Can Anyone Help with a Rhyme Sounding Like, “Oddly boddlee finga hoof”? It's Most Likely German!

David Stewart wrote: Lisa, maybe you can help me with a poem my mother (now 78) learned from her grandmother when she was a child. I believe it is German and she has no idea what it means but has asked many people the meaning and has never found out. Your help would be greatly appreciated. [...]

Mama Lisa Now Has a Facebook Group

We'd love it if you'd join the Mama Lisa Facebook Group. You can post anything you'd like about your culture. You can post your own musical recordings or YouTube videos… Links to culture and musical sites… Photos of your country… Questions about songs or cultural issues… Anything related to World Culture and [...]

Barbershop Quartet recording of “Stille Nacht!” - “Silent Night” in German

Matt Huffman sent us this Barbershop Quartet recording of the first verse of “Stille Nacht! Heil'ge Nacht!”. It's the original version of the Christmas song, “Silent Night” - which was first written as a poem in German by Joseph Mohr in 1816. Below the mp3 recording you'll find the German lyrics, followed [...]

Multicultural Songs about the Seasons

People often write me looking for songs about the four seasons, from around the world. Here are some! The links below take you to the different pages on Mama Lisa's World of International Childrens Songs. There, you'll find the lyrics in the original languages, with English translations. Songs about Winter Yuki (Snow) - Japanese A, [...]

Easter Customs in Germany

Christine von Kannen-Balgar sent me this fascinating letter, answering some questions I had about Easter customs in Germany: Dear Lisa, To answer to your e-mail: 1) I've never heard of a German custom of eating green eggs on Maundy (Green Thursday) [scroll down to the discussion of Green Dyes to see what Christine is referring to [...]

The Symbolism of the Egg

As Easter approaches, it's natural to think a little about eggs! In days gone by the egg, due to its shape, was a symbol of the earth. Thanks to its obvious association with the beginning of life, it has also been the basis of many ancient creation stories. It has been a symbol [...]

Another Version of the German Carol Leise rieselt der Schnee - The Snow Quietly Falls

Recently, I posted a German song called Leise rieselt der Schnee (The Snow Quietly Falls), with a YouTube recording. Here is another YouTube recording of this song. This is a video of 2 people singing it in a park. It's very lively! This version has an additional verse, so I retranslated the whole [...]

A German Christmas Song called Leise rieselt der Schnee - Softly Falls Each Snowflake

This German Christmas Carol was written by Eduard Ebel (1839-1905) and translated into English by Loralee Jo Kurzius. You can watch the YouTube video I found where you can hear it sung. Softly Falls Each Snow Flake (English Translation) Softly falls each snow flake Silent and frozen the lake Christmas shimmers from the moon. Rejoice the Christ child [...]

Can Anyone Help with Some Swiss German Songs?

Renee wrote: I'm looking for three children's songs my grandmother sung to me. One was: Here comes the bear, where does he want to go? He wants to go to (name of child)'s house. She would say this in Swiss German. The next was: Rumpity bumpity halter stock, vermind. She would also speak in Swiss German and I am [...]

Could Someone Please Check My English Translation of a German Nursery Rhyme?

I received the German nursery rhyme below without an English translation in 2001. I just came across it on my computer. It seemed like such a nice one that I decided to try to translate it. I would greatly appreciate it if a German English speaker could check my English translation below [...]