Nursery Rhymes

17th Century

About This Entry

These nursery rhymes were sung by Jews from the northern Kurdish town of Zakho in the Neo-Aramaic dialect typical of the town. These nursery rhymes, part of the folk tradition handed down over generations, express deep love for children. They articulate wishes for good health, protection from the evil eye (and other enemies), and success. They include references to daily activities, foods, and rituals as well as important life events (such as weddings) and various superstitions. They were collected in the early 1970s among Jews from Zakho who had immigrated to Israel.

“Good Morning” Rhyme

[May] your mornings [be] blessed,

[May] your life [be] long,

[May] your enemies [be] shrouded, dead,

[May] your [hot] breakfasts [be] poured, cooled.

Feeding Rhymes

What will your meals be?

Bread, rice, and halvah,

And manna sprinkled all over.

[May your meal be] health and life,

May there be a multitude [of people] at your wedding,

Half of them from ‘Aḳra and half from Shosh.

May your father-in-law cut out [garments] for you to wear,

May your mother-in-law sew [garments] for you to wear.

Bath Rhyme

May [the bath] bring health to you.

May you have seven sons,

May the smallest of them all strike you.

[Variant: May the smallest of them all kiss your hand.]

Welcoming Rhymes

Welcome to this lad!

May he be guarded by the moon and the sun.

May he grow up and become a king.

[May] the luck of his enemies [be] black.

Welcome, welcome!

[May you become] the owner of slaves and servants,

May those who hate you lose their eyesight and go blind.

Rhyme for a New Piece of Clothing

[May] your [new] shirt [be] blessed.

This one short,

The next one long.

Lullaby

Go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep.

I wish you peaceful sleep and long life,

By the life of those far away from home,

Those who are in strange lands.

Incantation against the Evil Eye

Whosoever dislikes you in this place,

May his head be carried away by a hawk.

Whosoever dislikes you in this neighborhood,

May he be afflicted with leprosy.

Whosoever dislikes you in this house,

May his head be pecked by a hen.

Good Wishes and Blessings

[May I be] a sacrifice for this little one.

May he be protected by the Torah.

May he grow up and become a big fellow.

Dear to his father is this [boy’s] head.

May no ailment ever touch him,

May he be a simple and humble fellow.

Tiny round one [rolling] under tables,

Nuts and raisins in his lap,

May everyone eat at his ceremonial meals.

Good things I wish him,

Long life I ask for him,

This little son, for Torah I raise him.

Teasing Rhyme

May a hen peck at his buttocks,

May she give him a roasted egg,

May she place him in a high corner,

May she feed him bread and chicken.

Rhymes of Praise for Baby Girls

Lips [as delicate as thin] paper,

Nose [like] a hazelnut.

[May I be] a sacrifice [for her] to her Creator.

Nursling, nursling,

Fresh, pretty, youthful!

This nursling, whose daughter is she?

To the market of Mosul take her,

Garments and ornaments buy for her!

Translated by Yona Sabar.

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Credits

The Jews of Kurdistan, “Nursery Rhymes,” from Folk Literature of the Kurdistani Jews: An Anthology, ed. and trans. Yona Sabar (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1982), pp. 193–96. Used with permission of Yale University Press.

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 5.