Creation of the world

A silky feathered lovely bird,
a silky feathered lovely bird.
      Refr: Vaat luuli, vat-vat luuli,
a silky feathered lovely bird.¹

Flew onto a golden bush,
flew onto the golden bush.

The gold did not choose to love,
the gold did not choose to brook.

A silky feathered lovely bird,
a silky feathered lovely bird.

Flew onto the silver bush,
flew onto the silver bush.

The silver did not choose to love,
the silver did not choose to brook.

A silky feathered lovely bird.
flew to the silky bush.

The silk chose to love it,
the silk chose to brook it.

A silky feathered lovely bird
started building a nest.

It collected little straws
and settled the little feathers in.

It laid three eggs in,
and hatched three baby birds.

One was a nice fallow bird,
the other a lazy woodland bird.

The third was a silk-feathered bird,
the third was a silk-feathered bird,

Herbert Tampere: What song is it, was it just sung for fun?
Liisa Arus: Yes, it was just sung to children.
HT: A circle dance probably?
LA: Yes, the circle dance was done. Very beautiful.
HT: OK.
LA: Little children played a circle dance. They still made a circle, holding hands. Now it is no longer a circle dance. Relics of old age, the time has passed.
HT: But was there dancing inside or not?
LA: Well, the children danced inside too. While – 'vat luuli' was sung... Well, this fallow bird was a lark, it lives and makes a nest on the field. A lazy woodland bird is a cuckoo who doesn't make a nest, and the third silk-feathered bird, I don't know it.

¹ The refrain 'vaat-luuli' and repetition of the second verse line are persistently added to verses throughout the song.

In whose yard is there an apple tree?
In our yard there is an apple tree.
How many branches on the apple tree?
Three there were branches on the apple tree.
How many blossoms on the branches?
Three there were blossoms on each branch.
How many apples for each blossom?
One there was an apple for each blossom.
    When the apples were ripe,
along came a wind and raised a storm,
it shook the apples into the sea.
From the sea arose a many-coloured bird,
it flew through our yard,
and down into our copse.
    Three there are bushes in our copse:
one bush was a silver bush,
another bush was a copper bush,
the third was golden filigreed.
    The bird started to build a nest,
to collect bits of wood.
When it got the nest ready,
it started to lay eggs;
when the eggs were laid,
it started to hatch them out;
when they were hatched,
it started to raise them,
raise them and prise them;
when the chicks were grown,
it started to drop them.
    It placed one as the sun over the world,
another as the moon in the heavens,
the third as a stone in the field.