فَلَو أَنَّ كُتّابَ العِراقِ أَكُفُّهُم

فَلَو أَنَّ كُتّابَ العِراقِ أَكُفُّهُم

حَوَت قَصَبَ الآجامِ أَنقاسُها البَحرُ

حَوَت قَصَبَ الآجامِ أَنقاسُها البَحرُ

If the scribes of Iraq had hands that

So if the hands of the scribes of Iraq

held every reed in the marshes, with the sea for their ink,

held the reeds of the thickets, with the sea as their ink,

يَخطونَ ما جاءَت بِهِ الصينُ كُلُّهُ

يَخطونَ ما جاءَت بِهِ الصينُ كُلُّهُ

وَما قَد حَوَت مِن طَيِّ قِرطاسِها مِصرُ

وَما قَد حَوَت مِن طَيِّ قِرطاسِها مِصرُ

and wrote over all that China had brought forth,

and they wrote on all that China has supplied,

and all that Egypt held within the folds of its paper,

and all the folded paper Egypt has held,

لَما قَدَروا يُحصونَ عُشرَ عُشَيرِ ما

لَما قَدَروا يُحصونَ عُشرَ عُشَيرِ ما

تَضَمَّنَهُ مِن حُبِّكَ القَلبُ وَالصَدرُ

تَضَمَّنَهُ مِن حُبِّكَ القَلبُ وَالصَدرُ

still they could not reckon one tenth of one tenth of all

they could not reckon a tenth of a tenth of what

the heart and breast contain of love for you.

the heart and breast contain of love for you.