It is Bearslayer struggling there
The Strangers to eradicate.-
But long Laimdota's watching stare
Upon his triumph yet must wait.
But still, the day will come, is sure,
When he the Black Knight will cast down:
In Staburags's raging maw,
His deadly foe alone will drown.
Then for the folk new times will dawn;
At last their freedom will be born.
GLOSSARY OF PERSONAL AND PLACE NAMES
The entries in this section explain personal and place names for the purposes of the poem. I am not trying to give you a history or geography lesson! The material in square brackets after each Latvian word explains how I would like you to pronounce that word. This pronunciation is necessary for the metrical structure of the English-language poem, and may differ from standard Latvian pronunciation. I apologize for any offence that this causes. The syllable represented in the square brackets as "-a" should be pronounced as in "bad", the one represented as "-ah" as a long "bad". The syllable represented as "-e" should be pronounced as in "bed", "-o" as in "hot", "-oh" as in "throw,""oo" as in "zoo", "ow" as in "bough", "-u" as in "hut" and "uh" as in "book". Syllables in boldface should be stressed.
Aizkraukle [Eyes-krow-kle]: A Latvian stockade near the southern bank of the River Daugava, about 100 Km SE of Riga.
Aizkrauklis [Eyes-krow-kliss]: The Lord of Aizkraukle; father of Spidala.
Albert: The third Bishop of Uexküll (Latvian: Ikskile); sent by Pope Innocent III in 1199. He was the most effective in subjugating the Baltic people. He recruited the Sword Brothers (warrior monks and priests), who brought Christianity by force after diplo- macy and gifts failed.
All Souls Night: A night in October when the souls of the dear departed return to visit the living; comparable with Halloween.
Antrimps [Un-trimps}: The God of the Sea.