The Water Man ( sl, Povodni mož) was the first Slovene
ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or '' ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
. It was written in the spring of 1826 by the Slovene
Romantic poet
France Prešeren
France Prešeren () (2 or 3 December 1800 – 8 February 1849) was a 19th-century Romantic Slovene poet whose poems have been translated into many languages. and was a narration about Urška, a flirt from
Ljubljana
Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center.
During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...
who ended up in the hands of a handsome man who happened to be a ''
vodyanoy
In Slavic mythology, vodyanoy or vodyanoi ( rus, водяно́й, p=vədʲɪˈnoj; lit. ' efrom the water' or 'watery') is a water spirit. In Czech and Slovak fairy tales, it is called ''vodník'' (or in Germanized form: ), and it is consider ...
'' (). The poem was based on a story from ''
The Glory of Carniola'' about a dance at
Old Square
Old Square is a public square and road junction in the Core area of Birmingham City Centre, England.
Prior to construction
The site of the square was formerly occupied the Priory of St Thomas of Canterbury, with The Minories, Upper Priory ...
in Ljubljana in July 1547, when Urška Šefer was enchanted by a ''vodyanoy'' and pulled into the
Ljubljanica
The Ljubljanica (), known in the Middle Ages as the ''Sava'', is a river in the southern part of the Ljubljana Basin in Slovenia. The capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana, lies on the river. The Ljubljanica rises south of the town of Vrhnika and flow ...
. Prešeren wrote it due to his unfulfilled love for Zalika Dolenc. In the first publication of the poem, Urška was named Zalika. Later, in
Prešeren's ''Poems'' (1847), she was named Urška.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Water Man
Poetry by France Prešeren
Ballads
1826 poems