"Emina" (Cyrillic: Емина) is a poem by Bosnian Serb poet Aleksa Šantić that became a popular sevdalinka song, covered by many prominent singers from Bosnia and Herzegovina and other parts of former Yugoslavia. It was first published in 1902 in the Serbian literary journal Kolo.[1] The subject of the poem is Šantić's neighbor, a Bosnian Muslim[2] girl named Emina Sefić. It is one of the most well-known sevdalinka songs of all time.
On 27 May 2010, a bronze statue of Emina was unveiled in Mostar. It was unveiled on Šantić's 142nd birthday, although it's not publicly known if that was intentionally done or coincidental.[5] The Emina statue was sculpted by Zlatko Dizdarević over the period of three months and was not based on photographs of her, rather the artistic vision of a Bosnian beauty. The statue was sculpted with clothing that women wore in Bosnia and Herzegovina at the turn of the century.
Lyrics
The original, longer version of Emina, published in the Serbian journal Kolo in 1902
Not caring, the naughty one, that I am crazy for her!
Many artists have covered the song, but the version by fellow Mostar native, Bosnian singer Himzo Polovina, remains the most popular.[7] Upon hearing of the death of Emina Sefić, Polovina went to poet Sevda Katica's home in the Mostar neighbourhood Donja Mahala. He found her in the yard of the family home, informed her of Emina's death and she shuddered with grief and spoke the verses:
New verses
Translation
Umro stari pjesnik, umrla Emina
ostala je pusta bašća od jasmina
salomljen je ibrik
uvelo je cvijeće
pjesma o Emini, nikad umrijet neće.
The old poet has died, Emina has died
The empty garden of jasmine was left behind
The pitcher is broken
The flowers have withered
The song about Emina, will never die.
Himzo Polovina recorded the song and added Sevda's new verses.
Legacy
Some have suggested adopting the words from "Emina" as the lyrics for the wordless Bosnian national anthem, due to its connection to Bosniaks, Croats, and Serbs (the three main Bosnian ethnic groups) alike.[8]
