"Erev Shel Shoshanim" ( en, Evening of Lilies or ''Evening of Roses''; the Hebrew word ''shoshana'' has been identified with both flowers) is a poetic

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

love song A love song is a song about romantic love, falling in love, heartbreak after a breakup, and the feelings that these experiences bring. A comprehensive list of even the best known performers and composers of love songs would be a large order. ...

. Its melody is often used as wedding music in

Jewish wedding A Jewish wedding is a wedding ceremony that follows Jewish laws and traditions. While wedding ceremonies vary, common features of a Jewish wedding include a ''ketubah'' (marriage contract) which is signed by two witnesses, a ''chuppah'' or ''hu ...

s. It is well known not only within

Israeli Israeli may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel * Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel * Modern Hebrew, a language * ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008 * Guni Israeli ...

and

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

music circles, but known throughout the

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, and it is often used as a song

belly dancers Belly dance (Egyptian Arabic: رقص بلدي, translated: Dance of the Country/Folk Dance, romanized: Raks/Raas Baladi) is a dance that originates in Egypt. It features movements of the hips and torso. It has evolved to take many different f ...

dance to. The music is by Yosef Hadar, the lyrics are by Moshe Dor. The song was first recorded in 1957 by singer

Yafa Yarkoni Yafa Yarkoni ( he, יפה ירקוני, also Yaffa Yarqoni, 24 December 1925 – 1 January 2012) was an Israeli singer, winner of the Israel Prize in 1998 for Hebrew song. She was dubbed Israel's "songstress of the wars" due to her frequent perfo ...

, and a year later by the duo HaDuda'im. Their version became a smash hit in Israel. The Dudaim toured the world extensively in the '60s, and "Erev Shel Shoshanim" became one of their international signature songs. In 1966, the

Israeli folk dancing Israeli folk dance ( he, ריקודי עם, ''rikudei 'am'', lit. "Folk dances") is a form of dance usually performed to songs in Hebrew, or to other songs which have been popular in Israel, with dances choreographed for specific songs. Israeli d ...

choreographer Zvi Hillman created the first folk dance based on the song.

Other versions of the song

During the '60s and '70s the song was recorded by various international singers, including

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Olivera Katarina Olivera Katarina (; sr-cyr, Оливера Катарина, ; born 5 March 1940), also previously known as Olivera Vučo ( sr-cyr, Оливера Вучо) and Olivera Šakić ( sr-cyr, Оливера Шакић), is a Serbian actress, singer ...

Nana Mouskouri Ioanna "Nana" Mouskouri ( el, Ιωάννα "Νάνα" Μούσχουρη ) (born 13 October 1934) is a Greek singer. Over the span of her career, she has released over 200 albums in at least twelve languages, including Greek, French, English, Ger ...

Daliah Lavi Daliah Lavi (born Daliah Lewinbuk or Levenbuch, he, דליה לביא ; 12 October 1942 – 3 May 2017) was an Israeli actress, singer, and model. Biography Daliah Lewinbuk (or Levenbuch) was born in Shavei Tzion, British Mandate of Palestine ...

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and

Quilapayún Quilapayún () are a folk music group from Chile and among the longest lasting and most influential ambassadors of the ''Nueva Canción Chilena'' movement and genre. Formed during the mid-1960s, the group became inseparable with the revolution th ...

Martin Simpson Martin Stewart Simpson (born 5 May 1953) is an English folk singer, guitarist and songwriter. His music reflects a wide variety of influences and styles, rooted in Britain, Ireland, America and beyond. He builds a purposeful, often upbeat voi ...

and

Miriam Makeba Zenzile Miriam Makeba (4 March 1932 – 9 November 2008), nicknamed Mama Africa, was a South African singer, songwriter, actress, and civil rights activist. Associated with musical genres including African popular music, Afropop, jazz, a ...

. In 1974, Yugoslav

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band Dah recorded their hit song "Šošana", which featured melody based on "Erev Shel Shoshanim". In 1975, after moving to

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

and changing the name to Land, the band recorded an English-language version of "Šošana" (entitled "Shoshana"), which became an international hit and made the song's melody a popular football chant. The song has been translated into

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

, in which language its title is "Yarus (O, Rose!)". Juhani Forsberg used the melody, which he thought to be an Israeli folksong, in his song "Tiellä ken vaeltaa", which has since ended up in the hymnbook of

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland ( fi, Suomen evankelis-luterilainen kirkko; sv, Evangelisk-lutherska kyrkan i Finland) is a national church of Finland. It is part of the Lutheran branch of Christianity. The church has a legal positio ...

. A version of the song was also sampled in the 2016 hit song, "Save Me" by French pop artist The Parakit.

Lyrics

English translation

Evening of roses
Let us go out to the grove
Myrrh, perfumes, and frankincense
Is the carpet under your feet Night falls slowly
And a wind of rose blows
Let me whisper a song for you slowly
A song of love Dawn and the dove coos
Your hair is full of dewdrops
Your lips are as roses unto the morning
I will pick them for myself

English transliteration

Erev shel shoshanim
Netse na el habustan
Mor besamim ulevona
Leraghelech miftan Layla yored le'at
Veru'ach shoshan noshvah
Hava elchash lach shir balat
Zemer shel ahava Shachar homa yona
Roshech ma'le telalim
Pich el haboker shoshana
Ektefenu li

Original Hebrew

ערב של שושנים
נצא נא אל הבוסתן
מור בשמים ולבונה
.לרגלך מפתן לילה יורד לאט
ורוח שושן נושבה
הבה אלחש לך שיר בלאט
.זמר של אהבה שחר הומה יונה
ראשך מלא טללים
פיך אל הבוקר, שושנה
.אקטפנו לי

References

External links

Hebrew LyricsA singable (rhyming) English translationThe song in the "Israelidances" database
*
"The song in the web hymn book of Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland"
{{authority control Songs in Hebrew Israeli folk songs 1957 songs