Chrząszcz (beetle, chafer) by Jan Brzechwa is a tongue-twister poem famous for being considered one of the hardest-to-pronounce texts in Polish literature. It may cause problems even for adult, native Polish speakers.
The first few lines of the poem:
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!!!Phonetic transcription!!English translation
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|W Szczebrzeszynie chrząszcz brzmi w trzcinie
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|In Szczebrzeszyn a beetle buzzes in the reeds
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|I Szczebrzeszyn z tego słynie.
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|And Szczebrzeszyn is famous for this.
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|Wół go pyta: „Panie chrząszczu,
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|An ox asks him: "Mister beetle,
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|Po cóż pan tak brzęczy w gąszczu?"
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|What are you buzzing in the bushes for?"
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250px|thumb|right|"The Beetle" wooden monument in Szczebrzeszyn dedicated to the poem's main character
The first line "W Szczebrzeszynie chrząszcz brzmi w trzcinie"
(In Szczebrzeszyn a beetle buzzes in the reed) is a well-known Polish tongue-twister and dates to at least the 19th century.
