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Lullaby by William-Adolphe Bouguereau

A lullaby is a soothing song, usually sung to young children before they go to sleep, with the intention of speeding that process. As a result they are often simple and repetitive. Lullabies can be found in every culture and since the ancient period.^[1]

Typically a lullaby is in triple metre, or in a compound metre like 6/8. Tonally, most lullabies are simple, often merely alternating tonic and dominant harmonies: Because the intended effect is to put someone to sleep, wild chromaticism would be somewhat out of character.

Many Christmas carols are designed as lullabies for the infant Jesus, the most famous of them being "Silent Night".

Origins of the term [link]

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In 1072, Turkish writer Mahmud al-Kashgari mentions old Turkish lullabies as 'balubalu' in his book Dīwānu l-Luġat al-Turk (Compendium of the languages of the Turks). It is also speculated the term may come from "Lilith-bye" or "Lilith-Abi" (Hebrew for "Lilith, begone"). In the Jewish tradition, Lilith was a demon who was believed to steal children's souls in the night. To guard against Lilith, Jewish people would hang four amulets on nursery walls with the inscription "Lilith – abi!" ["Lilith – begone"] which is a possible origin of the English word "lullaby".^[2]

In classical music [link]

Lullabies written by established classical composers are often given the form-name berceuse, which is French for lullaby, or cradle song. The most famous lullaby is Johannes Brahms' "Brahms' Lullaby" ("Wiegenlied", 1868).

Chopin's Opus 57 is a berceuse for solo piano. Other famous examples of the genre include Maurice Ravel's Berceuse sur le nom de Gabriel Fauré for violin and piano; the Berceuse élégiaque by Ferruccio Busoni; the Berceuse from the opera Jocelyn by Benjamin Godard; the Berceuse by Igor Stravinsky which is featured in the Firebird ballet, and Lullaby for String Quartet by George Gershwin. The English composer Nicholas Maw's orchestral nocturne, The World in the Evening, is subtitled "lullaby for large orchestra". American composer's Michael Glenn Williams Berceuse for solo piano uses an ostinato similar to Chopin's but in a 21st century harmonic context.

In popular music [link]

In popular music, famous lullabies include "Good Night" by The Beatles, "Lullaby" by The Cure, "Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)" by Billy Joel and "MLK" by U2^{[citation needed]}.

International lullabies [link]

For a list of notable lullabies, see Category:Lullabies.

Asia-Pacific [link]

Asia also has its own versions of the lullaby. In the Tamil language, a lullaby is called a thaalattu (thal means "tongue"). A melodious sound is created by frequent movement of the tongue at the beginning of the song. But most notably is the use of the oyayi in the Philippines, also called huluna in Batangas. In fact, the use of a song in putting a baby to sleep is so popular that almost every mother in the province is said to have composed at least one lullaby for her child. Other lullabies from Asia include the "Northeastern Cradle Song" from China, "Nina Bobo" from Indonesia, the "Itsuki Lullaby", "Chūgoku Region Lullaby", "Edo Lullaby", "Shimabara Lullaby", "Takeda Lullaby" from Japan, and "Hine E Hine" from New Zealand.

British [link]

Many medieval English verses associated with the birth of Jesus take the form of a lullaby, including "Lullay, my liking, my dere son, my sweting" and may be versions of contemporary lullabies.^[3] However, most of those used today date from the seventeenth century onwards, and some of the best known English-language lullabies originate from the US. Notable English-language lullabies include "Bye, baby Bunting", "Scottish Lullaby", "Suo Gân" (Welsh Lullaby), "Hush, Little Baby".

Czech (Ukolébavky) [link]

"Spi, Janíčku, spi" ("Sleep, Johny, sleep") – This playful lullaby was collected in Moravia by František Sušil (1804–1868), a priest and an activist of Czech national revival. He collected songs in Moravia and Silesia as well as in Slavic villages in Austria. This lullaby uses a specific name of the child, Janíček, a familiar form of the very common male name Jan. Nonsense is employed here, as the boy is promised not only a green and a red apple but also a blue one if he falls asleep.

"Ukolébavka" ("Lullaby") – This lullaby was published in 1633 in The Informatorium of the School of Infancy by Johann Amos Comenius (1592–1670). The book is likely to be the first treatise on the development and educating infants and children up to six in the family. Comenius stressed among other things the necessity of sensory and emotional stimuli at an early age. Thus, he included for mothers and nurses the Czech text and the score of the originally German lullaby by 16th century preacher Mathesius.

"Hajej, můj andílku" ("Sleep, My Little Angel") – This is one of the most melodious Czech lullabies, first collected by Karel Jaromír Erben (1811–1870), Czech romantic writer, poet and collector of Czech folk songs and fairy tales. The text refers specifically to the mother rocking her baby.

"Halí, dítě" ("Hullee, baby") – This lullaby was collected by František Bartoš (1837–1906), pedagogue and ethnographer who collected Moravian songs. The second line says the carer will leave after the child falls asleep, but in the third line we learn that only to the garden in the valley to pick raspberries.

"Halaj, belaj, malučký" ("Sleep, Sleep, Little One") – This lullaby is from the east of Moravia, where the dialect is influenced by the Slovak language, and also folk songs are similar to the Slovak ones from across the border. A boy is promised the essential food for infants, kašička, a smooth mixture made of milk and flour.

Danish (vuggeviser) [link]

"Solen er så rød, mor" ("The Sun is so Red, Mother") – This is a classic Danish lullabies, written in 1920 by the Danish novelist, playwright and poet, Harald Bergstedt (1877–1965), with music composed by classical composer, Carl Nielsen (1865–1931).

"Elefantens vuggevise" ("The Elephant’s Lullaby") – This lullaby is considered the most popular lullabies in Denmark. Using exotic animals as theme, the content and the text are simple and easily understood by a child. This was made politically correct in the 1990s: The word, negerdukkedreng (negro boy doll) was changed to kokosnød (coconut). The song was written in 1948 by the Danish writer and poet, Harald H. Lund, with music composed by writer-musician, Mogens Jermiin Nissen (1906–72).

"Godnatsang" ("Goodnight Song") – This is popular lullaby, and was composed (lyrics and music) by Sigurd Barrett (born 1967), pianist, composer and host of a Children’s TV programme in Denmark, and by fellow musician Steen Nikolaj Hansen. Sigurd usually sings this song at the end of his children’s show. This lullaby has sleeping time as theme: The day is over and we must sleep and rest so we will be fresh again in the morning.

"Mues sang få Hansemand" ("Mother’s Song to Little Hans") – This lullaby originated from south Jutland, and is very old (year of composition, unknown), it is not well known in Denmark. This may, in part, be due to the fact that it was written in Jutlandic dialect. The song’s text was written by Marie Thulesen (1878–1924) with music by the Danish musician, Oluf Ring (1884–1946).

"Jeg vil tælle stjernerne" ("I Will Count the Stars") – This lullaby was written in 1951 by the Danish poet and writer, Halfdan Rasmussen (1915–2002). Rasmussen had written numerous rhymes and jingles, some of which are still being used in Danish beginner classes in public schools (e.g. Halfdans ABC). This lullaby’s music was composed by Hans Dalgaard (1919–81). The song is a simple story of a child who tries to count the stars with his/her fingers and toes.

Dutch lullabies [link]

"Slaap kindje slaap" – Most famous Dutch lullaby. The text is mostly chosen for its rhyme. Sleep, little child, sleep. Outside a sheep is walking. A sheep with white feet, it drinks its milk sweet.

"Maantje tuurt, maantje gluurt" – Older Dutch lullaby. Look the moon peeps and spies through the window. Have the children already gone to bed? Yes moon, they're lying in bed. Good, tomorrow will be a new day of playing and learning.

"Suja suja kindje" – The child is spoken to. Is your stomach aching or do you have cold feet? We will make a fire, make porridge. The cradle is rocking.

"Suze Naanje, ik waige die" – Also the child is spoken to in this lullaby. I rock you, but if you were older I would slap you. The language is Gronings dialect.

See also [link]

• Pacifier-activated lullaby

References [link]

• Lacy, Lyn Ellen (1986). Art and Design in Children's Books. Chicago: American Library Association. p. 76. ISBN 0-8389-0446-7. 

External links [link]

Look up lullaby or berceuse in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Media related to Lullabies at Wikimedia Commons
• Lullabies of Europe, elanguages.org