Novenas 9 days before Christmas, novenas happen. They are a custom done at home in Columbia in which family gets together and has potluck style meals as well as praying together. The meals usually consist of home grown fruits as well as white meats. The Novenas, are usually more prayer oriented, the potluck tradition just grew as a well-mannered custom. Alex is a Colombian native who immigrated here when he was just a little boy. His family left Columbia in response to all the violence that was emitting from Pablo Escobar’s reign of terror. In order to keep his family traditions alive, his parents constantly told him about the vast events and beauty of his homeland and people. This tradition kind of reminds me of when someone dies, you light a candle for 9 days as well as praying together with family and sharing potluck meals.
Tag Archives: song
Salvadoran Children Song
Sana, Sana culito de rana
Si no sanas hoy, sanaras manana
Translate to: Heal, heal, little bug of frog, if you don’t heal today, then you’ll heal tomorrow.
This song is usually sung to small children that have been hurt. it is a way to keep children from crying to when they get hurt.
My informant is a service coordinator. She likes to help people. She also migrated from El Salvador to the United States. Most of her stories are from her mother or personal experiences.
I talked to my informant over coffee in our house.
There’s No Seder Like our Seder
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Informant is grandmother, currently living in Florida having lived most of her life in New Jersey. The following is printed on a series of old, twice-photocopied documents which she stores in a closet in a large bin. These are a familiar sight for the family during Passover, in which the entirety of the song is sung together before beginning with the dinner service.
There’s No Seder Like our Seder
(sung to the tune of “There’s no Business like Show business”)
There’s no seder like our seder,
There’s no seder I know.
Everything about it is Halachic
nothing that the Torah won’t allow.
Listen how we read the whole Haggadah
It’s all in Hebrew
‘Cause we know how.
There’s no Seder like our seder,
We tell a tale that is swell:
Moses took the people out into the heat
They baked the matzoh
While on their feet
Now isn’t that a story
That just can’t be beat?
Let’s go on with the show!
Of course this song is not traditional jewish canon, as it’s inspired by the song “There’s no Business like Show business.” Somewhere down the line, at a time she does not remember, these papers were copied and it was decided to sing it before opening the Hagaddah (Passover prayerbook read at dinner). I think this song, to her, is a fun family activity which gets all ages singing together and warmed up for the night.
The Unitarian Universalist Church
Context: Gathered from one of my roommates once he found out about my collection project.
Background: My roommate has never had a set religious background, and was always in something of a melting pot of faiths when he went to churches like the one described here.
Dialogue: So, I don’t know exactly how Unitarianism, like, started, but… At some point it was just this sort of culmination of, like, various Christian sects, like Episcopalian or Protestant or whatever was around Massachusetts going on. Just a bunch of them sort of, like, coalesced into one group that’s like… “You know what, Trinity or Unity, doesn’t matter! We all have spirit!”
Analysis: The intereseting thing about this piece of folklore to me is how much is blended together in a church like this. It’s not only a mixing of various religious sects, either: at one point, my roommate sang a song he was taught as a kid, about the “Seven Guiding Principles of Kindness.” He remembers only these lines:
One, each person is important
Two, be kind in all you do
The song, interestingly enough, is set to the tune of “Do-Re-Mi” fromthe mucial The Sound of Music. So we have a mashup of popular culture, religion, and folk belief, all in this single church.
Birthday songs for Colombians in the US and in Colombia
When I explained the scope of the of the folklore projects that it could include folksongs, Juliana did think of one that she has heard here in Southern California a lot. In Colombia when a girl turns 15 (American equivalent to sweet 16) there is an elaborate party with musicians typically “mariachis” who will sing “Las Manaitas” song. Usually becomes a father-daughter dance. But this is the only time it is sung because it is a special time in a girl’s life when she become a woman.
“Estas son las mañanitas que cantaba el rey David.
Hoy por ser día de tu santo, te las cantamos a ti.
Despierta mi bien, despierta, mira que ya amaneció
ya los pajaritos cantan la luna ya se metió.
Qué linda está la mañana en que vengo a saludarte
venimos todos con gusto y placer a felicitarte.
El día en que tu naciste nacieron todas las flores
y en la pila del bautismo cantaron los ruiseñores.
Ya viene amaneciendo, ya la luz el día nos dio.
Levántate de mañana mira que ya amaneció.”
(Translated: These are the little mornings that King David used to sing.
Today being the day of your saint, we sing them to you. Wake up my dear, wake up, see that the day has already dawned, the little birds are already singing, the moon has already set. How lovely is this morning, when I come to greet you, we all come with joy and pleasure to greet you. The day on which you were born all the flowers first were born, and in the baptismal font all the nightingales sang. It already comes dawning, the day already gave us light. Rise up with the morning and see that it’s already dawned.)
Recently, in Colombia, the song has gained popularity and is sung at small children birthday parties as well but never to other teenagers or adults especially not to men. Juliana, was at a birthday party recently in Santa Monica for a fellow male student, who was from Mexico City, and they sung La Mañanitas followed by the English version of the Happy Birthday song. She was surprised that everyone seemed to expect it. I asked her what other song is sung when an adult has a birthday in Colombia? She said it is the same chords to the American Happy Birthday song but the words are different:
“Feliz cumpleaños ha ti,
desudamos feliz,
que los saigas cúmplanlo
hasta año 3000 mil!”
(Translation, “Happy birthday to you, we wish you much happiness, we hope you have more birthdays, until the year 3000 AD.)
Analysis: Having been to countless Latino birthday parties, here in Los Angeles, what usually occurs is that both Spanish songs and the English version of Happy Birthday song are sung because that way you get to make more wishes and make a lot more noise, which seems like the goal of most Latino parties in general. It usually starts with Las Mañanitas and will continue to Feliz Cumpleaños followed by the Happy Birthday song. This allows for plenty of time to take pictures and get candle wax all over the cake. The songs seem to cement the occasion and be the final mark of the birthday festivities. People usually understand that once the cake is served after the songs then the party is going to come to an end unless of course there is a band or DJ, which means the party is now really getting started and will continue until very late or early morning. The actually singing by all the participants seems significant because it is not about talent or pitch of the voices but the unified showing of support and love for the birthday person.