Children’s songs of the world: songs passed down and sung by children overseas

Row, Row, Row Your Boat

Row Row Row Your Boat | Bedtime Lullaby | Super Simple Songs

This song is said to have been composed in America in the early 19th century.

Despite its short, easy-to-remember melody, the lyrics are filled with lessons that can be hard for children to understand.

There are also versions where those didactic parts of the lyrics are rewritten for children.

Beyond simply singing it, there are many ways to enjoy this profound song: you can hold hands like in a hand game and pretend to row a boat while singing, or sing it as a round like “The Frog Song,” among other activities.

Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes

Head Shoulders Knees & Toes | @CoComelon Nursery Rhymes & Kids Songs

It’s important for young children to learn the parts of the body.

Here’s a handy song that helps them pick it up naturally as they sing and do hand motions.

In this song, you touch each body part—head, shoulders, knees, and toes—while singing, and it’s also used as a standard piece in eurhythmics.

It’s fun to make a game of it by changing the order of the lyrics or gradually increasing the tempo.

You could also change the lyrics to include the body parts you want to learn, which can be both helpful and engaging.

O Vrenele

Oh, Breneli ~ NHK Tokyo Children's Choir

This song, said to have its roots in Swiss folk music where yodeling is popular, is apparently no longer sung much in Switzerland, and the Japanese version with Japanese lyrics has become more famous.

It seems the Japanese version was created with reference to the English version.

It’s a song that can be enjoyed not only by children but also at camps and recreational events.

Through this song, it might be good for children to imagine foreign countries they don’t know, stimulating their imagination.

Happy Birthday to You

Happy Birthday (English song)

The Japanese title is “Otanjoubi no Uta” (Birthday Song).

It’s sung almost without fail when celebrating birthdays.

This song is a parody of “Good Morning to All” by the American Hill sisters.

It has been translated into many languages and is recognized by Guinness as the most sung song in the world.

My Grandfather’s Clock

My Grandfather’s Clock | Family Sing Along – Muffin Songs

The Japanese titles are “Ōkina Furu Dokei” (The Grandfather’s Clock) or “Ojīsan no Furu Dokei” (Grandfather’s Old Clock).

It is a popular song released in the United States in 1876.

At the time, the sheet music sold over one million copies, making it a huge hit.

In Japan, it was introduced before the war, in 1940, with a performance by Mimī Miyajima, a child singer and tap dancer from Yoshimoto Kogyo.

In 1962, it was broadcast on NHK’s Minna no Uta with newly adapted Japanese lyrics, and that version continues to be sung today.

J’ai perdu le Do de ma clarinette

J’ai perdu le do de ma clarinette

In Japan, it is known as a children’s song about a clarinet under the title “I Broke My Clarinet.” The original piece is said to be a march called “La chanson de l’oignon,” and in languages outside of France, where it is believed to have originated, the same melody is enjoyed with different lyrics.

Do Re Mi

Do Re Mi (The Do-Re-Mi Song)

The Japanese title is “Do-Re-Mi.” It is one of the songs featured in the 1959 musical The Sound of Music.

In Japan, a version with Japanese lyrics written and introduced by pop and jazz singer Peggy Hayama spread in 1961, and it was later included in music textbooks.