Footnotes: Neidhart von Reuental
1Pimmel-Polka:
dance with obscene gestures
2Reuental:
play on words suggesting ‘vale of regrets.’
3verhökern:
colloquially for ‘verschachern,’ that is, ‘to barter away.’
4Blödian:
silly fool
5"Ich
bin mit ihm liiert, er hat mein Pfand darauf": I am going with him,
I gave him my pledge.
6sies:
sie es
7Oberbierbaum:
a community near Tulln in Austria between the rivers Traisen and Perschling
8Ridewanz:
a type of slow dance involving shuffling dance steps («Schleiftanz»).
9Schleiftanzwenden:
slow dance involving shuffling one’s feet and spinning
10Ungertor:
Hungarian Gate. Beyschlag believes this to be either the southwestern
gate of Wiener Neustadt, or, together with Haupt, the «Ungertor»
in the city of Hainburg. The Perschlingbach is a tributary to the
Danube west of Tulln.
11"die
Stange ihnen hielten": ‘would be a match for them’
12"besser
auch nur um ein Korn mit Weibern es verstehen": The literal meaning
is clear, that is, the two peasants remain unrivalled in all of Germany
as far as their way with women is concerned. Of course, the audience immediately
acknowledges the nature of this dubious distinction.
13tuscheln:
to whisper