Chanukah Song – “I Have a Little Dreidel” and The Dreidel Game
The Dreidel Song is very popular at this time of year. Dreidels are tops. Here are the lyrics…
I Have a Little Dreidel
I have a little dreidel
I made it out of clay,
And when it’s dry and ready
Then dreidel I shall play.Chorus
O dreidel, dreidel, dreidel
I made it out of clay,
And when it’s dry and ready
Then dreidel I shall play.It has a lovely body
With legs so short and thin,
And when my dreidel’s tired
It drops and then I win.Chorus
My dreidel’s always playful
It loves to dance and spin,
A happy game of dreidel
Come play now, let’s begin.Chorus
Children are often given dreidels for Hanukkah. Dreidels are tops that have four Hebrew letters on them. One letter is on each side of the dreidel. The letters are nun, gimel, hay, and shin.
The Dreidel Game
The dreidel game is usually played using chocolate in the shape of a coin, often wrapped in gold foil. Each player puts a coin in the “pot”. They then take turns spinning the dreidel. The letter the dreidel lands on will determine what happens next.
נ – Nun = nothing happens
ג – Gimel = you get the whole pot
ה – Hay = you take half of the pot
ש- Shin = you put a coin into the potIf the pot ends up being empty, each player has to add a coin. If someone loses all their coins, they’re out of the game. Whoever gets the most coins in the end wins.
Happy Hanukkah!
-Lisa
December 5th, 2005 at 9:06 pm
Lisa,
Thanks for the explanation of the dreidel game. Do you have this song, the dreidel song, and other Hanukkah songs translateed into French?
December 7th, 2005 at 7:37 pm
Here’s a literal translation
J’ai un petit dreidel
J’ai un petit dreidel
Je l’ai fait en argile,
Et quand il sera sec et prêt
Alors au dreidel je jouerai.
Refrain
O dreidel, dreidel, dreidel
Je l’ai fait en argile,
Et quand il sera sec et prêt
Alors au dreidel je jouerai.
Il a un joli corps
Aux jambes si courtes et minces,
Quand mon dreidel est fatigué
Il tombe et je gagne.
Refrain
Mon dreidel est toujours enjoué
Il aime danser et tourner,
Au joyeux jeu du dreidel
Viens jouer maintenant, commençons.
January 2nd, 2006 at 7:53 am
This post is featured on Havel Havelim #51.
Here it is. Choose your venue.
http://shilohmusings.blogspot.com/2006/01/havel-havelim-51.html
or
http://me-ander.blogspot.com/2006/01/havel-havelim-51.html
Please put a blurb on your blog, advising your readers to visit. And send around the links for people to read it. There’s quite a variety of posts.
Shavua tov, chodesh tov and Chanukah Sameach,
March 3rd, 2006 at 6:57 pm
Do you have the dradiel song lyrics in the original Yiddish?
March 3rd, 2006 at 9:51 pm
Sorry, I don’t have them. If anyone has the Yiddish lyrics, please add them to the comments or email me.
Thanks! Lisa
October 24th, 2006 at 12:17 pm
Here are two stanzas and the refrain in Yiddish of “The Dreydal Song”:
Yiddish:
Ikh bin a kleyner dreydl
Gemakht bin ikh fun blay
To lomir ale shpiln
In dreydl eyns tsvey dray.
Oy, dreydl, dreydl, dreydl
Oy, drey zikh, dreydl, drey
To lomir ale shpiln
In dreydl eyns un tsvey.
Un ikh hob lib tsu tantsn
Zikh dreyen in a rod
To lomir ale tantsn
A dreydl-karahod.
Oy, dreydl, dreydl, dreydl
Oy, drey zikh, dreydl, drey
To lomir ale shpiln
In dreydl eyns un tsvey.
December 8th, 2006 at 3:23 am
Dear MamaLisa: I happened to find your wonderful website and saw your message asking for words to “Mayn Yidishe Mama” ..I found it in Yiddish and English and also searched and found and was able to listen to Neil Sedaka singing it in both languages…I loved this song the very fist time I heard it and it gave me goose bumps and tears came to my eyes without my knowing the true meaning of the words…because the first time I heard it was in Yiddish….I have been looking for the words for long time and finally found them on this website :
http://www.forward.com/articles/of-jewish-mothers/
This song always moves me to tears …especially after finding the meaning of the words and having researched through the internet…what Hitler and the Nazis did. I still cry for all the little innocent angels and the families that were taken and no other country would help to stop the Nazis. I would love to hear from you… I would love to share some wonderful people I have found and any information that I have also collected. I am so happy to tell you that I found Irene Gut Opdyke’s wonderful and loving Daughter, Janina and I sent her a message to let her know that I have my very own copy of her Beloved Mother’s Book entitled “In My Hands” and how much it meant to me. She was so nice to send me a message and it really was very special to hear from her. I will close now and I would also love to have you visit the website of a lovely baby laughing with his Poppa. You will love it. Everything that I send is always checked for safety and you can open them safely. This is the baby’s website..and I know once you see this little video clip…you will want to share it with someone:
http://www.looptard.com/funny_video_laughing_baby.html
..Enjoy and please take care.
Sincerely, Marge Pineda from San Jose, California
December 20th, 2006 at 11:19 pm
Hi, I am the resident authority on the dreydl song in Yiddish and English. I can supply complete lyrics and as much history as I have been able to find. I have three recordings of Yiddish songs on CDBaby and 2 different recordings of the Yiddish dreydl song, as well as lots of songs about dreydls on the brand new Chanukah is Freylekh! cd. If you need to know anything about Yiddish holiday or children’s songs, feel free to ask me.
a freylekhn khanike alemen,
Lori
December 21st, 2006 at 10:13 am
I’d love to post another Yiddish song! Right now we have the Dreydl Song and Oif’n Pripichok (In the Fireplace). If you’d like to send me another traditional Yiddish song with an English translation, that’d be great!
A freylekhn khanike un yontev!
December 21st, 2006 at 5:16 pm
About “Oif’n Pripichok”, would someone be nice enough to provide a literal translation of the last verse so that I could translate it into French? It’d be greatly appreciated. Thanks
October 1st, 2007 at 2:11 am
Are there ANY other verses of the dreidel song out there? I’m arranging it for my caroling group, and I’d like for each member of the quartet to have a verse to him or herself. I’ve only been able to find the three verses above. Which is two more than I used to know about. But my poor soprano has nothing to sing. Poor, poor soprano. I could try to make her sing in Yiddish or Hebrew, but we’re all a bunch of goyem, so that’s only bound to end in tragedy.
Actually, her French is pretty good. But if any of the other quartets wanted to sing it, their soprano would ALSO have to know French. Or it would be as ill-fated as Yiddish or Hebrew. So English is still my top choice. any help-or just creative songwriting, for that matter-would be tremendously appreciated.
Thanks!
October 22nd, 2007 at 10:48 pm
Does anyone know the song
Dreidel spin round and round
make your merry little whirling sound
Hanukah …..
Happy are the girls and boys.
I do not know all the words and am not sure on the music. Can anyone help me, i have not been able to find the song anywhere. Thank you.
December 3rd, 2007 at 8:20 pm
Jutta:
Here’s the second verse:
“One by one light each candle
At this joyous time of year
(I can’t remember the lyrics)
Hanukkah brings its cheer.”
December 13th, 2007 at 7:20 pm
I am trying to learn the authentic history and copyright date and the ate that it was written of the song “I have (am) a little dreydl (dreidel)”.
by Michael (Michel, mikhl) Gelbart (Is he related to Larry Gelbart?) Was he from Bialystok or Poznan?
or My Dreidel by Goldfarb and Grossman
June 24th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
Hi: About one and a half years ago I watched a show on public TV. I believe the show is called; A Yiddish World Remembered. This is a one man show. I don’t remember his name but he sings Yiddishe songs and tells stories of his childhood to I believe a live audience. I called the station and they want $150 for the DVD and CD. Do you know of the program and wheather I can find it somewhere else for cheapper?
Thank you,
Enrietta Lee