Hakka Folk Songs

The Queen Mother rides a white horse,

Rides to the foot of the tree by our house.

One jar of wine, two pots of tea,

Three bottles of tea oil, four baskets of melons,

Five baskets of sweet potatoes, six loads of grain,

Peanuts fried till fragrant and hot,

Tofu ground out with joy and laughter.

Little sister, busy planting vegetables;

Open the garden gate, pick some chives;

Pick one leaf, leave two leaves;

Leave two leaves for the youngest aunt’s wedding;

Marry neither up nor down;

Marry into the old house at the ridge’s crown.

There is a pond, there is sugarcane;

There are soybeans that crack your teeth,

Eating makes everyone laugh with glee.

Firefly, firefly, hang a lantern.

Lantern low, catch a crab,

Crab king falls into the pond.

In the middle of the pond, a needle,

At the bottom of the pond, a horse.

Ride up, ride down,

Ride all the way to grandma’s home,

Grandma praises me as a good child.

Firefly, chirping bug,

Under the peach tree, hang a lantern.

Lantern bright, lights the four directions;

Four directions dark, fall into a pit;

Under the pit a needle, pick it up and give to Guanyin;

Before Guanyin a clump of rice,

Cut one load and another basket.

Eat one basket, save one basket,

A long, steady stream makes life good.

Little ants, carry big rice grains,

Can’t move them, truly anxious.

Big ants have a clever plan:

Work together in unity.

You shout “Go!” and I add strength,

The rice quickly enters the nest.

On the seventh day of the seventh moon, the dangli fruit turns a tiny bit black.

On the eighth day of the eighth moon, the dangli fruit falls black and ripe.

On the ninth day of the ninth moon, the dangli fruit is sweeter than wine.

On the tenth day of the tenth moon, there’s no dangli left to eat.

No more to eat!