La mère Angot
This rhyme is recited.
La mère Angot
Old Ma Angot
Comptine d'élimination
Counting-out Rhyme
(French)
(English)
La mère Angot est en colère
D'avoir mangé des pomm's de terre
Et son mari des haricots coco,
Mets ton poing derrièr' ton dos.*
Old Ma Angot is angry,
She ate potatoes, way too many
Her husband ate beans, a whole big sack,
Now put your fist behind your back.
Notes
*Alternate line: "Vive la mère Angot !" (Long live old Ma Angot!)
More literal translation:
Old Ma Angot is angry
She has eaten potatoes
And her husband ate beans –eans –eans,
Put your fist behind your back.
Another version:
La mère Angot est en colère, (Old Ma Angot is angry)
Elle a mangé trop d' pomm's de terre, (She ate too many potatoes)
Et son mari trop d' haricots, (And her husband too many beans)
Cache ton poing derrière ton dos. (Hide your fist behind your back.)
Game Instructions
Children stand in a circle. The one counting-out points to a child on each syllable. On the last syllable, the child who is pointed to puts their fist behind their back. Whoever has to put both fists behind their back first is "It" (or alternatively, whoever is the last to put both fists behind their back is "It".)
In the recording below, first you'll hear the version at the top of the page and then the version in the notes.
Thanks to Monique Palomares for the recording!
Thanks and Acknowledgements
Thanks to Monique Palomares for sharing this rhyme and for the translation (with Lisa).
Merci beaucoup !
