Errantry, read aloud, an attempt

[mollyringle]

Here's an mp3 of me reading aloud Tolkien's poem "Errantry, which was all kalquessa's idea.

Text of "Errantry" here.

So that's where the name "Dumbledore" came from, eh?

By the way, does Spike call Wesley "Percy" after Percy Weasley? Both Wes and Percy were pretty proud of being "head boy".

Happy weekend!

Comments

[naill_renfro]

Wonderful! Takes me back... I read it in high school, and then again years later, when too much Potter triggered a random memory of the word "dumbledore" in some old Tolkien poem or other. I thought I was on to something profound, then dragged down the OED to find out that it just meant "bumblebee," which hp-lexicon probably could have told me, too. So this is the third time through, and it gets better each time. You're right, it would make a good movie (animated)?

BTW, can I use this space to shamelessly plug my HP and the Order of the Phoenix parody?
http://naill-renfro.livejournal.com/6445.html

[mollyringle]

I meant to link that parody ages ago! Argh. There. Done in new post. :)

Aw, just "bumblebee", huh? Once again I post something without fact-checking on Google first, and regret it...

[naill_renfro]

I've never seen it used by anyone else, though, so that probably *is* where JKR got it...

[gavinworld]

By the way, does Spike call Wesley "Percy" after Percy Weasley? Both Wes and Percy were pretty proud of being "head boy".

That might well be the case. OTOH, Spike could just be using "Percy" as a way to call Wesley a nerd, the way that one might call someone "Poindexter" here.

[mollyringle]

*nod* I couldn't tell if perhaps "Percy" was just a choice name for a geeky dork in the UK or something. :)

[mollyringle]

Thankee ma'am! :)

[kalquessa]

I think, if memory serves, that "Dumbledore" is an archaic word for bumble-bee. Tolkien and Rowling probably both found it via their classical educations and hung onto it because they both have a love of fun alliteration and obscure words.

Another fun note of the word that I found via a fellow fan: "Dumbledore" was, apparently, a type of hat for a very short period. So Albus Dumbledore could be translated as "White Hat." Hmmm. *chin stroke*

[mollyringle]

White hat, eh? Cool. I didn't realize JKR was so linguistically clever as well--though obviously not to the fanatical degree JRRT was...

[naill_renfro]

That's better! I wish I could find a picture of a dumbledore hat, but alas, all Google gives me is pictures of Dumbledore hats. Well, I'm sure it's silly looking.

The most recent usage example the OED gives is from 1863 -- they seem to have missed Tolkian's altogether, although I think they prefer prose examples. This, BTW, is the OED definition:

"A humble-bee or bumble-bee; also (dial.) a cockchafer."

I haven't dared to look that one up.

[kalquessa]

"Cockchafer"? Oh dear.

[islandboy]

the dumbledors…wow dumbledor! LOL! :oD

Pretty darned good for a first read if you ask me - well done ;o)

[mollyringle]

Hee. Thanks! I'm not half bad at sight-reading as long as it's just words and no music.