''Drømde mik en drøm i nat'' is the oldest known secular song in the

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, written around 1300. It is written in

Old East Norse Old East Norse was a dialect of Old Norse which evolved into the languages of Old Danish and Old Swedish from the 9th century to the 12th century. Between 800 and 1100, East Norse is in Sweden called '' Runic Swedish'' and in Denmark ''Runic ...

and is included in Codex Runicus, a transcript of

Scanian Law Scanian law (, ) is the oldest Danish provincial law and one of the first Nordic provincial laws to be written down. It was used in the geographic region of Danish Skåneland, which at the time included Scania, Halland, Blekinge and the isla ...

where it forms a final note. Like the law itself, it is written in

rune Runes are the letters in a set of related alphabets, known as runic rows, runic alphabets or futharks (also, see '' futhark'' vs ''runic alphabet''), native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were primarily used to represent a sound value (a ...

s, and the tune is written on two simple staves in an early form of

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. The song is sung in episode 6 of ''

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''. The song also formed the inspiration for the intro theme of the Danish television series '' Absalons Hemmelighed'' performed by Dicte.

Song text

The text of the song is :''Drømde mik en drøm i nat um '' :''silki ok ærlik pæl'' Most interpretations have been variants on these readings: :*''I dreamt a dream last night of silk and fine fur'' :*''I dreamt a dream last night of silk and expensive cloth'' The second line may be compared with the medieval song "Palle Boosons visa" which also speaks of "silk and fine fur": ''"Han kläder sig i silke, så och i ädel päll..''".

Musical notes

: Whilst there is general agreement on the notes of the melody (except for ligatures), a variety of rhythmical interpretations are possible. Tobias Norlind believed it to be an early version of Staffansvisan, a song about

Saint Stephen Stephen (; ) is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first martyr of Christianity."St ...

that is known in several versions and is still commonly sung in Sweden as part of the Lucia celebrations in December each year. However, Norlind did not attempt to interpret the rhythmical structure of the song. For many years, a version of the tune was used in breaks between programmes on

Danmarks Radio DR (), officially the Danish Broadcasting Corporation in English, is a Danish public-service radio and television broadcasting company. Founded in 1925 as a public-service organization, it is Denmark's oldest and largest electronic media enter ...

. In this version, the first half of the tune has been interpreted as

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: : Another interpretation based on rhythmical structures common in older traditional music, gives us a standard dance tune consisting of four plus four

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s:Åke Persson
Runtenom 2000-1 sid 7
in swedish :

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dromte Mig En Drom I Nat 14th-century songs Culture of Denmark Scania