Mama Lisa's Books

Dancing the Moribayassa in West Africa

The Moribayassa is a dance of the Malinke people of West Africa. It's danced in Guinea, Mali and other West African countries. When women need help with something very important -like becoming pregnant or healing from a sickness- they ask the spirit of Moriba Yassa for help. The woman vows that [...]

Mali Puppets and Dogon Masks from Africa

Puppet theater is an important part of the Mali culture.  Both masks and puppets are used.  The puppets are often made of wood and a rod construction is used with strings.  The puppets are anywhere from 1 to 6 feet high. Some of the shows are sacred, some have their roots in [...]

Mama Lisa's World News and Multimedia Features

A significant part of the Mama Lisa sites is a large collection of songs and nursery rhymes from around the world. We currently have about 750 songs from around 90 countries and cultures. When you consider how many languages there are in those cultures – that's a lot of information! In [...]

Timbuktu and “The Sailor Went to Sea”

The other day I posted a question about a children's song that mentioned Timbuktu. We found it! It's the Australian version of The Sailor Went to Sea. Monique of Mama Lisa's World en franais saw the post. She sent me this interesting photo. The sign says “Timbuktu 52 Days” in French. [...]

“Going to Timbuktu”... Where is Timbuktu Anyway?

Nurcan wrote in looking for a song about going to Timbuktu. Here's what Nurcan wrote... Hi, I found your website and it's very interesting, learning a lot I didn't know, in terms of where certain songs come from. However can you assist me? I am trying to work out a song about Timbuktu. It's not [...]

Can Anyone Help with a Cuban Rhyme/Finger Play that starts with “Chiquitica así”?

Jeannie Backer wrote to us for help with a Cuban Finger Play. Here's her note... My mother from Cuba used to sing a song/rhyme to usthat I only partially remember, maybe you have heard something similar. It's not a song as much as a cute thing that a child says to adult to ask for

The [...]

About the Song “Cooma Lotta Veesay”

We received the note below with the song “Cooma Lotta Veesay”. Many variations of this song exist, including “Kumala Vista”. It also shares lyrics with the action song called “Flee, Fly, Flo“. Here's the email: “In the late 1950s, we lived near a [...]