Pauv' Piti' Mom'zelle Zizi
Pauv' Piti' Mom'zelle Zizi
Poor Little Miss Zizi
Ballad
Ballad
(Louisiana Creole)
(English)
Pauv' Piti' Mom'zelle Zizi
Pauv' Piti' Mom'zelle Zizi
Li gaignain bobo, bobo
Dans so pitit tchoeur.
Pauv' Piti' Mom'zelle Zizi
Li gaignain bobo, bobo
Li gaignain in maladie
Dans so pitit tchoeur à li.
Calalou porté madrasse
Li porté jipon garni
Calalou porté la soie,
Li porté belles-belles !
Pauv' Piti' Mom'zelle Zizi
Li gaignain in maladie
Li gaignain bobo, bobo
Dans so pitit tchoeur !
Poor little Miss Zizi
Poor little Miss Zizi
She's as sad as can be
In her little heart.
Poor little Miss Zizi
She's as sad as can be
She got sick
And her heart aches bitterly.
Calalou* wears madras fabric
She wears embellished skirts
Calalou wears silk
She wears jewels and lace.
Poor little Miss Zizi
She got sick
She's as sad as can be
In her little heart.
Notes
*"Calalou" (from the name of a West Indies ragout) was a derisive nickname given to quadroon women in the early 19th century.
"'Pauv' piti Mom'zelle Zizi' is thought by some to have originated in the West Indies, and there is nothing to prove the contrary; but whether a product of the Islands or of the Southern States, certain it is that no melody was so universally known and sung on the Louisiana plantations as that of 'Mom'zelle Zizi,' or 'Lolotte,' as another version goes… The words and the melody with slight variations are also published in Mr. Krehbiel's book of Afro-American Folksongs." -Mina Monroe, Bayou Ballads
Thanks!
Thanks and Acknowledgements
This song was collected by Mina Monroe (1921). It can be found in Schirmer's American Folk-Song Series, Set 2, Bayou Ballads, 12 Folk-Songs from Louisiana, Text and Music collected by Mina Monroe (1921). Thanks to Wade Falcon for pointing out this song to us!
