Dandini dandini dan ister
Teyzesinden don ister
Eee eee uyu yavrum ninni
Eee eee uyu yavrum ninni
About
This lullaby falls into the largest category of Turkish lullabies,
those expressing wishes and desires. Such lullabies mostly
articulate the desire for the baby to go to sleep. They generally
express the mother’s desire for various things for her child,
including material benefits such as toys, clothing, food and
drink, as well as long life, good deeds and a good career
when she grows up. In the first stanza of this particular
lullaby, the mother wishes a healthy upbringing for her baby,
using the onomatopoeic expression tıpısh tıpısh to convey
the sound of a baby’s walk. In the second stanza, the mother
describes the baby with her hands and arms decorated with
henna. In the old days, it was very common for Turkish people
to apply henna on the hands of a baby as a way of blessing
the child. In the last stanza, the mother expresses her wishes
and expectations from a relative. She asks for clothing from
an aunt.
Daddy’s
Lullaby
Babanın
Ninnisi
Sample (MP3)
Hu hu to
my baby
Hu hu to my honey
Look! There is no one around
Don’t look at Daddy with wide awake eyes
E –e-e, hu-hu-hu
E –e-e, hu
E –e-e, hu-hu-hu
E –e-e, hu.
Hu hu to my baby
Hu hu to my honey
If you don’t fall asleep soon
Your Mother won’t forgive me
E –e-e, hu-hu-hu
E –e-e, hu
E –e-e, hu-hu-hu
E –e-e, hu.
Hu hu to my baby
Hu hu to my honey
Your grandparents waiting at the door
Please my dear, have pity and sleep
Hu hu benim
kuzuma
Hu hu benim balıma
Kimse kalmadı bak ortalıkta
Cin cin bakma hala babana
E –e-e, hu-hu-hu
E –e-e, hu
E –e-e, hu-hu-hu
E –e-e, hu.
Hu hu benim kuzuma
Hu hu benim balıma
Uyumazsan hemen şu anda
Affetmez beni annen valla
E –e-e, hu-hu-hu
E –e-e, hu
E –e-e, hu-hu-hu
E –e-e, hu.
Hu hu benim kuzuma
Hu hu benim balıma
Deden ve ninen bekler kapıda
Aman yavrum acı sen bana
About
This is a modern lullaby composed by Özge İLAYDA. Although
modern, it still has the characteristic traditional lullaby
phrases such as hu hu and e-e-e.
Dan-dini dan-dini
dastana
Into the garden the calves did stray.
Gardener quickly chase them away.
They will eat the cabbages without delay,
Huuu- huuu- huuu
Dan-dini dan-dini
A moon is born from a mothers womb,
God has not witheld anything from him
May God protect him from the Evil Eye
Huuu- huuu -huu hu
Dan-dini Dan-dini
May our pots be coated with tin
May my daughter be a bride in a mansion
And my son dwell in a palace
Huuu –huuu- huu hu
Dan-dini Dan-dini
My son is ten months old
Even were he only five months old
May he find beauties as brides
Eh-e, eh-e eh-e eh-e!!
Dandini dandini danadan
Bir ay doğmuş anadan
Kaçınmamış yaradan
Mevla korusun nazardan
Huuu huuu huu hu
Dandini dandini danaylı
Kaplarımız kalaylı
Kızım konak gelini
Oğlum olsa saraylı
Huu huu huu hu
Dandini dandini danaylı
Benim oğlum onaylık
On olmasın beş olsun
Güzellere eş olsun
Eee eee eee
About The first stanza of this lullaby is very
well known by almost everyone in Turkey. It may be sung with
changes in the first or the following lines. At first glance,
the first stanza may seem strange, as its meaning is quite
irrelevant to a baby or a lullaby concept. However, according
to some sources (Karabaş, 1999:62), it is metaphorical: dana
“calf” stands for the son, bostan “vegetable garden”
stands for life, bostancı “gardener” stands for the
father, and lahana “cabbage” stands for a girl not
approved by the boy’s mother. In this stanza the mother is
asking the father (her husband) to keep that girl away.
In the second stanza, the mother praises and
adores her baby, likening him to the moon. She invokes God’s
name and wants Him to keep the baby away from the Evil Eye.
In Turkish lullabies praising the beauty of the baby is a
very common subject. The mother uses similes comparing her
baby’s lips with cherries, and his/her eyebrows with the crescent
moon or a pen. For the mother, the baby is more beautiful
than anything, even more beautiful than angels. This concept
is well reflected in one famous Turkish saying: “Even a porcupine
calls her offspring my silk-feathered baby”.
In the last two stanzas, the mother expresses
her wishes for her child’s future, in relation to marriage
and career. This is another common subject in Turkish lullabies.
You
are a beautiful angel
You are a flower in every heart
You are a beautiful angel
You are a wish in every heart
What a cute baby you are
Sleep apple of my eye sleep ninni
Sleep sleep ninni.
What a cute baby you are
Sleep apple of my eye sleep ninn
iSleep sleep ninni.
My home is suffused with affection
My bosom is open for you.
My home is suffused with affection
My bosom is open for you.
Don’t cry my sweetheart.
Sleep apple of my eye, sleep ninni
Sleep sleep ninni.
What a cute baby you are
Sleep apple of my eye sleep ninn
iSleep sleep ninni.
Sen bir güzel meleksin
Her gönülde çiçeksin
Sen bir güzel meleksin
Her gönülde dileksin
Sen ne şirin bebeksin
Uyu uyu gözbebeğim
Uyu uyu ninni
Sen ne şirin bebeksin
Uyu uyu gözbebeğim
Uyu uyu ninni
Açık sana kucağım
Şefkat tüten ocağım
Açık sana kucağım
Ağlama yavrucağım
Uyu uyu gözbebeğim
Uyu uyu ninni
Ağlama yavrucağım
Uyu uyu gözbebeğim
Uyu uyu ninni
AboutYou are a Beautiful Angel
This lullaby is more urban than rural in style.
Apart from praising, this lullaby is a good example of a mother’s
kind-heartedness. In the first stanza, the mother likens her
baby to an angel, a flower, the apple of her eye, and in the
next stanza, she talks about her home as full of love and
affection. She tries to comfort the baby.
I
left the islands on foot
Brothers on horseback, sisters on foot
How can I bear these troubles?
Nenni nenni nenni nenni
Nenni baby oy
The baby’s cradle is of pine
It rolled and fell off the roof out of the blue
His noble father comes from Damascus
Nenni nenni nenni nenni
Nenni baby oy
The baby’s cradle is of copper
It’s too heavy to move
I rock the empty cradle
Nenni nenni nenni nenni
Nenni baby oy
Adalardan
çıktım yayan
Kardaş atlı bacı yayan
Digel bu dertlere dayan
Nenni nenni nenni nenni
Nenni bebek oy
Bebeğin beşiği çamdan
Yuvarlandı düştü damdan
Bey babası gelir Şamdan
Nenni nenni nenni nenni
Nenni bebek oy
Bebeğin beşiği bakır
Yerinden kalkmıyor ağır
Ben sallarım takır takır
Nenni nenni nenni nenni
Nenni bebek oy
About Also known as Bebeğin beşiği çamdan
(the baby’s cradle is of pine), this is a common lullaby throughout
Turkey, but particularly in the eastern provinces. It originated
in the nomadic life, which was a common life-style in Anatolia
in the past. The lullaby is based on a sad story.
A nomad woman who is married to the head of a tribe does not
have a baby for seven years, during which time she leads a
life of misery and unhappiness among the members of her family
and tribe. Finally, she bears a child, but when the baby is
about one or two months old, it is the time when the people
of the tribe start to migrate. She puts the baby’s cradle
on a camel. As they go through the woods in darkness, the
baby’s cradle gets caught on the branch of a tree. Unaware
of the disaster, the woman continues the journey thinking
that the cradle is still on the camel. In the morning, when
she realizes that the baby’s cradle is not on the camel, she
is devastated. When the news spreads around the tribe, everyone
comes into the tent. All the relatives go out to look for
the baby along the roads they have travelled, but the baby
has already been killed by birds of prey. When the mother
hears the news, she becomes insane and goes up into the mountains
to lead her life there.
In time, many versions of the lullaby developed.
The islands referred to in this version of the lullaby, were
actually Elmalı in its original form, which is a town near
Antalya, the Mediterranean region of Turkey.
