"A Ram Sam Sam" is a popular song all over the world. The phrase "a ram sam sam" has no actual meaning.

Notes

Guli is pronounced as "gool-lee".

The Arabic word "rafiq" means companion, friend, mate, comrade or colleague.

According to the book, "Daily Life in the Medieval Islamic World" (2005) by James E. Lindsay, in Medieval times, "rafiq" referred to a traveling companion. People always traveled with a rafiq for safety.

Game Instructions

-On the phrase, "A ram sam sam" - Clap hands on your lap.
-On "Guli guli" - Spin hand over hand in a circle.
-On "A rafiq" - Hold hands apart miming that they're pulling apart something gooey.

Comments

We asked about the meaning of "guli" and "a rafiq" and were answered, "Your question is simple but before answering it, I'd like to make it quite clear that it's about Moroccan Arabic which doesn't always follow classical Arabic grammar and conjugation rules! The word "guli" includes the verb and the object. The equivalent would be 'you say to me' (it's not only used in the feminine singular). You can say 'A rafiq, a rafiq… guli', it's ok." -Youssef

Mohamed wrote from Morocco, "Personally, I have never heard The Ram Sam Sam song here, but it may be known in some areas." We'd love to hear from other Moroccans about whether or not they know this song. It may have been known in the past or it could be regional. Please email me with any info. Thanks! Mama Lisa

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Here's the song in Moroccan Arabic:

الرَّم صَم صَم

الرَّم صَم صَم , الرَّم صَم صَم
ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي
ﯖولِّي الرَّم صَم صَم

الرَّم صَم صَم , لرَّم صَم صَ ,
ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي
ﯖولِّي الرَّم صَم صَم

الرفيق الرفيق
ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي
ﯖولِّي الرَّم صَم صَم

الرفيق الرفيق
ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي
ﯖولِّي الرَّم صَم صَم

Download MIDI Tune

Thanks and Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Youssef for his comments about the language and the words. Thanks to Mohamed Akaddar for typing out the text in Moroccan Arabic for us. Illustrated by Lisa Yannucci.