# Mnoga ljeta, živijó



## stelingo

Yes, I know the title of the thread isn't in Czech. After watching an episode of the Czech drama series Vyprávěj tonight, I became aware that Mnoga ljeta, živijó is what people sang during communist times when wishing someone happy birthday. Is this still the case today and how did it come about that a Serbian/Croatian (?) song was adopted?


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## Enquiring Mind

Hi stelingo, there's one view in a blog here (source: patenttranslator.wordpress.com) which says (para 11 etseq.): "According to another theory, this song is originally Slovenian or  Croatian and it was brought to other Slavic countries after soldiers  during World War I learned it in what would later become Yugoslavia."   I was at a 60th birthday oslava in Moravia three weeks ago and it was, indeed, sung in preference to any other song, and everyone (well, the adults, at least) knew the words.


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## Hrdlodus

I *think*, it is not preferred form, but it is known.
I *think*, _živijó _is used more often (for drinking) than _mnogo ljeta_. But less often than _na zdraví_.

And my example: I didnť know 'till now, what it means. I thought, it is some ditty. Know, when I see, how it is written, I see, what it means.


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## stelingo

Interesting, Enquiring Mind. So it seems this song is sung in many 'Slavic' countries. I shall post this in the 'Other Slavic languages' when I have time.


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## ilocas2

Hello,

I think it's not really a song. It's just 3 words, nothing more.

If I can speak only for myself, I didn't hear anybody to sing it or to say it. I became aware that it exists in 2011 from some internet discussion.

In my opinion only some old people use it nowadays.


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## Tchesko

ilocas2 said:


> Hello,
> 
> I think it's not really a song. It's just 3 words, nothing more.
> 
> If I can speak only for myself, I didn't hear anybody to sing it or to say it. I became aware that it exists in 2011 from some internet discussion.
> 
> In my opinion only some old people use it nowadays.



Well, it's definitely sung, so I guess we can call it a song. I know it with the following lyrics:

_Živijó, živijó, __živijó, __živijó.
Mnoga ljeta zdravi byli, mnoga ljeta živijó.
Mnoga ljeta zdravi byli, mnoga ljeta živijó.
Živijó, živijó, živijó._

I think that this is a version "adapted" for the Czech language (cf. the "zdravi byli" part).
This source says it's a fragment of a Croatian song, although that source says it might come from Russian.
I have heard it on various occasions in Moravia, not necessarily used only by old people.


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## ilocas2

I found a cover of it:

To jsme rádi, že jsme tady, že nás tady živijó!
To jsme rádi, že jsme tady, že nás tady živijó!
Živijó, živijó, živijó!!!


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## Hrdlodus

ilocas2 said:


> I found a cover of it:
> 
> To jsme rádi, že jsme tady, že nás tady živijó!
> To jsme rádi, že jsme tady, že nás tady živijó!
> Živijó, živijó, živijó!!!


I think, that is joke about lyrics, that sung Soviet's army in Czechoslovakia. (Again, sorry bad english.)


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## francisgranada

I heard this "song" one or two times (in Slovakia), especially during the socialist era, but only the "refrain" was sung (as far as I remember), i.e.:
_
Živjó, živjó, živjó, živjó.
 Mnóga ľéta, mnóga ľéta .... živjó.                                                  

_I have always thought it's in Russian and _živjó _is erroneousely used instead of "živjot" (in the sense of "let him/her live")  ...


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## bibax

francisgranada said:


> I have always thought it's in Russian and _živjó _is erroneousely used instead of "živjot" (in the sense of "let him/her live")  ...


Měls číst povinnou četbu! 

Slovník slovenského jazyka:





> *živio* (pre všetky rody a obe čísla), zried. i živila (pre j. č. ž.) živoli (pre mn. č.) cit. (Srbch.) nech žije!: _Hlučné živio. (Jes.) Všetci privolali na slávu, živio — a éljen! (Vans.) Živio, živio, živio-o-ó! (Ráz.) Živila, Ruženka, živila! (Tim.) Sláva! Živili! (Urbk.)_


Přidám ještě Tajovského (Blúznivci):
NOTÁR, BIELIK, MAXO A VŠETCI: Sláva! Živio! Éljen!


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## francisgranada

bibax said:


> Měls číst povinnou četbu!


Yes


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## toygekko

Hrdlodus said:


> I think, that is joke about lyrics, that sung Soviet's army in Czechoslovakia. (Again, sorry bad english.)



Prosím vás, neomlouvejte se pořád za špatnou angličtinu, raději to napište česky, vaší angličtině není rozumět!


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## toygekko

V rodině mé matky v Brně se tohle na oslavách zpívalo, její otec pocházel tuším z Moravského Slovácka, pamatuju si to z dětských let (bylo to tak před 25 - 30 lety). Možná že v rodinném kruhu to ona i její sourozenci zpívají doteď. Ale zpívali jenom _živijó, živijó, živijó, živijóóó, / mnoga ljeta, mnoga ljeta, mnoga ljeta, živijó, / mnoga ljeta, mnoga ljeta, mnoga lje-ta, / živijó, živijó, živijó, živijóóó! _Tuším že (možná žertovně) té písni říkali _mnogaljeta. _(Ve spojení *zazpíváme mnogaljetu/mnogaljeta.)

*Pamatuju si to asi taky proto, že jsem jako dítě nevěděl, co to ta _mnogaljeta _je. Až časem mi došlo, že by to mohlo nějak souviset s roky... Podobně jako jsem v útlém mládí netušil, proč je ten synek *domalý,* když se jej tatíček ptá, jestli oral nebo ne.  Kupodivu jsem to adjektivum jinde neslýchával.  My jsme vůbec asi taková divná rodina. Manželka zase jako dítko nevěděla, co je to ten *kýbača, *který ovečky zatáča.


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## stelingo

I was in Prague recently, and I asked a Czech friend, who's in his late 20s,  about the song. He had never heard it.


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## Garin

Můj dědeček (ročník 1900) ji znal a zpívával rád, a často dával k dobrému historku o tom, jak tomu můj tatínek špatně rozuměl a místo "mnoga ljeta" zpíval "noha je tam". Teď už je ta písnička trochu pozapomenutá, ale do filmů se hodí, protože je v public domain a nemusí se za ni platit autorská práva (zatímco na slavné "Happy Birthday" je dosud platný copyright).


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## toygekko

... a v díle Českého století, kde měl Slánský oslavu, zpívali tuhle písničku taky. Přesně v tomhle znění ji znám, viz můj předchozí příspěvek.


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## AidanLopan

My stepmother came from a wealthy Czech family. She explained that many Czechs would go to the Dalmatian coast for vacation in the Austrian-Hungarian empire days. (They still do?) And this is how they were introduced to this song. I have no idea how true that is.


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## Leiduowen

stelingo said:


> I was in Prague recently, and I asked a Czech friend, who's in his late 20s,  about the song. He had never heard it.


Well, that's not a significant respondent sample. Asking a young person from Prague doesn't mean much in this context. Young Czechs often don't even understand Slovak which is the closest Slavic language. Also, the Czechs don't care about their Slavic identity so much - long gone is the First Pan-Slav congress held in Prague in 1848  - as they prefer to look West.
Here is a good article explaining the origin of this song: Živio, živio nám do země přinesli českoslovenští legionáři z Itálie a Srbska Even if you don't understand Czech, you can use Google Translator.
As for the song itself, in Slovakia, we sing it at birthdays quite often, but mostly my parents' generation. Young people probably wouldn't find it so hip but then - god knows? It sounds incomparably better than the English tune overused to the point of idiocy.


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