DAUNA DE LA MAISON (Occitan -Gascon dialect) Adishatz, dauna de la maison, Lo topin, la culhèra e lo caudron, Ont ei la vòsta hilha Lo topin e la gran' grilha. Sabètz pas perqué e soi vienut? Lo topin, la culhèra, lo bisagut, Pr'evs demandar Catrina Lo topin e la terrina. Catrina e's marida pas d'enguan, Lo topin, la culhèra, lo cuu deu can, Que n'ei tròp soenhoseta* Lo topin e l'escauheta. Ont es lo mèste de la maison Lo topin, la culhèra e lo caudron Ont es anat lo mèste? Lo topin e la casseta Lo mèste qu'es entau mercat Lo topin, la culhèra e lo grand plat Crompar 'n sac de vaishèra Lo topin e la caudèra E quan lo mèste qu'es arribat Lo topin, la culhèra e lo gran plat Qu'am lo galant de Catrina Lo topin e la terrina Li èi dit "Catrina 's marida pas, Lo topin, la culhèra et lo gran plat, Que n'es tròp soenhoseta * Lo topin e l'escauhèta Era que hèi nòsta foncion Lo topin la culhèra e lo caudron Que'ns lava la vaishèra Lo topin e l'escudèra Era que hèi nòsta foncion Lo topin la culhèra e lo caudron Com' hèi sa prauba mèra Lo topin e l'escudèra.

MISTRESS OF THE HOUSE Good morning, mistress of the house, The pot, the spoon and the caldron, Where is your daughter, The pot and the large grill Don't you know why I've come? The pot, the spoon, the adze, To ask you for Catherine[to marry her], The pot and the oven dish Catherine won't marry this year, The pot, the spoon, the dog ass, For she's too diligent, The pot and the bed warmer/warming pan. Where is the master of the house? The pot, the spoon and the caldron, Where has the master gone? The pot and the ladle. The master has gone to the market The pot, the spoon and the large dish To buy a bag of tableware, The pot and the kettle And when the master arrived The pot, the spoon and the large dish, Here's Catherine's beau, (lit. "we have C.'s beau") The pot and the oven dish I told him "Catherine won't marry, The pot, the spoon and the large dish For she's too diligent, The pot and the bed warmer/warming pan. She does our service, The pot, the spoon and the caldron, She washes the tableware for us The pot and the bowl, She does our service, The pot, the spoon and the caldron, Like her poor mother does, The pot and the bowl.

This is the original word that can be found in a version of the song collected in 1912 in La chanson populaire et la vie rurale des Pyrénées à la Vendée by Sylvian Trébucq and spelled "soignousette". You can hear it sung now as "sen-yausépe" (or the like) as was collected by Félix Arnaudin (1844-1921) in his "Chansons populaires de la Grande Lande, t 2" that was still unpublished when he died and was first published in 1970 (so unavailable online). The words have no meaning per se and can only be the result of a mishearing of "soignousette" (pronounced /swεɲuzεtə/ -something like "swenyoozehteh"), a Gascon diminutive of the French "soigneuse" (diligent, meticulous, careful) written in French spelling norm.
So, the masters wouldn't allow Catrina to get married because they'd have lost a too good housemaid!

Recording by Rosina de Pèira e Martina

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