Pamela wrote me about a rhyme that I’ve been asked about many times. Here’s what she wrote…
Hello,
I am interested in finding a nursery rhyme in the Danish language which I learned as a child and have passed on to my children as well. I hope you can help me locate this rhyme. It is about an alligator or crocodile sneaking up on someone sitting on a log at the edge of a lake. I am probably not remembering the Danish words correctly, and I don’t speak Danish at all, but it sounds something like this:
A rita, rita, runkin
Demile hans hoose,
Devoon yemoon
Kot on a moose
On little wahoon
Syin on a bankin
Slick upon a slick a sow
Woof! Woof! Woof!I have probably completely ruined the rhyme with my bad memory, but I am very interested in learning it correctly. The Woof! Woof! Woof! Part is where the alligator eats the person.
Thank you!
If anyone knows this rhyme, many people out there would be grateful for the corrrect words. Please comment below or email me with the correct version!
Thanks!
Lisa
UPDATE: I posted one Swedish version of Rida rida ranka on my Swedish Song Pages, one Danish version of Rida rida ranke, and 2 Norwegian Versions of Rida rida ranke on Mama Lisa’s World’s Norway pages.
More versions in the comments below…
This article was posted on Saturday, December 31st, 2005 at 6:38 pm and is filed under Countries & Cultures, Danish, Danish Children's Songs, Danish Nursery Rhymes, Denmark, Languages, Norway, Norwegian, Norwegian Children's Songs, Nursery Rhymes, Questions, Rhea Rhea Runkin, Sweden, Swedish, Swedish Children's Songs, Swedish Nursery Rhymes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
March 30th, 2008 at 4:12 am
I have no Scandinavian background but 70 years ago I was taught a song by my mother which started ‘ria ria ranka’ (more or less). I dont recall any bouncing on knees
The rest of it was totally different , ie ..
Hessel enna robbelsprung
Dense knaller nedrior (which sounds like suddenly falling down?)
Fia mulla, jama kulla (a cat meowing?)
Jama kana yokum
June 22nd, 2008 at 4:42 pm
My Great Grandfather came to America from Sweden when he was 17. He used to sing a song in Swedish to my grandfather who in turn sung it to us years later. My Grandfather passed away many years ago and we have lost the song forever I’m afraid. When he sang it to my Aunt when she was a little girl he would sing a few lines in English, so if this sounds at all familair please get back with me and let me know the swedish version and what it says. “Go to sleep little one and when you wake you’ll patty patty cake and ride a shiney pony.
June 25th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
Hello Lisa: This is really comical- so many versions of Rida Rida Runka. My grandfather was a pioneer Lutheran minister- organized 12 country churches for Swedish immigrants in NW MN. My mother and aunt would recite this rhymne. I have a video of my mother bouncing a great-granddaughter on her knee while singing this song. I do not have the Swedish handy, but the translation that was given to me is as follows:
Ride, ride on my knee
The horse’s name is Blanka
Where are we riding?
Riding away to woo a little girl.
What will be her name?
Maiden Margareta- the fat and chubby.
When we came to her house, no one was home
but an old woman who taught her daughter to spin
“Spin spin my daughter. Tomorrow your suitor will come.”
The daughter spun and the tear ran, but the suitor never came
until the year – – with golden ribbons in his hair.
I note some similarities in the various versions with respect to Margareta. Brenda’s Swedish version (Jan. 23,2006) sounds familiar but not sure.
June 25th, 2008 at 9:29 pm
That’s neat Bruce! If you’re able to get me a recording of your mother singing the song, I can post it. I think someone would be able to help you with the Swedish lyrics then.
-Lisa
July 1st, 2008 at 6:16 pm
Ride, ride ranke,
Gesten heder blanka
Folet heder Abilgra
Det skal (child’s name) ride paa.
July 10th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
The version I learned sounded like:
Rea rea runkin
tuska tuska brunkin
tusk ina row
tusk ina row
come a rea pola into town.
The 2 versions I pasted below sound the closest to mine. In Swedish how is the D in rida pronounced? My father would ‘roll’ the D like some languages roll the R sound.
Rita rita ranka
hestin hista blunka
hestin hista rita sow
hestin hetin apple grow
Ridda, Ridda ranka
Hasen yetta blunken
Hassen etta yupagrow
satten eten yunkanpo
Thanks. This is a blast from the past.
November 1st, 2008 at 4:04 am
Song is about queen blanca playing with his son. Here is a picture related to song : Queen Blanca and her son playing horseride. http://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuva:Mother_and_Child_by_Edelfelt.jpg
February 12th, 2009 at 11:01 pm
I have an old family history in which my grandmother mentioned a poem very similar to “Rida Rida Ranke!” but I am not sure if it is the same because it goes “Ria, Ria Ranken! Hasten hetta Blanken!” with two dots above the “a” in Hasten. I’m wondering if this is a different dialect or a (forgive me) typing error. I also want to know if there are other sources for old Swedish nursery rhymes which include their translation into English.
February 12th, 2009 at 11:19 pm
I hope this allowed; I have a second rhyme I’m curious about. Again, I have only the first line: “Lusity, Lusity Lus.” It’s supposed to be about a rabbit.
February 22nd, 2009 at 3:49 pm
My mother would sing this version to my children ( now 27 years old)
Rhea, Rhea Runtin
hester hetta blunkin
um comostin,
woo woo woo woo,
that is as close as i could come to remember, my mother was norweigan,
my mother said it was about a little dog going down the lane comes across something? and barks woof woof woof.
i wish I knew the correct version
February 27th, 2009 at 5:34 pm
Anyone know of the song about Noah?
Gubben Noah, Gubben Noah,
var en hedersman.
När han gick ur arken,
plantera han på marken.
Mycket vin, ja, mycket vin,
ja, detta gjorde han.
something something something? Dunno the translation though or how it’s supposed to sound.
I found you looking for Rida Rida Runka which of course my Swedish grandmother and her mother sang to us (who we called Moonoo because we couldn’t say mormor when we were little).
There was another one – a song about 3 dogs barking on the yard or something. Any ideas?
February 28th, 2009 at 3:30 pm
I’m C T Olson’s aunt.
Rida rida ranka
hästen heter Blanka
Vart ska vi rida
Till en liten piga
Piga var inte hemma
Dit Står tre hund
en sagt,Woof
en sagt Woof, woof
en sagt Woof, woof, Woof
My grandmother taught this to us. She came from Nora in Västernorrland, but her mother was from Sunne in Värmland. The only other time I have heard this version was from another person from Sunne.
April 8th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
I have memories of this but it was always about 2 small dogs at the end which apparently scare the horse and the child “falls” off at the end, which they love, of course. My memory:
Rita rita runken,
Has anetta blunken;
Lang skad o ria,
Du gum latte spia;
Two small hunde,
Legge unde begge say;
Wuv, wuv, wuv, wuv, WUV!
(On the last WUV (like bow wow) then the knees come apart and the child “falls” in between them – akin to falling off the horse…)
The spelling, of course, is wrong.
April 30th, 2009 at 9:30 pm
My great-grandmother who came from Denmark in 1880 used to sit me on her knee and do this song. The following is what I remember in Danish, and this is my own spelling so must be very incorrect.
A rita, rita runke, d millers house. a der lee la heming a little cat and mouse. Der sits a vowhund( dog) sittin on a bencka (bench) a vos a linka a vos e hund. woof, woof, woof.
I really enjoyed bouncing up and down on her knees when she would do this. I dont remember the tune though and would love to know that too. Thanks, Gary
May 7th, 2009 at 12:13 am
I just emailed my Mom to ask her Mother to send me the English and Swedish lyrics to the song she used to sing to Grand kids I know I wont spell this right but it went like a lot of these other posts
rita rita runkin
hester hader blunkin
first galderia ita ita pita
I know I know, way off but she always told us that it meant a little fat girl on a horse??? I wonder if it’s different than what everyone else is think of.
Hopefully she will get the words to me so I can sing it somewhat correctly to my kids.
May 26th, 2009 at 5:12 pm
[…] We know the first rhyme is a version of Ride ride ranke, and Lori checked the versions posted on the blog, but couldn’t find it […]
May 26th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
Lori recording this rhyme and another one and is asking about them at…
http://www.mamalisa.com/blog/can-someone-help-with-2-danish-or-swedish-nursery-rhymes-we-have-a-recording-of-them
If anyone can help Lori, please respond at that link.
Thanks!
Mama Lisa
May 28th, 2009 at 11:59 am
[…] Unless a song has an author who left a copy of his work, when a song/rhyme has variants, there is only a” MOST KNOWN/SPREAD version”. Some songs have tens of versions… so imagine all the nursery rhymes or finger plays that every mom sings to her baby multiplied by all the mothers out there! (Check out the many versions of Ride Ride Ranke.) […]
June 7th, 2009 at 12:28 pm
this is probably all wrong as it has been sung throughout the generations and totally changed i’m sure. i’d like to know the real words to teach to my children, but this is how it sounds to me. i was told it was something about a dog hiding behind the stove and when his master comes home he jumps out and says woof woof woof.
rida.rida runken hasten blisten blunken nus cuma ria…..something,something?…..usma tusma hunda, so lik unda stovus sonasia…woof woof woof. please translate
July 8th, 2009 at 11:04 pm
There is a gift shop in Lindsborg, KS that sells plates and mugs with this poem written in English. My husband and children were raised bouncing on a knee while listening to ria, ria runken…… and I was so excited to find the plates. I don’t remember the name of the store but Lindsborg is not very large and the store also sells the red horses that hang outside doors.
July 17th, 2009 at 12:10 pm
It’s usually, in Denmark, a game in which a small child rides on your foot or knee while you bounce them and chant the rhyme.
There are lots of them because the adults involved make them up spontaneously in many cases.
Ride ride ranke,
Hesten hedder blanke,
Føllet hedder Abildgraa,
der skal [child’s name] ride paa,
ride ride ranke.
The spelling is very bad, but it means roughly,
Ride ride ???
The Hessian’s hide is white
The little foal’s hide is applegrey.
that one shall [child’s name] ride!
One csn keep up the game until the child gets tired of it or you leg gives out, whichever comes first.
July 30th, 2009 at 9:20 pm
My family is Danish. I remember a song from childhood, now I believe it is a spin-off of Ride Ride Ranke, but I remember it sounding (phonetically) like:
Hup Hup Hup
Hup Hup Hup
Ride Ride Ranke
Hesten hither abelcouth
de skal (kids name) ride poh
ride ride ranke
I think the 3rd line is supposed to mean “the horse’s name is Applesauce”. Love it!
September 4th, 2009 at 8:54 am
I am so happy that my husband just found this site! My Danish grandfather sang Rita, Rita runka to us while bouncing us on the knee, then dropped us to his ankle at the end. I am 52 and soon visiting my Danish cousin in Denmark! It is fun to read how many of us have this happy childhood memory. My great-grandparents immigrated to Gothenburg, NE around 1881 from Ringkobing, Denmark area. I can’t wait to visit there!
September 23rd, 2009 at 3:22 am
My Nana’s mother came from Sweden in the late 1800’s and this nursery rhyme was sung to me many times as I bounced on Nana’s knee. Just before she died in the 1980’s at age 93 I had her recite the little verse to me one more time, and I wrote it down phonetically. Years later I had some Swedish people listen to me read it and they understood it pretty well. Here is our version:
Ria ria runken
hesten heeta blunken
varskaal vee ria
tu en litten pia
varskaal un hetta
Marta Magretta
ven vee kam tu Henna’s huse
der var no engen yemma
sotten en litten hoona
sotten po a toona
rupa
“Woo-woo-woo-woo-woo!”
September 26th, 2009 at 10:02 pm
Anyone remember one that starts, “Trafimkin, trafimkin…” I doubt it is how it is spelled, but I would like to know the words. My mother would bounce me on her ankle when she recited it.
October 25th, 2009 at 1:33 am
I too had a Grandfather from Sweden that bounced us on his knee and sang a Swedish song. Tonight my 8 year old daughter watched the movie “Flicka”. Why sitting at the kitchen table, one of the hired hands calls the girl in the movie “Flicka” and discusses his Swedish Grandfather who sang a nursery rhyme using this word. Anyone else catch this? This month my mother turns 75 and I wanted to find the words to the song for her and all the grandkids to keep. Thanks for everyone’s input. The version I remember is a bit different. I have spelled it as I pronounce it:
Dia, Dia, Dunken
Hasa hit da blunken
Hasto la reia
See a little flicka.
At the end of the rhyme he would open his knees and let us “fall” to the floor. It brings back wonderful childhood memories for me. I try to sing it to my kids and they love it.
January 20th, 2010 at 4:53 am
It is so interesting to see all these different versions of the rhyme! :) I’ve never heard it any other way than:
“Ride, ride ranke,
Hesten hedder Planke.
Hesten den er abildgrå,
Den skal [child’s name] ride på.
Ride, ride ranke.”
Anyway, I was wondering where to leave a comment to inform you that the version of “Ride, ride ranke” that is listed on this page as a Danish nursery rhyme is actually Sweedish? I hope it’s okay to do so in here.
Also, Egil is correct in believing that “ranke” means straight-backed (in the plural. If it referred to only one person, the word used would have been “rank”).
March 28th, 2010 at 11:24 pm
Oh my goodness! I have been looking for this rhyme for years! My wonderful Norwegian Great-Grandfather used to sing it to us as he bounced us on his knee! I remember it a little differently, but very similar…and my Norwegian is WAY off…but…can you tell me if I am close AT ALL?? Phoenetically, this is what I remember:
reeda, reeda, runka, eska needa brunka,
eske needa rodico, sittin in de yonkepo
eske nodda reeda,
reeda, reeda runka.
My cousin, Bette, who still lives in Norway was not familiar with it. SO…I am a little confused!
At least now I know I’m somewhat close when I sing it to my grandbabies!
April 21st, 2010 at 11:09 am
Good Morning – I’ve been looking for the words to the verses since my grandfather died. He told me the first two (I wrote them down but only remember the 1st) although I knew there were many.
It’s so great that everyone had a parent or grandparent that used to bounce you on his knee!!! :-)
My recollection of the first verse (My Swedish grandfather spelled it for me – but it’s spelled like it sounds)
Rhea Rhea Runca
Hasten Heta Brunca
Bart Scald – a – Rhea
ta Kunga ana Frheeeah
(Ride the horse, the horse named bronco – to the castle, ride, to see the king)
I hope to find the rest as I remember it. My kiddos love this when I bounce them on my knee!
April 22nd, 2010 at 12:48 am
# Annette Says:
March 24th, 2007 at 1:07 am
Yep, I,m looking for yet another version of “Ride ride ranke…”
The one I remember starts out
Ride ride ranke
hesten heta blanka
(something something something..)
There is a line that sound something like
Horst coma reera
Anybody else familiar with this one or more vaguely remembered parts of it?
—
Of all the versions this is the one that comes closest to what I remember. My Grandfather was from 30 km south of Stavanger and came to the US in the mid 1920s.
April 28th, 2010 at 5:18 am
I’m Swedish (living in Sweden) and I sing two diffrent versions of “Rida, rida ranka” to my kids. The first one is shorter and the one I grew up with:
“Rida, rida ranka,
hästen heter Blanka.
Var ska vi rida?
Till en liten piga.
Vad ska hon heta?
Jungfru Margareta,
den tjocka och den feta”
In English:
“Ride, ride ranka (? don’t know how to translate that)
The horse’s name is Blanche.
Where are we riding (to)?
To a little girl.
What is her name?
Virgin Margrethe
the thick and the fat”
The other version is longer and more beautiful:
“Rida, rida ranka,
hästen heter Blanka.
Liten riddare så rar (little knight so sweet)
ännu inga sporrar har. (does not yet have his spurs)
När du dem har vunnit, (when you have won them)
barndomsro försvunnit. (childhood peace is lost)
Rida, rida ranka,
hästen heter Blanka.
Liten pilt med ögon blå, (little boy with eyes of blue)
kungakrona skall han få. (kings crown he will get)
När du den har vunnit, (when you have won it)
ungdomsro försvunnit. (youthhood peace is lost)
Rida, rida ranka,
hästen heter Blanka.
Andra famntag än av mor, (other embraces than from mother)
fröjda dig när du blir stor. (give you joy when you grow up)
När du dem har vunnit, (when you have won them)
mandomsro försvunnit.” (manhood peace is lost)
Blanka refers to queen Blanche (born 1320, died 1363) and the little boy she bounces on her knee is her son Håkan, later king Håkan, married to Margrethe of Denmark, who founded the Kalmar union.
May 4th, 2010 at 3:10 pm
Allan Hegland wrote:
I too heard this rhyme when I was a kid from an old Norwegian lady who was a close friend of the family. I have been able to reconstruct the only verse I know as follows in Norwegian dialect close to Nynorsk…
Ria Ria Ranka
Two boys were riding to see their girls
(apparently ria means to go a-courting)
Hesten heiter blanka
The horse’s name was Blank
(blanka is pronounced “blunka”
Hvor ska vi leie
Where will we spend the night?
Dit i smaa kupeet
over there in that little shack
Ikkje nokon heima
(when they got there) nobody was home
To smaa hunder
Two little dogs
hist opp under bord
sitting under the table
regge sine beina sine
gnawing their bones
buff uff uff uff uff
saying “buff uff uff uff uff”
The underlined words are not certain… it’s what they sounded like
I am of Norwegian descent but only know the language through college courses.
(I am a professional translator/linguist)
Allan Hegland
May 17th, 2010 at 12:41 pm
[…] on to see what I could find out about the rhyme and came across your site. I was overwhelmed with the power of a simple rhyme for so many people after so many years. And your translation with the history is simply awesome. My family cannot […]
June 10th, 2010 at 2:54 pm
I think the official Danish version it’s:
Ride, ride, ranke,
Hesten hedder Blanke,
Føllet hedder Abildgrå,
Det skal [child’s name] ride på,
Ride, ride, ranke.
Translation:
Ride, ride, sit up straight,
The horse’s name is White (or Glossy),
The foal’s name is Fruitgray,
[child’s name] will ride on it,
Ride, ride, sit up straight.
Although it’s a bit weird to translate the names, as they are there for the rhyme.
June 14th, 2010 at 12:08 pm
Anna-Rita wrote:
Then there is another one that is almost the same (as some above):
Ride ride ranke,
til møllerens hus,
der var ingen hjemme
uden rotter og mus,
og en lille hund
der sad under bænken
og bed i lænken
og sage WUF
I can try to translate the last one:
Ride Ride sitting straight (on the horse)
to the miller’s house
nobody was home
except for the rats and mice
and a little dog
that sat under the bench
and bit his chain
and said WUFF
June 29th, 2010 at 10:17 am
From my Norwegian mother,
The baby sits on your closed knees and you bounce with the rhyme. At he end of the last line, spread your knees so the baby falls til you catch him/her. This can go on indefinitely.
Ride, ride, ranke,
Hesten hedder Blanke
Ride fa Frieda,
Bow Wow Wow!
July 5th, 2010 at 11:38 pm
My Mom (born in USA) (now 84) used to sing Ride, ride, ranke to our daughters. My grandparents came from northern Norway in the early 1920’s. The version Mom sang was:
Ride, ride ranke
hesten heiter Blanke
Hvor skal vi ri
til kongen’s gård og fria
Does this make sense to anyone? Is it grammatically correct in Norwegian? Can anyone translate into English for me?
Thanks!
September 4th, 2010 at 8:19 am
Here is my version. My grandmother was born in 1873 in Norway and came to America in 1904.
My uncles recited it this way: (with apologies to Grandma Iverson!)
Rita, Rita Runka
Hesta bista blunka
sil borte silk a tee
peek a borte nest a bee
so skal (child’s name inserted) ria
December 30th, 2010 at 6:25 am
Wow. Put a few of these together and it brings back memories. I’d love for this version actually to make sense. Here is how my 100% Norweigan grandfather use to sing it to me 30 years ago in his thick old accent.
Rida, Rida, Ranka
Hesten heter Planke.
Hesten heter den er abildgrå,
Sitt en liten Edward på.
unton tus mahunda ,
Inna saya vuv and anna say a vov
you can come back a morrow
Here are my questions
#1 Is it heter or hedder?
#2 Is it Planka Planke or Blanke or just depends on what you want to name the horse?
#3 Is A) unton tus mahunda or B)”usma tusma hunda” C)”on de tus me oma” or D) a combination of A/B/C????
#4 I’ve not heard anyone say anything about my “inna saya vuv and anna say a vov” line. I’d love for someone to touch that up in Norweigan so that it would actually make sense if possible. Just listed my best recollection there.
#5 I can’t remember how the you can come back tomorrow line went. I remember it ended something close to like “tomorrow” . I’d love to see the Norweigan translation for something close to “It will be OK you can come back tomorrow” so I could more properly wrap up the song.
December 30th, 2010 at 6:45 am
Wow. Put a few of these together and it brings back memories. I’d love for this version actually to make sense. My grandfather was born about 1920 and was 100% Norwegian. He use to sing it to me 30 years ago in his thick accent:
Rida, Rida, Ranka
Hesten heter Planke.
Hesten heter den er abildgrå,
Sitt en liten Edward på.
unton tus mahunda ,
Inna saya vuv and anna say a vov
you can come back a morrow
Here are my questions
#1 Is it heter or hedder?
#2 Is it Planka Planke or Blanke or just depends on what you want to name the horse?
#3 Is A) unton tus mahunda or B)”usma tusma hunda” C)”on de tus me oma” or D) a combination of A/B/C????
#4 I’ve not heard anyone say anything about my “inna saya vuv and anna say a vov” line. I’d love for someone to touch that up in Norweigan so that it would actually make sense if possible. Just listed my best recollection there.
#4b Might have been something in between Vov and a morrow. Maybe that is where it would “be OK” or something. Can’t 100% remember.
#5 I can’t remember how the you can come back tomorrow line went. I remember it ended something close to like “tomorrow” . I’d love to see the Norweigan translation for something close to “It will be OK you can come back tomorrow” so I could more properly wrap up the song.
I need to sing it to somebody so when we make the words to complete the last two or three verses so it makes sense it actually sounds close to the flow of the song. Best I can do to preserve it to my children
Sincerely, Ed
December 30th, 2010 at 6:51 am
Would help if I actually spell Norwegian correctly. Ugh. Sorry relatives for that one.
Ed
July 7th, 2011 at 1:44 pm
I grew up hearing this rhyme as a small child from my dad’s family (my great-grandfather spoke only norweigan). This is the version that I heard:
Ria ria runken,
Hasta hista blunken,
Varska la ria,
Tillen gommen fria,
Engabad, hemma a da
To sma una,
Sa low en da bunken,
A be de Runken,
A boo! Woo! Woo! se da una na.
At boo woo woo, the child would be bounced especially high. I’ve been told my family’s version is surprisingly accurate considering all the non-speaking generations repeating it. I was also told by my mother that it means something like this:
Ride, ride, Runken,
To your girl’s house,
You get off your horse,
You step onto the porch,
And under the bench you see
two small dogs.
You walk across the porch,
Runken rings the doorbell
Bow! Wow! Wow! say the two small dogs.
I’m fairly sure the translation is totally off, but there it is. Hope this helps.
September 30th, 2011 at 12:26 am
i heard this version from my grandma while she bounced me on her knees
A ria ria runken hesten eta(said like ate a) brunken punotus te shlisk calu bre comsa skavee dunska comsa skavee dunska a ria ria runken a runken a ree
September 30th, 2011 at 12:50 am
my aunt says it translates this way
Ride ride my (male)horse The horses name is blunken at night time so it shall be come so shall we dance come so shall we dance ride ride my (male) horse you and me
October 27th, 2011 at 7:57 pm
My Great Grandfather was from Norway and he used to bounce us kids on his knee and sang this song. This is how I remember it and I will try to spell it like it sounds. I remember him telling me it was about a cat and mouse chasing eachother around a barn. I might not remember this right at all. Could anyone help me out?
Rita Rita Runkin
Hada hesen plunkin
moda hitie litie goo
han
vetchla cota puse
cotton a marer
hanen hongarer
keke la kee
August 9th, 2012 at 1:34 pm
My grandmother was Norweigen. She used to sing this and she said it meant:
A little boy and little girl sitting by a river bank along came a doggy and he said bow bow. I didn’t spell it right of course but this is how she sang it to us. I like seeing all the different versions and meanings.
Reah reah runka
Esta ina bunka
Eimma Nimma Twosay
Ohsay Bow bow .
November 19th, 2012 at 12:53 pm
I’ve enjoyed reading all of these contributions to the nursery rhyme. This is the way my Danish grandma used to sing-song it to me and my siblings–and eventually to my daughter. I’m so thankful I had her write it down and translate. She said it’s not written in proper Danish, but I’d suspect it’s pretty darn close.
Reede Reede Runka
Hesten hedde Blanka
Folge hedde Askegro
Og den skall (child’s name) Reede Paa.
Slow hinda ned og lade hinde go
Slow hinde ned og lade hinde go
Lige ned e Urets kro.
Ride ride Runka
Horse’s name is Blanka
Accompanying horse’s name is Askegrow
and that shall (child’s name) ride on.
Tip her off (to the left) and let her go
tip her off (to the right) and let her go
Right down (between you legs) in the Inn’s yard.
February 12th, 2013 at 8:31 pm
Ria, ria ronca,
Heston heyta blanca,
Silkedy an savedy
April 28th, 2013 at 10:44 pm
I’m so happy to find this. It was always chanted in a sing-song manner by my father who I’m sure remembered it from his childhood. I had recalled it as dee-a dee-a dunka (!) but that was 60 years ago! My great grandparents were Swedes from Finland and my father spent a lot of time with them in Norway, Michigan. Thank you, so much!
June 6th, 2013 at 5:20 am
[…] I found several versions rough and smooth at http://www.mamalisa.com/blog/question-about-a-danish-rhyme-rhea-rhea-runkin/ […]