1921 .] Three Tibetan Repartee Songs. 299 
My last note on the subject of parallels is by Mr. W. 
Ivanow who was so kind as to communicate to me the follow- 
ing valuable remarks bearing on the subject belonging to the 
experiences of “his” East. I am glad to add them to the 
other material here presented :— 
“This form of poetical composition is quite common in 
Persia and Turkistan. You know the literary and classical 
forms of Munazirah (%,5lc) for which you can refer to 
E. G. Browne’s Literary History of Persia, Vols. 1 & IT (espe- 
Therefore I will tell you something about whic u cannot 
find information in the literature, namely, about the popular 
form of the poetry comp in this way. . The Persian pea- 
question and a reply :-— 
1. O girl why wilt thou not go to thy relations 
2. To ask about our marriage ? What dost thou say ‘ 
3. I went to my parents and asked then1. oo 
4. They are not going to give me to thee. What dost 
thou say 
Sometimes one quatrain contains a question and the next 
one the reply. Sometimes in two connected quatrains the 
question and reply follow the one after the other in each as for 
instance :— 
I. Question 1, 2; reply 3, 4. 
Il. Question 1, 2; reply 3, 4, or 
I. Question 1, 2; reply 3, 4. 
II. Question 1, reply 2 ; question 3, reply 4. 
The subjects are very different-—love, marriage, abuse, moc- 
kery, etc., etc. I possess, for example, a fine specimen—a dia- 
The origin of this sort of songs (which sometimes live for 
on. In the patriar- 
chal life of the villagers who are not tied by the strict prescrip- 
tions of Muhammedan etiquette, the young peo of both 
o 
feels occasionally real feminine care and affectio 
ppose that in referring to : 
think chiefly of the Kalevala, a peautiful, althou 
shadowy, fleshless, song of the North. In this case the two 
singers seize each others’ hands and begin to sing. 
The Kurds, to return agai 
so fond of the pastime but occa 
as far as I know, practise and have prac 
sionally enjoy it. The Arabs, 
tised this thing in 
