My ship lies in the harbour, the full moon shining o'er A salty breeze blows in the bay, I hear the combers roar Tomorrow I am bound away, far from this land so poor To start a new life far away from my misty morning shore
To leave my dear old mother will break her heart for sure Likewise my agèd father I'll never see no more But to leave my dear old Ireland it grieves me ten times o'er Tomorrow I must sail away from my misty morning shore
Fare thee well, dear Ireland, it's westward I must go But when I reach Amerikay, there's one thing that I know That when the full moon is rising up in the east once more I know it's also shining on my misty morning shore
It's been five years, dear Mother, since first I sailed away I heard a famine took its toll the new arrivals say But in this land of plenty I'll live forevermore My heart's crossed the ocean on my misty morning shore
It's been nine years, dear Mother, I've taken me a wife I've built a home for me and her down by the waterside She's given me a daughter, sweet Erin is her name I named her for my country and claimed her for its fame
But I long for you, dear Ireland, I will until I die But when my life is over, it's here that I must lie Down here by the ocean where my family can watch o'er The full moon shining down on me and my misty morning shore