Does any one know the words for “hush mama baby” please, because my mum sings it to my daughter and it makes her fall asleep.

All I know is…

Hush mama baby, mama gone to market
To buy a frock for mamas little girl.

It’s from Jamaica.

Hope that can help.

Thanks!

If anyone can help with this lullaby, please let us know in the comments below.

Thanks!

Mama Lisa

Hi Lisa,

My father was born in India, Granny’s family lived in India, between the early 1800’s and 1947. There is an Indian Children’s Lullaby, Ninnie Buba Ninnie, sung to my father and many generations of children. I am seeking the words and translation of the original, sweet children’s version of this lullaby. It is probably is Hindi.

Dealing with the shortened, commonly recognized version, the words and translation are as follows;

Ninnie baba Ninnie
Sleep baby sleep,
Mackhan roti cheene,
Butter, bread and sugar,
Makan roti hoa gia,
not known?
Soja Baba Soja,
Sleep Baby Sleep,
Mera baba so ja,
Unknown ?
Ninnie Nina baba so gaya, gaya
Little baby has gone to sleep.

It is the missing translations, and any other verses that I am seeking.

I look forward to your help with the above.

John & Chrissy Wellborne
Bundaberg, Queensland, Australia

I found this similar version below on The Tribune and elsewhere. It seems to be a popular version…

Nini baba nini
Muckan roti chini
Muckan roti hogiah
Chota baba so giah

If anyone can help with John’s version and/or translating the other version, please let us know in the comments below. We’re always please to post recordings too.

Thanks in advance!

Mama Lisa

Hi there Lisa,

I was hoping you (or someone on your site) could help me. I’ve been trying to find the translation and/or the rest of the lyrics to a Norwegian lullaby my Grandpa used to sing to me. Pardon the lack of correct spelling, but it sounds like:

Be a lulla barna
Papa nesta garna
Mama sing a lullabru
Be a lulla barna

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks so much for your time.

Warmly,
Rachel

If anyone can help Rachel, please let us know in the comments below.

Thanks in advance!

Mama Lisa

Hi, I was born in France and I remember a lullaby that my mom (Berber) would sing to me:

Ah rarou ahrarou o o,
ah rarou nihniraaaane,
tiyni or achteli i i ,
aghroume or achteungi,
iwa seubr ador talate.

English Translation

Ah rarou ahrarou o o,
ah rarou nihniraaaane,
There’s no more dates (for you)
I made no bread for you
so be patient and don’t cry

I think that a lady from a Berber background (from Ouarzazate, Morocco) could sing it to you. As to writing it down in Berber, you would need someone who would know how to write with the Amazigh signs.

I’d be glad to have it on your site.

If someone could provide the Berber text written in the Tifinagh alphabet and/or in the Berber Latin alphabet, that would be great!

We’d also be happy to post a recording or video of this lullaby. Feel free to comment below or email me at lisa@mamalisa.com to send the text and/or a recording.

Thanks!

Mama Lisa

Hello my Name is Stefanie,

I’m from Germany and on Google I was searching for a lullaby in Urdu. Google showed me your website. I’m pregnant in the 14th week and the father is from Pakistan and he also speaks Urdu. That’s why I’m searching Urdu lullabies or normal children songs. May could you help to find some songs.

Best wishes Stefanie.

If anyone can help Stephanie, please let us know in the comments below.

Thanks!

Mama Lisa

Dear Lisa,

When I was a baby in Joburg, my mom used to sing a Brahms lullaby…

Slaap my kindkie slaap sag,
onder rose fannaag,
iers die armpies on my neck,
en dan warmpies toe gedek,
more frieg as God vill,
word my kindkie ge vek

Sorry for the spelling, it has been many years ago. My daughter is God willing having a little girl end of December, and would like to find that song sung in Afrikaans, for the baby called Riley. I used to sing this song to my daughter when she was very small, and now I am feeling rather sentimental. Can you please help. I stumbled on your site by accident.

Many thanks Rose.

If anyone can help with the original Afrikaans words, an English translation and/or a recording of this lullaby, please let us know in the comments below or email me.

Thanks!

Mama Lisa

Lisa,

There is a nursery rhyme or song that my grandmother used to sing to me (she has been dead about 8 years now) that I can only remember a few lines to… it could be a Cuban nursery song, I’m not really sure… I am dying to find the lyrics to the entire song, I now sing the parts that I can remember to my daughter and wish i could remember it.

It goes something like this…

Quien es me morena que habre su boca, en ella le caben dos mil calabasas un saco de higo y otro de pasas.

I hope you can help me locate this

Thank you so much!!

Jeanette Duque

Here’s a similar version we found in Spanish, with an English translation by Monique Palomares of Mamá Lisa’s World en español…

Original Spanish Lyrics

Tiene Pinochito

Tiene Pinochito
tan pequeña boca
que en ella le caben
cien platos de sopa
trescientos pepinos
y mil calabazas
un saco de higos
y otro de pasas
a la pobre niña
le entró la viruela
calentura mala
y dolor de muelas
el médico le receta
sardinas a la parrilla
a ver si le engordan
esas pantorrillas.

Which means in English:

Little Pinocchio has
such a little mouth
that into it fits
a hundred plates of soup,
three hundreds cucumbers
and a thousand pumpkins,
a bag full of figs
and another one of raisins.
He caught the smallpox,
a bad fever
and his back tooth aches.
The doctor prescribes him
grilled sardines
to see if his calves
get bigger.

This is a jump rope song.

Monique said regarding the original question, “Jeanette’s grandma’s version must have been : ‘¿Quién es mi morena que habre su boca, en ella le caben dos mil calabazas un saco de higos y otro de pasas…?.’ The ‘quién es mi morena que…’ means ‘who is my little brown girl who opens her mouth, into it fits, etc.’ It could have been a version created by her grandma to fit the situation. Perhaps she could sing it to us to help us figure it out…”

Thanks to Monique for providing the English translation and for helping with this song!

Mama Lisa

I am looking for a Polish lullaby my mother used to sing…

Śpij laleczko moja mała, czas na ciebie już, ja cię będę kołysała, a ty oczka zmruz…

This is all I remember.

If anyone has all the words, I would be very grateful.

Theresa

A rough English translation of the above text is: Sleep my little baby doll, it is the time for you now, I will, I will rock, and you close your eyes.

This is the tune to the Polish Lullaby.

If anyone can help Therese with the original text of the lullaby and/or an English translation, please let us know in the comments below.

Thanks!

Mama Lisa

UPDATE:

Here’s the text of a slightly different version of the lullaby, thanks to Agnieszka Magnucka:

ŚPIJ LALECZKO

Pod pierzyną czarnej nocy
W blasku srebrnych gwiazd
Gwiżdże swoje kołysanki
Rozśpiewany wiatr.

Księżyc wplata w warkoczyki
Kolorowe sny
Śpij laleczko moja mała
Śpij córeczko, śpij.

W płatkach herbacianej róży
Calineczka śpi
Nawet przemęczony świerszczyk
Zasnął w trakcie gry.

Wszystkie małe grzeczne dzieci
Już od dawna śpią
Dobra wróżka opowiada
Bajkę którą śnią.

Księżyc wplata w warkoczyki
Kolorowe sny
Śpij laleczko moja mała
Śpij córeczko, śpij.

Agnieszka Magnucka and I came up with this English translation…

SLEEP MY BABY DOLL

Under the blanket of dark night
In the glimmer of silver stars
It is whistling its lullabies…
- Singing wind.

The Moon is braiding in plaits
Colorful dreams
Sleep my baby doll
Sleep my daughter, sleep.

Between the tea rose* leaves
Thumbelina is sleeping
Also some overtired little cricket
Fell asleep while playing.

All the good little children
Are sleeping for so long
The good fairy is telling that story
They are dreaming of.

The moon is braiding in plaits
Colorful dreams
Sleep my baby doll
Sleep my daughter, sleep.

*Tea Rose is called Herbaciana which is a rose with peachy/yellow leaves that sometimes have a little pink or cream in them.

*****

Enjoy!

Mama Lisa

PS Thanks so much for your help Agnieszka!

I have been trying to find an old Hungarian lullaby that my grandmother sang to me and I sing to my kids. I do not know what it means and I do not know all the words. The verse is something like:

Boulah boulah, boulah, boulah boopin do ya.

I am sure I am misspelling everything.

Do you know it? Can you help me find the whole song and the meaning?

Thank you,

Nicole

If anyone can help Nicole with the original Hungarian words to this lullaby and/or an English translation, please let us know in the comments below.

Thanks!

Mama Lisa

There are some lullabies in Japan that start with variations of the line, “Nenneko yo”. “Nenneko yo” is literally “Sleep, baby child”.

Here are some I found in an old book called “A Japanese Miscellany: Strange Stories, Folklore Gleanings, Studies Here & There” by Lafcadio Hearn (1901). They’re Japanese transliterations with translations.

Nenneko, nenneko,
Nenneko yo !
Oraga akabo no
Neta rusu ni,
Azuki wo yonagete,
Kome toide,
Aka no mamma e
Toto soete,
Aka no ii-ko ni
Kureru-zo !

Sleep, sleep, sleep,
Little one!
While my baby sleeps
I will wash some red beans
And clean some rice;
Then adding some
Fish to the red rice,
I will serve it up
To this best
of little babies.

*****

Nenneko! nenneko!
Nenneko yo !
Oraga akabo wa
Itsu dekita ?
San-gwatsu, sakura no
Saku toki ni :
Dori de o-kao ga
Sakura-iro.

Sleep, sleep,
Sleep, my child!
When was my
Baby made?
In the third month,
In the time of the blooming
Of cherry-flowers.
Therefore the color of the honorable
Face of my child is the color of the cherry-blossom.

*****

Nenneko, nenneko, nenneko ya !
Netara o-kaka e tsurete ina !
Okitara gagama* ga totte kama !

Sleep, sleep, sleep, my child !
If you sleep I will go home to fetch your mother!
If you stay awake the
Gagama* will catch and bite you !

* An Izumo name for some kind of Goblin.

Here’s a YouTube I found of someone singing a lovely Nenneko yo lullaby…

Here’s an English transliteration of the YouTube lullaby:

Yurika go no uta o

Nenneko, nenneko,
Nenneko yo.
Yurika go no uta o,
kanari ya ga uta u yo.
Nenneko, nenneko,
Nenneko yo.

Here’s an English translation I made with Ayako Egawa:

The Songs of Cradle

Sleeping, sleeping,
Sleeping, baby!
The songs of the cradle,
The canary sings
Sleeping, sleeping,
Sleeping, baby!

Here’s the Japanese text to this lullaby:

ゆりかごのうたを

ねんねこねんねこ
ねんねこよ
ゆりかごのうたを
カナリヤが歌うよ
ねんねこねんねこ
ねんねこよ

The lullaby in the video is only part of a longer song. We hope to eventually post the whole lullaby.

We’d be happy to receive the Japanese text to any of the above lullabies that don’t have it. You can email any info to me at lisa@mamalisa.com . Thanks in advance!

Many thanks to Linda Austin from Cherry Blossom Memories for providing the transliteration to the YouTube video! Thanks to Ayako Egawa for the Japanese text and for helping with the English translation!

Mama Lisa