and friendly tribute ever payed to the monumental cultural treasure of the Macedonian art by a Romanian artistic entity! This is really about European common identity!... Thank you Macedonia!... Tank you Phoenix-Romania!!!

@ceslavciobanu6065

Not just European, my friend, much closer

@alessandrodelpierojuventus8156

Serbia ! În fact it should be Yugoslavia

@Mariangeo1991

I sang this song to a macedonian nurse... she cried her eyes out. She never expected to hear this song from the mouth of a romanian doctor in france.

@alti1954

@@Mariangeo1991 Impressive !

@alti1954

@@alessandrodelpierojuventus8156 ...right !

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