My Dutch-South African friend sang the Cooperative Recreation Service translation Friday night. She's known it all her life, and I don't think she recalled where she learned it.


Another person at the song circle came up with translation, which appears to be the same song as one verse posted above:

Who can sail when there is no wind,
With no oars to be rowing?
Who can sail far away from friends
With no tears a-flowing?

I can sail when there is not wind,
With no oars to be rowing.
But I can't sail far away from friends,
With no tears a-flowing!

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All this started me looking, and I found lots of recordings and translations. There's a nice YouTube recording here (click).
There's a somewhat different version on the Smithsonian/Folkways/Monitor album Best-Loved Songs of Sweden, by Saga Sjöberg and Kai Soderman. I don't see a date on the album notes, which say that "Vem Kan Segla" is a folksong from Norrland, which is the northern half of Sweden.

There are four versions and a MIDI at ingeb.org:

Vem kan segla förutan vind? Vem kan ro utan åror? Vem kan skiljas från vännen sin Utan att fälla tårar? Jag kan segla förutan vind, Jag kan ro utan åror. Men ej skiljas från vännen min Utan att fälla tårar. tr. Frank Wer kann segeln ohne Brisen, Wer kann rudern ohne Blatt, Wer kann, ohne Trän' vergießen, Freund verlassen, den er hatt'? Ich kann segeln ohne Brisen, Ich kann rudern ohne Blatt, Doch nicht, ohne Trän' vergießen, Freund verlassen, den ich hatt'!

Qui peut faire de la voile sans vent ? Qui peut ramer sans rames ? Et qui peux quitter son amant Sans verser de larmes ? Je peux faire de la voile sans vent Je peux ramer sans rames Mais ne peux quitter mon amant Sans verser de larmes. tr. Frank Who can sail without the wind, Who can row without an oar, Who can leave behind a friend, Without just one tear to pour? I can sail without the wind, I can row without an oar, But I cannot leave a friend, Without just one tear to pour.