Chrząszcz

Chrząszcz (a beetle, chafer) by Jan Brzechwa is a poem famous for being one of the hardest to pronounce texts in Polish literature, and may cause problems even for adult, native Polish speakers.

Polish original (help·info)	Phonetic transcription	English translation
W Szczebrzeszynie chrząszcz brzmi w trzcinie	[fʂt͡ʂɛbʐɛʂɨɲɛ xʂɔɰ̃ʂt͡ʂ bʐmi ftʂt͡ɕiɲɛ]	In the town of Szczebrzeszyn a beetle buzzes in the reeds
I Szczebrzeszyn z tego słynie.	[iʂt͡ʂɛbʐɛʂɨn stɛɡɔ swɨɲɛ]	And Szczebrzeszyn is famous for it.
Wół go pyta: „Panie chrząszczu,	[vuw ɡɔ pɨta paɲɛ xʂɔɰ̃ʂt͡ʂu]	An ox asks him: “Mister beetle,
Po cóż pan tak brzęczy w gąszczu?"	[pɔ t͡suʂ pan tak bʐɛnt͡ʂɨ vɡɔɰ̃ʂt͡ʂu]	What are you buzzing for in the bushes?”

Monument to the poem's hero

The first line “W Szczebrzeszynie chrząszcz brzmi w trzcinie” (In Szczebrzeszyn a beetle buzzes in the reed) is a well-known Polish tongue-twister.

Thanks to the poem, the town of Szczebrzeszyn is widely known in Poland. A monument to the beetle was erected there in 2002 and a yearly sculpture festival has been held there ever since.

Chrząszcz was translated into English by Walter Whipple as Cricket.

See also

• Polish literature