To sing Dutch, is to learn Dutch! In this series we will explain six of the most popular Dutch traditional nursery rhymes. If you have young children, this is your chance to sing Dutch with them. Happy faces guaranteed! But if you’re not a parent this is also a good opportunity to practise your pronunciation, learn new Dutch words and dive into Dutch culture! This week we’ll teach you ‘In de maneschijn’.
Image: hallo-nederland.nl
In de maneschijn
‘In de maneschijn’ (In the moonlight) is a traditional Dutch nursery rhyme. The song is very popular amongst young children because it involves a lot of arm movements. In the you tube video you can see what this looks like.
According to research of the Meertens Institute the song is based on a folk song from the 18th century. Because the song was transmitted orally from one generation to the next, there are different versions of the song, with small textual variations. The following version is quite common:
In de maneschijn
In de maneschijn
Klim ik op een trapje naar het raamkozijn
En je raadt het niet
En je raadt het niet
Zo doet een vogel
En zo doet een vis
Zo doet een duizendpoot die schoenenpoetser is
En dat is één
En dat is twee
En dat is dikke, dikke, dikke tante Kee
En dat is recht
En dat is krom
En dan (zo) draaien we het wieltje nog eens om
Rom bom
English translation:
In the pale moonlight
In the pale moonlight
I climbed a ladder to the window high
Guess what I saw
Guess what I saw
This is what a bird does
And this is what a fish does
And this is what a centipede does when it’s cleaning shoes
And this is one
And this is two
And this is bulky, bulky auntie Sue
This is straight
And this is bent
And so we turn the wheel round ‘n round again
Big Ben
(Translation: Ruud Hisgen, 2014)
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Poesje mauw
Papegaaitje leef je nog?
Ik zag twee beren
In de maneschijn
Drie kleine kleutertjes
Slaap kindje, slaap