Ah les crocodiles
Un crocodile s'en allant à la guerre - A crocodile is going to war!
Ah les crocodiles
Oh, The Crocodiles
Chanson enfantine
Children's Song
(French)
(English)
Un crocodil' s'en allant à la guerre
Disait au r'voir à ses petits enfants
Traînant la queue*, la queue dans la poussière
Il s'en allait combattr' les éléphants.
Refrain :
Ah les crococo, les crococo, les crocodiles
Sur les bords du Nil ils sont partis n'en parlons plus
Ah les crococo, les crococo, les crocodiles
Sur les bords du Nil ils sont partis tout est fini.**
Il fredonnait une march' militaire
Dont il mâchait les mots à grosses dents,
Quand il ouvrait la gueule tout entière
On croyait voir ses ennemis dedans.
Refrain
Il agitait sa grand' queue à l'arrière
Comm' s'il était d'avance triomphant
Les animaux devant sa mine altière
Dans les forêts s'enfuyaient tout tremblants.
Refrain
Un éléphant parut et sur la terre
Se prépara un combat de géants
Mais près de là, courait une rivière
Le crocodil' s'y jeta subit'ment.
Refrain
Et tout rempli d'un' crainte salutaire
S'en retourna vers ses petits enfants
Notre éléphant d'une trompe plus fière
Voulut alors accompagner ce chant.
Refrain
A crocodile is going to war
Bidding his little children farewell,
Dragging his tail, his tail in the dust
He was going to fight the elephants.
(Chorus)
Oh the cro-co-co, the cro-co-co, the crocodiles
From the banks of the Nile, they left, say no more about it,
Oh the cro-co-co, the cro-co-co, the crocodiles
From the banks of the Nile, they left, it's all over.
He was humming a military march
He chomped out the words mightily***
When he opened his mouth wide
We expected to see his enemies inside.
(Chorus)
He was shaking his long tail in the back
As if he was triumphant in advance,
The animals, seeing his proud face
Fled trembling to the forests.
(Chorus)
An elephant showed up and on earth
A battle of giants was being prepared,
But nearby, a river was flowing,
Suddenly, the crocodile jumped into it.
(Chorus)
And full of a healthy fear,
He went back to his little children.
Our elephant, with a prouder trunk
Then wanted to accompany this song.
(Chorus)
Notes
* Alternate version: "ses pieds" (his feet)
** Alternate version: the first two lines repeated
***Monique wrote about the French line, "il mâchait les mots à grosses dents": "Another translation would be, 'He chewed the words mightily'. It means that he articulated so strongly when singing, that you would have thought he was chewing hard."
Comments
The first two verses of this song are similar to a Kenyan song in English called One Crocodile was Going to The River.
Many thanks to Edit' Dupont for contributing and singing this song for Mama Lisa's World. Translation by Monique Palomares and Lisa Yannucci.
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