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Although Return of the Jedi used a wordless male chorus to enhance The Sith Theme, The Phantom Menace was the first Star Wars film to feature music with sung lyrics.
John Williams: "The great sword fight at the end of the film - the decision to make that choral was just the result of my thinking that it should have a ritualistic or quasi-religious feeling, and the introduction of a chorus might be just the thing. ... [T]he medium of chorus and orchestra would give us a sense that we're in a big temple." Here are the lyrics in full: Korah Matah Korah Rahtahmah Korah Rahtamah Yoodhah Korah Korah Syahdho Rahtahmah Daanyah Korah Keelah Daanyah Nyohah Keelah Korah Rahtahmah Syadho Keelah Korah Rahtahmah Korah Daanyah Korah Rahtahmah Korah Daanyah Korah Rahtahmah Nyohah Keelah Korah Rahtahmah Syadho Keelah Korah Rahtahmah Korah Korah Matah Korah Rahtahmah Korah Daanyah Korah Rahtahmah Nyohah Keelah Korah Rahtahmah Syadho Keelah Korah Rahtahmah Korah These words originated in the medieval Welsh poem Cad Goddeu (The Battle of the Trees). The text was translated into English by Robert Graves, and published in 1948 as part of The White Goddess: A Historical Grammar of Poetic Myth. John Williams selected lines 32-35: Under the tongue root a fight most dread, and another raging behind in the head I have absolutely no idea what any of the original text means, but Williams had it translated into a variety of languages, eventually selecting Sanskrit "because of the quality of the vowels". If we read between the lines, then, John Williams liked the Sanskrit because it helped provide that "ritualistic or quasi-religious" character that was missing from other languages (and, no doubt, English in particular).
70 Comments
Ewok Guy
5/10/2017 10:27:52 am
Thank you
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ChesterKiwi
6/27/2017 09:40:16 pm
Wait, is this the Genius Ewok Guy?
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Ewok
9/14/2017 02:56:50 pm
Ee chee wa maa!
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Jawa
6/26/2022 08:19:29 am
Utinniii!
Grilled kabob
3/20/2018 03:41:49 pm
COLAAAAA GRILLED KABOB!!!!
Jeff da muslim
2/9/2020 08:10:16 am
WTF
no
1/27/2021 10:04:49 am
Shut up
Admiral Ackbar
3/23/2023 11:24:22 am
IT'S A TRAP
Anakin Skywalker
3/17/2025 10:36:03 am
I knew i should have killed you when I had the chance
Ferber Ger
11/13/2024 07:11:41 pm
Furrrrrrrrrrr! Burgerrrrrrrrrr!
Obi Wan Kenobi
1/9/2025 05:18:07 am
May the Force be with you
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Religion and politics often make some people lose all perspective and give way to ranting and raving and carrying on like emotional children. They either refuse to discuss it with reason or else they prefer argumentum ad hominem, which is a hell of a way to conduct a discussion. Well, anyhow, not long ago, I was talking about the elections and how the campaigns were ignoring the issues, and sticking instead to invective and personal crap that had nothing to do with the substantive problems of running a government (which is all true, as you know if you followed the speeches and so-called debates of the candidates). Anyhow, one of the guys I was talking with said not a word in the whole conversation, except at the end, when he suddenly chuckled and said we were all full of sh*t and why didn't we go live in Russia or China if that was the way we all hated the United States of America? Next thing you know, the whole blooming discussion was more like a brawl and the epithets flew thick and fast and the noise was incredible! Someone said "son of a bitch" and I think he said "bastard!" (I couldn't be sure; it was all so confusing.) Well, anyhow, I was attempting to get it all back on a rational level. I tried, for example, to talk to the one who had started it all, and I asked him just what did he mean we were all full of sh*t? Was he making a statement of fact as he knew it and where was his documentation to back up his claim? I think Socrates would have been proud of the way I refuted his argument. That is, I tried to refute it. But all he could offer by way of rebuttal was more of the same: about how we were all full of sh*t. But he wouldn't say why; he just kept on repeating it. That and the part about Russia and China and communist dupes. And I'll have to confess that I got a bit angry and told him to stuff his ideas up his *ss (which you don't have to tell me is hardly a way to convince anyone in an argument). Then he got salty and threatened to give me a punch in the mouth if I didn't shut up. And I really got hot and the others did, too. And we all beat the sh*t out of Mr. Conservative. And, after all, he had only himself to be blamed. This is still a free country and anyone telling a fellow like me, "Brother, you're full of sh*t" better be good and ready to answer politely when asked if he'd care to say WHY!
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Random starwars fan
10/3/2017 07:18:50 am
Thank you very much
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Porg
10/13/2017 03:42:05 am
Kwraaah kwraaah kwraaaaaaaaah O.O
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Deranged Green Bean
5/4/2021 08:33:49 am
oHNO its the Vader and/or Voldemort 'Kwraaah kwraaah kwraaaaaaaaah!'
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Emily
12/14/2017 08:09:51 pm
Thank you!
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Jason
1/5/2018 09:09:53 pm
My guess is the original lyrics were meant to mean something along the lines of in words one dreadful battle is fought, and in the mind, another.
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The IronSith
2/3/2018 11:43:14 pm
Very well thought out. I do believe that's what it means.
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Marcello
4/1/2018 11:40:55 am
Thats what it says...
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Deranged Green Bean
5/4/2021 08:34:39 am
I'm quite sure it does
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peves
5/4/2021 05:18:35 pm
Dreading the verbal war, the true war rages in your mind.
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Joe mama
12/31/2021 04:40:10 am
No u
Andrew Love
2/4/2018 09:04:12 am
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10151029661929987&id=9193179986
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Steve
2/4/2018 04:05:00 pm
Maybe the lyrics were in the Huttese language?
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Marcello
4/1/2018 11:40:02 am
Well they aren't so...
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Julia Klinedinst
5/23/2020 03:06:02 pm
Nah. Maybe Gungan?
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Deranged Green Bean
5/4/2021 08:35:51 am
Are you serious
Chucklehead
6/4/2025 07:10:40 am
MEEESA!
Deranged Green Bean
5/4/2021 08:35:21 am
Not quite they were snas krit
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TRUE FAN
2/7/2018 07:04:03 pm
I'm sorry but you have it completely wrong. The real lyrics of Duel of the Fates can be found in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFDT2L5bPFI
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Dissapoint
9/11/2019 05:32:07 am
I expected a Rick-roll :(
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WOW
12/20/2019 12:07:57 pm
Wow.......Just Wow
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2/7/2018 11:11:13 pm
have you heard of the tragedy of darth plagueis the wise
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Porg2.0
2/22/2018 05:44:06 pm
It’s not a story the Jedi would tell you
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NoName
5/4/2018 08:49:01 am
lol
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Julia Klinedinst
5/23/2020 03:07:19 pm
Yeah he was an idiot because apparently that happened all the time, and yet...
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Darth vader
11/3/2023 11:36:25 am
You told me countless times we can't continue this master!
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Jabba
2/23/2018 08:11:35 am
Technically, it's not the first Star Wars film to feature music with sung lyrics. The finale of Return of the Jedi (original version) features the song "Yub Nub", for the Ewok Celebration. While it's not real language at first, it ends with the english lyrics "Celebrate the love!"
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Rawwrrr!
4/25/2018 09:08:46 pm
I didn't think that the last line of the lyrics in the music sung in the finale of Return of the Jedi was "Celebrate the love!" I thought it was, "Down at Fraggle Rock!"
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Kalle
9/26/2018 01:11:45 pm
What about Lapti Nek?
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Alma Buttle
5/12/2018 05:04:13 am
जीभ की जड़ के नीचे
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Ben Dover
5/12/2018 05:05:25 am
Wow Alma Buttle??? Really???
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Hugh Walter Kheel-Yusuf
5/12/2018 05:06:29 am
Mine's more creative
Squanchobildasack
10/28/2018 11:58:00 pm
Squancho say da doo dey do de balldildelstiltel my balls smell real bad and stuff.
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Jean Luc Picard
1/9/2019 09:19:41 pm
Engage!
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Mando
5/23/2020 03:08:28 pm
Alright, go away now Trekkie!
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Esse Quam Videri Se7en
5/25/2019 06:13:35 pm
This song was the best part of this movie!
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Lone Wanderer
11/24/2019 07:12:46 am
Oh no Total Xena Panda
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Maul
1/21/2020 01:24:52 am
Now this, this is a masterpiece.
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Mando
5/23/2020 03:08:57 pm
Funny Maul should think that.....
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Some dude
4/6/2020 02:48:32 pm
I think the meaning behind the words is that one has to learn to accept their dark fate and fight the fight they don’t want to, or it’ll just keep getting worse (behind the head)
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Raphäel
5/11/2020 01:17:57 pm
Wow, great explanation. I wish all the movie soundtracks that use a choir would explain the lyrics to us, interested! Thank you.
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fuck
5/13/2020 06:43:01 pm
make me
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Shehroz
5/14/2020 03:08:23 pm
So Williams chose those lines because they refer to a battle within (light vs dark)? Tongue referring to what you say, and the head referring to what you think?
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Chris Burdick
2/15/2021 01:16:14 pm
Whenever I think of the song "Duel Of The Fates", 2 things come to mind:
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dub
2/23/2021 06:54:27 am
so good
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jeffyboy
8/19/2021 09:54:46 am
I think it means that during negotiations there was a battle in his mind.
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LyricMEThinks
7/22/2022 04:19:25 am
STEPBROTHAAAAA
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Darth maul
1/14/2023 06:29:13 am
Thank u I listen to it every day and I finally know the lyrics
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Brendon
4/13/2024 02:10:02 pm
I'm surprised the writer could not understand the meaning of the exerpt...
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commander cody
8/20/2024 06:19:17 am
im doing order 67
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that guy
5/22/2025 04:16:29 pm
I am darth mual
Reply
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The Music of Star WarsThese posts will help focus and develop my analyses of John Williams' film scores. Archives
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