Lyrics:
Fire is burning on the hill*,
So the valley is in smoke.
Cossacks are marching on a campaign
With flags, which are still visible on the horizon.
From Zaporizhzhia, from Chyhyryn*,
Army is marching!
The otaman* is in front of it,
He rides a beautiful horse.
Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye my dear mother,
Goodbye, Ukraine!
Goodbye, my green garden,
Goodbye, my dear girl.
Only God knows, only God knows,
If I will be back...
My raven horse at the yard
Has stumbled for some reason* .
Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry, girl,
Don't cry and don't be sad.
Pray to God for young cossack
Who is going to the war.
Fire is burning on the hill,
So the valley is in smoke.
Cossacks are marching on a campaign
With flags, which are still visible on the horizon.
*fire on the hill - when the enemy attack, cossacks were burning a fire on special wooden tower (located at the hill to be higher) to inform another small cossack villages about enemies. When another cossack village saw such fire, they too were burning a fire on wooden tower, so all cossack villages were informed about enemies attack. In many folk songs "fire on the hill" symbolize begining of the war.
*Chyhyryn - capital of the cossack hetmanate.
*otaman - comander in cossack army.
*"horse has stumbled" - in cossack times people believed, that if horse has stumbled while he leaves the yard, the rider will not return home.