Shabondama (シャボン玉) (lit. "Soap Bubbles") is a Japanese nursery rhyme written by Ujō Noguchi in 1922. It is widely taught in Japanese nursery schools and kindergartens as a simple melody; it is also sometimes used in elementary school moral education courses, where students learn that it is a meditation on the death of a child.
Noguchi's daughter Midori died at the age of just 7 days in 1908. In the Meiji period, the infant mortality rate was quite high and 20 to 30 percent of children died before reaching schooling age. It was common to have many children to aim for success of the household, but Noguchi was divorced, and he thus mourned the loss of his only child for a long time.
It is widely believed that Noguchi, seeing the girls in his village play with bubbles, was reminded of the brief existence of his daughter, and wrote this poem on that occasion. However, other than the above facts, the direct inspiration for the song is unknown.[1][2]
The tune is a modification of the Christian hymn "Jesus Loves Me, This I Know".
It is used as the melody for departing trains in Yumoto Station, Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture.
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Shabondama tonda yane made tonda Lyrics - Japanese Children's Songs CD
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しゃぼん玉 | Shabondama | 童謡日本の | BUBBLES SONG - Japanese Nursery Songs
Transcription
Melody and lyrics
| Japanese | Literal translation | Translation by John McLean[3] |
|---|---|---|
シャボン玉飛んだ |
The soap bubble flew |
Little bubbles flew on up |
References
- ^ "「しゃぼん玉」は娘の死を歌っているってウソ？ 「赤い靴」の女の子は実在した？ 『唱歌・童謡120の真実』". ダ・ヴィンチニュース (in Japanese). Retrieved 2020-12-01.
- ^ 竹内, 貴久雄 (2017). 『唱歌・童謡120の真実』. 東京: ヤマハミュージックメディア. ISBN 978-4636910643.
- ^ In the 2020 film <i>Hiroshima Piano</i> (94:59–95:55): 中国新聞デジタル. "国際映画祭、学生が字幕 安田女子大で通訳学ぶ30人、「プロの仕事」へ意識高める". 中国新聞デジタル (in Japanese). Retrieved 2020-11-25.
External links
This page was last edited on 7 March 2024, at 14:22