Üsküdara Gideriken or Kâtibim
(When Going to Üsküdar) or (The Clerk)

This page contains a translation into English of the lyrics to the traditional Turkish song "Üsküdara Gideriken", based on the version recorded by Eartha Kitt. Turkish people usually refer to this song by the title "Kâtibim". Also included are the Turkish lyrics so you can sing along if you like.

Üsküdar is a suburb of Istanbul which before the genocide in the early 20th century was inhabited by several thousand Greeks. It was known in ancient times as Chrysopolis.

Song lyrics are provided for educational purposes. If you like the song, please purchase either the album or a download from an authorized source.

The melody and the lyrics are both traditional from Asia Minor (the land mass where modern-day Turkey resides). Versions of this song exist in both Turkish and Greek.

Some Artists to Record this Song:

• Mario Liberopoulo, 1917 ("Apo Xeno Kosmo")
• Giorgos Vidali, 1926 ("Ehasa Mantili")
• Lefteris Menemenlis, 1928 ("Ehasa Mantili")
• Kazis Miltiadis, 1928 ("Ehasa Mantili")
• Virginia Magidou ("Eskoutari")
• Safiye Ayla, 1949, in Turkish ("Kâtibim")
• Eartha Kitt, 1953, in Turkish ("Uska Dara")
• Mohamed El-Bakkar, 1959, in Arabic ("Banat Iskandaria") on his album Port Said
• Zeki Müren, 1968, in Turkish, sang the song in the movie Kâtip (Üsküdar'a Giderken)
• Chris Kalogerson, 1975, instrumental ("Banat Iskandaria") on his album Belly Dancing for Everyone
• Hani Mitwasi, 2006, in Arabic ("Gazali Gazali") on his album Khamrat Al Hob
• Loreena McKennitt, 2006, instrumental ("Sacred Shabbat") on the album An Ancient Muse

Listen to MP3 Clips of This Song

	Sung by Eartha Kitt
	Sung by Sirocco
	Instrumental by Mediterranean Raqs Band (Saqra)

Lyrics

This translation is based on recordings by Eartha Kitt. She performed several different versions of the song, each with slightly different variations of the lyrics. Below are two of her versions.

1. Eartha Kitt: The Collection
2. Another version from one of her other albums

Other Verses for this Song

Because this is a very old, very traditional song, there are many verses that have arisen over the centuries. Here are some of them:

When [we were] going to Üsküdar, the grocer around the corner,
pencil in hand, added up our accounts.
The clerk is mine and I am his, hands intertwined,
My clerk looks great in a starched shirt!

A canary cage in the hands of my clerk,
My clerk's fez is too small for him.
The clerk is willing to get married.
The clerk is mine and I am his, hands intertwined,
My clerk looks great in a starched shirt!

When [we were] going to Üsküdar, my bundle caught fire.
Someone pulled my cord, my watch fell,
The womanizing Üsküdar men are chasing me!
The clerk is mine and I am his, hands intertwined,
My clerk looks great in a starched shirt!

The boats from Üsküdar are in Istanbul.
My clerk is sitting, he is cracking hazlenuts [filberts].
In his sleep, the clerk calls out my name.
The clerk is mine and I am his, hands intertwined,
My clerk looks great in a starched shirt!

Where to Get Recordings of this Song

	Listen to Clip	Artist: Eartha Kitt CD Title: Purrfect: The Eartha Kitt Collection
	Listen to Clip	Artist: Eartha Kitt CD Title: The Very Best of Eartha Kitt
	Listen to Clip	Artist: Mediterranean Raqs Band CD Title: Music Saqra Likes Web Site: www.saqra.net
	Listen to Clip	Artist: Sirocco Album Title: Sirocco Volume 1 Sirocco P.O.Box 24 Capitola, CA 95010 U.S.A. Telephone: (+1) (831) 475-3591 Fax: (+1) (831) 475-3591 Email: hanya@unclemafufo.com Web Site: sirocco-music.com
		Artist: Middle Earth Ensemble CD Title: Passage

About the Translator

This translation was created by Eva, a half Turkish, half Persian Oriental dancer and teacher living in Ottawa, Ontario Canada. She loves classical Egyptian, Turkish Rroma and Persian Dance. She is also known as Aasiyah on Bhuz.com and can be reached at belly_dancer@rogers.com. Eva is available to do custom song translations from either Turkish or Farsi (Persian) to English. Contact her for current fee schedules. Click on the photo of Eva to the right to see it in more detail.

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