Poems of Catullus

Poem 2a: Lesbia's sparrow

Passer, deliciae meae puellae,

quicum ludere, quem in sinu tenere,

cui primum digitum dare appetenti

et acris solet incitare morsus,

cum desiderio meo nitenti

carum nescio quid lubet iocari,

et solaciolum sui doloris,

credo ut tum grauis acquiescat ardor:

tecum ludere sicut ipsa possem

et tristis animi leuare curas!

Sparrow, beloved of my girl –

with whom she likes to play, to hold

to her breast, to give her finger-tip

to reach for and provoke sharp pecks

whenever it pleases my lustrous longing 5

to make some sort of silly joke

as solace to your sadness (I judge)

so that your stifling ardour cools –

could I but play with you like her

and lighten my mind’s sombre cares! 10

Notes
Should Catullus manage to get past Lesbia's husband, there’s still a bird to contend with. This is probably his most famous poem, even in antiquity. It’s been suggested that passer may be a rock-thrush rather than sparrow as it has more of the characteristics of a pet bird (being more tameable and less dowdy). The intimacy of the sparrow with Lesbia has led to much speculation about the bird’s erotic nature, even to the point of it being seen by some as a metaphor for the penis.

The Latin metre is hendecasyllables; the English metre is iambic tetrameters.