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Tips For Learning Holdays Songs In Non-English Languages

The winter holidays are a fun time to explore celebrations and traditions from around the world. When you do, why not learn a favorite Christmas carol in another language? You might want to choose a language from your family’s heritage or maybe one from the community around you. Maybe you’re living as an expat in another country and want to embrace one of their favorite songs, or just reach out and expand your linguistic abilities.

Check out these helpful tips on learning a song in another language with your kids or dive right into our version of Jingle Bells in Russian below! Beneath that, we’ve included links to past posts on Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer in Japanese and Jingle Bells in Mandarin, plus a fun cheat sheet that shares holiday greetings in 18 different world languages

LANGUAGE LEARNING TIPS

Pick a song that’s fun to sing and has a catchy tune!

Pick a language from your family heritage or one you’d like to learn.

Pick a language where someone you know can help you with the lyrics or pronunciation. Will Grandma help with that song in Italian or Papou help with a carol in Greece?

If learning the whole song is too daunting (language is difficult or your kids are very young), just learn the chorus – that’s usually very easy to master.

Write out the lyrics phonetically. Break them down into easy-to-pronounce syllables.

Praise you kids (or yourself) for exploring a new language. Learning a new language is not easy but encouragement and praise help a new speaker gain both confidence and capacity!

A video of a new song or a live “singing Christmas card” makes a great gift for a grandparent or loved one abroad.

Enjoy the process as you make happy holiday memories.

Now, here’s a version of Jingle bells for anyone wishing to learn a bit of Russian this year!

Links And Resources

Rudolf The Red-Nosed Reindeer in Japanese http://www.tinytappingtoes.com/classroom-music/favorite-holiday-songs-rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer-in-japanese

Jingle Bells In Chinese – http://www.tinytappingtoes.com/uncategorized/favorite-holiday-songs-from-around-the-world-jingle-bells-in-chinese/

Happy Holidays in 18 Languages – https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Happy-Holidays-in-18-Languages-2230358

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Posted in Chinese (Mandarin), Early Learning With Music, Family Fun, Favorite Songs, Holiday Songs, Multicultural Music

Tagged bilingual, bilingual holidays, bilingual kids, bilingual songs, Christmas Around The World, Christmas Carols, Daria, holiday songs, Japanese, kids holiday songs, Mandarin, multicultural Christmas, Russian, world music with daria

A Family-Friendly Version of La Cucaracha!

Check out DARIA’s version of this adorable song in both Spanish and English at the Spotify, Apple Music and Pandora links below to listen free!

I recently received an e-mail from Sweden asking about the Mexican folksong, “La Cucaracha”. The writer wondered how this song could be so familiar so far away from it’s Latin American roots. The answer is simple, some songs are just that catchy, simple and have a certain magic about them. “La Cucarcha” seems to be one of those songs.

So, what is this popular little globe-trotting song all about?

Let’s start with the basics. The Spanish word “cucaracha” means cockroach and there are multiple verses to the song, many of which are silly or nonsensical. Although most frequently associated with Mexican culture, the song actually dates back to a Spanish “corrido” song. And, no one really knows how old “La Cucaracha” is but at least one version appears in a songbook that dates back to 1492!

Is there a standard set of lyrics? No! If you check out the wikipedia page below you’ll see lots of verses including many with historical or cultural references. And, naturally, there are the clever or silly ones, as well:

(Spanish) Cuando uno quiere a una
y esta una no lo quiere,
es lo mismo que si un calvo
en la calle encuentra un peine

(English) When a man loves a woman
but she doesn’t love him back
it’s like a bald man
finding a comb in the street.

A Kid-Friendly Version

Although this is a great little song, I never sang it in public because one of the verses referred to marijuana. It just didn’t fit my definition of a family-friendly tune. However, while performing a concert for a group of nuns in South American, one Sister sang me her own version of the song. It was cute and sweet and left out the “offending” verse.

Her version totally inspired me to not only sing the song, but to add some silly English lyrics, preserving the “everyone adds their own touch” approach to adapting folksongs. In my bilingual version, the little cockroach likes to play traditional Mexican instruments. And with 6 legs, wouldn’t any cockroach make a fine percussionist?

Below is a free lyric sheet to this bilingual version, plus the popular Youtube video. And if a little cockroach who plays both guiros and maracas inspires you, you can make your own version of these instruments to play in class or at home. Just check out the links below for the DIY instructions.

Here’s hoping this song makes you laugh and smile, learn a bit of Spanish and share a song with someone you love!