Traditional: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

Hame 2

Traditional

“Hame 2” as printed in The Book of Scottish Song (1843).

Traditional: Collected Lyrics Text 140 1843 · historical text
Public domainScottish songFolk
Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from The Book of Scottish Song, edited by Alexander Whitelaw, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

Oh! tell na me that this is hame,—

It is nae hame to me:

Ilk thing is fremit to my heart,

An' unco to my e'e.

If I could see the bonnie brume

On ilka sandy knowe;

An' the whins in a' their gowden pride,

On green hill sides that grow:

If I could see the primrose blume

In mony a hazel glen,

Whar linties chirp, and merles sing,

Far free the step o' men:

If I could see the morning sun

Glint owre the dewy corn,

While a thousan' laverocks in the sky

Are welcoming the morn:

If I could see the gowan spread

Its wee flowers on the lea,

An' the heather blume on the mountain bare,

And the ivy climb the tree:

If I could see the sunny kirk-yard,

Whar my frien's lie side by side,

And think that I could lay my banes

Beside them when I died:—

Then might I think that this was hame,

And gladly live and dee,

Nor feel this want at my heart's core,

My native land, for thee.

Credits

Written by Traditional

Traditional words. Historical text published in The Book of Scottish Song (1843); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

The Book of Scottish Song (1843), edited by Alexander Whitelaw, “Hame 2”

Every contribution in this 1843 anthology predates modern copyright terms by more than a century; any contributor died at least 130 years ago, so the text is in the public domain worldwide (life+70 terms expired no later than 2020).

How to read this historical text and its source

Read the source on Wikisource

View copyright evidence · Transcription terms (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Retrieved 2026-10-12. Line spacing and section labels are adapted for reading. The displayed text follows the linked edition. Editorial notes and abstract artwork are by 52lyrics.
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