Chad Gadya
Encyclopedia
Chad Gadya is a playful cumulative song
in Aramaic and Hebrew
. It is sung at the end of the Passover Seder
, the Jewish ritual feast that marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday
of Passover
. The melody may have its roots in Medieval
German
folk music
.
The song is popular with children and similar to other cumulative songs: Echad Mi Yodea
, ("Who Knows 'One'?) another cumulative song, is also in the Passover Haggadah.
: The kid symbolizes the Jewish people, the cat
, Assyria
; the dog
, Babylon
; the stick
, Persia; the fire
, Macedon
ia; the water
, Rome
; the ox
, the Saracens; the slaughterer, the Crusaders
; the angel of death, the Turks
. At the end, God
returns to send the Jews back to Israel. The recurring refrain of 'two zuzim' is a reference to the two stone tablets given to Moses on Mount Sinai.
Cumulative song
A cumulative song is a song whose verses are built from earlier verses, usually by adding a new stanza to the previous verse. A simple cumulative song having n verses is structured as-Examples of cumulative songs:* "The Twelve Days of Christmas"...
in Aramaic and Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
. It is sung at the end of the Passover Seder
Passover Seder
The Passover Seder is a Jewish ritual feast that marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted on the evenings of the 14th day of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar, and on the 15th by traditionally observant Jews living outside Israel. This corresponds to late March or April in...
, the Jewish ritual feast that marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday
Jewish holiday
Jewish holidays are days observed by Jews as holy or secular commemorations of important events in Jewish history. In Hebrew, Jewish holidays and festivals, depending on their nature, may be called yom tov or chag or ta'anit...
of Passover
Passover
Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
. The melody may have its roots in Medieval
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
.
The song is popular with children and similar to other cumulative songs: Echad Mi Yodea
Echad Mi Yodea
Echad Mi Yodea is a traditional cumulative song sung on Passover and found in the haggadah. It enumerates common Jewish motifs and teachings...
, ("Who Knows 'One'?) another cumulative song, is also in the Passover Haggadah.
Lyrics
| English ONE LITTLE GOAT |
Transliteration Romanization of Hebrew Hebrew uses the Hebrew alphabet with optional vowel points. The romanization of Hebrew is the use of the Latin alphabet to transliterate Hebrew words.... Chad Gadya |
Aramaic חַד גַּדְיָא |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Verse 1: | |||
| One little goat, one little goat: | Chad gadya, chad gadya, | ||
| Which my father bought for two zuzim Zuz (coin) A Zuz was an ancient Hebrew silver coin struck during the Bar Kochba revolt. They were overstruck on Roman Imperial denarii or Roman provincial drachmas of Vespasian, Titus, Domitian, Trajan and Hadrian... . |
dizabin abah bitrei zuzei. | ||
| Verse 2: | |||
| One little goat, one little goat: | Chad gadya, chad gadya, | ||
| The cat came, and ate the goat, | ve-ata shunra ve-akhlah le-gadya | ||
| Which my father bought for two zuzim. | dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. | ||
| Verse 3: | |||
| One little goat, one little goat: | Chad gadya, chad gadya, | ||
| The dog came, and bit the cat, that ate the goat, | ve-ata kalba ve-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya | ||
| Which my father bought for two zuzim. | dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. | ||
| Verse 4: | |||
| One little goat, one little goat: | Chad gadya, chad gadya, | ||
| The stick came, and beat the dog, | ve-ata chutra, ve-hikkah le-khalba | ||
| that bit the cat, that ate the goat, | de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya | ||
| Which my father bought for two zuzim. | dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. | ||
| Verse 5: | |||
| One little goat, one little goat: | Chad gadya, chad gadya, | ||
| The fire came, and burned the stick, | ve-ata nura, ve-saraf le-chutra | ||
| that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat, | de-hikkah le-khalba, de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya | ||
| Which my father bought for two zuzim. | dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. | ||
| Verse 6: | |||
| One little goat, one little goat: | Chad gadya, chad gadya, | ||
| The water came, and extinguished the fire, | ve-ata maya, ve-khavah le-nura | ||
| that burned the stick, that beat the dog, | de-saraf le-chutra, de-hikkah le-khalba | ||
| that bit the cat, that ate the goat, | de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya | ||
| Which my father bought for two zuzim]. | dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. | ||
| Verse 7: | |||
| One little goat, one little goat: | Chad gadya, chad gadya, | ||
| The ox came, and drank the water, | ve-ata tora, ve-shatah le-maya | ||
| that extinguished the fire, that burned the stick, | de-khavah le-nura, de-saraf le-chutra | ||
| that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat, | de-hikkah le-khalba, de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya | ||
| Which my father bought for two zuzim. | dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. | ||
| Verse 8: | |||
| One little goat, one little goat: | Chad gadya, chad gadya, | ||
| The slaughterer (Shohet) came, and killed the ox, | ve-ata ha-shochet, ve-shachat le-tora | ||
| that drank the water, that extinguished the fire, | de-shatah le-maya, de-khavah le-nura | ||
| that burned the stick, that beat the dog, | de-saraf le-chutra, de-hikkah le-khalba | ||
| that bit the cat, that ate the goat, | de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya | ||
| Which my father bought for two zuzim. | dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. | ||
| Verse 9: | |||
| One little goat, one little goat: | Chad gadya, chad gadya, | ||
| The angel of death came, and slew the slaughterer, | ve-ata mal'akh ha-mavet, ve-shachat le-shochet | ||
| who killed the ox Ox An ox , also known as a bullock in Australia, New Zealand and India, is a bovine trained as a draft animal. Oxen are commonly castrated adult male cattle; castration makes the animals more tractable... , that drank the water, |
de-shachat le-torah, de-shatah le-maya | ||
| that extinguished the fire, that burned the stick, | de-khavah le-nura, de-saraf le-chutra | ||
| that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat, | de hikkah le-khalba, de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya | ||
| Which my father bought for two zuzim. | dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. | ||
| Verse 10: | |||
| One little goat, one little goat: | Chad gadya, chad gadya, | ||
| Then came the Holy One, Blessed be He God God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism.... , |
ve-ata ha-Kadosh Baruch Hu | ||
| and smote the angel of death, who slew the slaughterer, | ve-shachat le-mal'akh ha-mavet, de-shachat le-shochet | ||
| who killed the ox, that drank the water, | de-shachat le-tora, de-shatah le-maya | ||
| that extinguished the fire, that burned the stick, | de-khavah le-nura, de-saraf le-chutra | ||
| that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat, | de-hikkah le-khalba, de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya | ||
| Which my father bought for two zuzim. | dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. | ||
| Verse 11: | |||
| One little goat, one little goat. | Chad gadya, chad gadya, | ||
Symbolism
According to modern Jewish commentators, what appears to be a light-hearted song may be symbolic. One interpretation is that Chad Gadya is about the different nations that have conquered the Land of IsraelLand of Israel
The Land of Israel is the Biblical name for the territory roughly corresponding to the area encompassed by the Southern Levant, also known as Canaan and Palestine, Promised Land and Holy Land. The belief that the area is a God-given homeland of the Jewish people is based on the narrative of the...
: The kid symbolizes the Jewish people, the cat
Cat
The cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...
, Assyria
Assyria
Assyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid–23rd century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia , that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur...
; the dog
Dog
The domestic dog is a domesticated form of the gray wolf, a member of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. The term is used for both feral and pet varieties. The dog may have been the first animal to be domesticated, and has been the most widely kept working, hunting, and companion animal in...
, Babylon
Babylon
Babylon was an Akkadian city-state of ancient Mesopotamia, the remains of which are found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province, Iraq, about 85 kilometers south of Baghdad...
; the stick
Stick fighting
Stick fighting is a generic term for martial arts which use simple long slender, blunt, hand-held, generally wooden 'sticks' for fighting such as a staff, cane, walking stick, baton or similar....
, Persia; the fire
Fire
Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. Slower oxidative processes like rusting or digestion are not included by this definition....
, Macedon
Macedon
Macedonia or Macedon was an ancient kingdom, centered in the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, bordered by Epirus to the west, Paeonia to the north, the region of Thrace to the east and Thessaly to the south....
ia; the water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
, Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
; the ox
Ox
An ox , also known as a bullock in Australia, New Zealand and India, is a bovine trained as a draft animal. Oxen are commonly castrated adult male cattle; castration makes the animals more tractable...
, the Saracens; the slaughterer, the Crusaders
Crusaders
The Crusaders are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Christchurch that competes in the Super Rugby competition. They are the most successful team in Super Rugby history with seven titles...
; the angel of death, the Turks
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. At the end, God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
returns to send the Jews back to Israel. The recurring refrain of 'two zuzim' is a reference to the two stone tablets given to Moses on Mount Sinai.
Variations
The words "dizabin abah" in the second line of the song literally mean "which father sold", rather than "which father bought". The Aramaic for "which father bought" is "dizvan abah", and some Haggadot have that as the text.In popular culture
- The film track of the 2005 movie Free ZoneFree Zone (film)Free Zone is a 2005 film directed by Amos Gitai. Shot in Israel and Jordan, the Israel-Belgium-French-Spain production stars Israeli Jewish actress Hanna Laslo, Palestinian Arab actress Hiam Abbass, and Israeli-American actress Natalie Portman....
includes a controversial interpretation of Chad Gadya composed by Israeli singer Chava AlbersteinChava AlbersteinChava Alberstein is an Israeli singer, lyricist, composer, and musical arranger.-Biography:Chava Alberstein, born in Szczecin, Poland, moved to Israel with her family in 1950. She grew up in Kiryat Haim....
. The song was banned on Israeli radio stations in the 1980s. - In the Season 1, episode 14 of The West Wing "Take This Sabbath Day," the rabbi of Toby Ziegler's temple references this story as a deterrence against capital punishment and mentions that vengeance is not Jewish.
- It is source of the title A Kid for Two FarthingsA Kid for Two FarthingsA Kid for Two Farthings is a 1953 novel by the British writer Wolf Mankowitz, based on the author's experiences of growing up within a Jewish community in London's East End. It was translated into a film by Carol Reed in 1955...
, a 1953 novel written by Wolf MankowitzWolf MankowitzCyril Wolf Mankowitz was an English writer, playwright and screenwriter of Russian Jewish descent.-Early life:...
, the basis of a 1955 film and 1996 musical play. - It was featured in the American television series NCISNCIS (TV series)NCIS, formerly known as NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service, is an American police procedural drama television series revolving around a fictional team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which conducts criminal investigations involving the U.S...
in the season 7 opener "Truth or Consequences" by Abby and McGee, and then was sung jokingly in a scene by Dinozzo in another season 7 episode titled "Reunion". McGee explains that they accessed Mossad's encrypted files, "but they weren't in English, so we had to do a little bit of rudimentary linguistics. It's a Hebrew school nursery rhyme." Chad Gadya (One Little Goat). McGee and Abby start to enthusiastically sing along with the nursery rhyme." - The recording "A Different Night" by the group Voice of the TurtleVoice of the TurtleVoice of the Turtle is a musical group specializing in Sephardic music. VotT is unique in its emphasis on doing original historical research before making recordings. The band members travel the world looking for documents of Sephardic songs, and also interview community members who may remember...
has 23 different versions of Chad Gadya in all different languages.
- The Israeli satirical team LatmaLatmaLatma is an Israeli media criticism website that also produces a weekly satirical news show.The website was created in 2008 by a group of journalists claiming that "the only way to improve the Public discourse is exposing the true face of the news and journalism in whole"...
has created a parody "Chad Bayta" ("One House"), to the tune of "Chad Gadya", which tells the story of a house in the settlements. Instead of a cat, a dog, a stick, and so on,the song features Peace Now, Benyamin Netanyahu, Barack ObamaBarack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
, Ahmadinejad, and the UN, among others. - It is sung in the seder scene of the 1999 film The Devil's ArithmeticThe Devil's ArithmeticThe Devil's Arithmetic is a historical novel written by American author Jane Yolen and published in 1988. The book is about Hannah, a Jewish girl who lives in New Rochelle, New York...
, with Kirsten DunstKirsten DunstKirsten Caroline Dunst is an American actress, singer and model. She made her film debut in Oedipus Wrecks, a short film directed by Woody Allen for the anthology New York Stories...
. - In Italy the song has become very popular since the ’70s, when the Italian folk singer and composer Angelo BranduardiAngelo BranduardiAngelo Branduardi , is an Italian folk singer and composer who scored relevant success in Italy and European countries such as France, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.- Biography :...
recorded it with the title of Alla fiera dell'estAlla fiera dell'estAlla fiera dell'est is an album by the Italian singer-songwriter Angelo Branduardi. It was released in 1976 by Polydor and won the prize of Italian music critics in the same year...
. - It is the name of a theatre company based in Toronto, Canada: One Little Goat Theatre CompanyOne Little Goat Theatre Company"Toronto's enterprising One Little Goat Theatre Company" is North America’s only theatre company devoted to modern and contemporary “poetic theatre.” Founded by poet, playwright and director Adam Seelig in New York in 2002, and based in Toronto since 2005, the company is distinguished by its highly...
Other uses
- In Yiddish slang, the term "chad gadya" is a euphemism for jail. A prisoner is said to languish in a chad gadya — that is, all alone.
- Chad Gadya was the pseudonym of Marousia (Miriam) Nissenholtz, the only female student at Bezalel Art SchoolBezalel schoolThe Bezalel school was an art movement in Palestine in the late Ottoman and British Mandate periods. Named for the Bezalel Art School, predecessor of the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, it has been described as "a fusion of 'oriental' art and Jugendstil."...
in Palestine in 1912.