Scarborough Fair is one among famous classical-traditional ballads in the world. It comes from Great Britain - precisely Yorkshire, and been popular since 18th century. It was named after Scarborough, a small town on the coast of England. The "Scarborough Fair" was a popular gathering in Medieval times, attracting traders and entertainers from all over the country. The fair lasted 45 days and started every August 15th. In the 1600s, mineral waters were found in Scarborough and it became a resort town. Today, Scarborough is a quiet town with a rich history. In Medieval England, this became a popular folk song as Bards would sing it when they traveled from town to town. The song itself, had been rewritten, modified, and adapted for so many times that the original version is yet unknown.
Are you going to Scarborough Fair?
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme;
Remember me to one who lives there,
For once she was a true love of mine.
Tell her to make me a cambric shirt,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme;
Without a seam or needlework,
She will be a true love of mine.
Tell her to wash it in yonder dry well,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme;
Where never spring water or rain ever fell,
She will be a true love of mine.
Tell her to dry it on yonder grey thorn,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme;
Which never bore blossom since Adam was born,
She will be a true love of mine.
Now he has asked me questions three,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme;
I hope he'll answer as many for me
Before he shall be a true love of mine.
Tell him to buy me an acre of land,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme;
Betwixt the salt water and the sea sand,
Then he shall be a true love of mine.
Tell him to plough it with a ram's horn,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme;
And sow it all over with one pepper corn,
And he shall be a true love of mine.
Tell him to shear it with a sickle of leather,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme;
And bind it up with a peacock feather.
And he shall be a true love of mine.
Tell him to thrash it on yonder wall,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
And never let one corn of it fall,
Then he shall be a true love of mine.
When he has done and finished his work.
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme:
Oh, tell him to come and he'll have his shirt,
And he shall be a true love of mine.
(Scarborough Fair, 1889 - Modern version)
This song is often sung duet. It's a tale about a young man who asks his former love some impossible tasks, such as making him a cambric shirt without a seam and needlework; washing it in a dry spring where water or rain never fell; and dry it in yonder grey thorn where plants always blossom there, and he will take her back again once she completes these task in return.
And the woman answer his demands with some equally impossible tasks too: Buy her an acre of land between the salt water and sea sand (does that mean a beach?); plough it with ram's horn and sow it all over with one pepper corn; shear it with a sickle of leather and bind it up with a peacock feather; thrash it on yonder wall and never let any corn fall, and once he completes these task she will give him that shirt without a seam and needlework he asks her to make.
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme are famously known in myth as ingredients of the witches' love potion.
* Parsley : Parsley is still prescribed by phytotherapists today to people who suffer from bad digestion. Eating a leaf of parsley with a meal makes the digestion of heavy vegetables such as spinach a lot easier. It was said to take away the bitterness, and medieval doctors took this in a spiritual sense as well.
* Sage : Sage has been known to symbolize strength for thousands of years.
* Rosemary : Rosemary represents faithfulness, love and remembrance. Ancient Greek lovers used to give rosemary to their ladies, and the custom of a bride wearing twigs of rosemary in her hair is still practiced in England and several other European countries today. The herb also stands for sensibility and prudence. Ancient Roman doctors recommended putting a small bag of rosemary leaves under the pillow of someone who had to perform a difficult mental task, such as an exam. Rosemary is associated with feminine love, because it’s very strong and tough, although it grows slowly.
* Thyme : According to legend, the king of fairies dances in the wild thyme with all of the fairies on mid summer night; that’s the best known legendary appearance of the herb. But the reason Thyme is mentioned here is that it symbolizes courage. At the time this song was written, knights used to wear images of thyme in their shields when they went to combat, which their ladies embroidered in them as a symbol of their courage.
Or in simple way, parsley was comfort, sage was strength, rosemary was love, and thyme was courage.
Both man and woman in this ballad invoke said powers in naming these herbs: Mildness to soothe the bitterness of their relationship, spiritual strength to endure being apart from each other, faithfulness and lastly encouragement, to fulfill the impossible tasks given.
Some people also believe that this song and its story are actually represent the condition of Great Plague that happened on the late Middle Age (medieval); some take it as a riddle where in this song appears a big question like why does lovers who seem to be deeply in love give such impossible missions to do for each other where they can actually be together so easily? Or why parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme? Some answer that maybe the woman has died or leave him unexpectedly where he can't forget her until that time he sings the song or when he goes to the Scarborough Fair and always remembers her. Do he want her back from death?
Well, it's still a mystery. Anyhow, Scarborough Fair is one of the most beautiful songs ever.
