What is Hickory Dickory Dock in Spanish?
That’s a tough question! Maybe it’s best first to ask what it means…
So… what does Hickory Dickory Dock mean?
Well, the phrase might have its origins in the words Hevera, Devera, Dick – which were used by shepherds in the English county of Westmorland centuries ago for counting their sheep, and meant: Eight, Nine, Ten!
Hickory Dickory Dock as a rhyme was first mentioned in a collection of nursery songs published in London in 1744 – as Hickere Dickere Dock.
By 1821 a writer in Blackwood’s Magazine stated that it was the rhyme most commonly used in Edinburgh ‘by children to decide who is to begin a game’.
So early on it was a counting rhyme, used like children today say: Eeny, meeny, miny, moe to choose who is going to have to do some special task – like being ‘it’ in a game of tag, for example. Which does fit in with the possible origin in numbers, doesn’t it?
Apart from that, there’s no particular meaning today – children like it for other reasons…
Hickory Dickory Dock – popular because of how it sounds.
Whatever the origins of Hickory Dickory Dock are, it’s clear that the rhyme thrived because of the rhythmic quality of the words. It also sounds rather like the ticking of a clock – so it seems to work well in a rhyme about counting and time.
Can I listen to Hickory Dickory Dock in Spanish?
Of course! Here’s a snippet of Hickory Dickory Dock by Baby Listen from our Spanish 0+ album for babies and toddlers. Its Spanish name is Por un reloj de latón (On a clock made of brass):
Hickory Dickory Dock - from Spanish 0+ by Baby Listen
The full song comes on our Spanish 0+ by Baby Listen album for babies and young children – which contains many lovely versions of traditional Spanish nursery songs, with some classic English nursery songs like Hickory Dickory Dock sung beautifully in Spanish too.
All designed to ignite your child’s love of Spanish early on – they are available on mp3 download: check out some samples.
What are the lyrics of Hickory Dickory Dock in Spanish?
Here are Baby Listen’s lyrics of Hickory Dickory Dock in Spanish – with the English translations alongside (viewing on mobile? – they’ll be below).
Por un reloj de latón,
se sube un pequeño ratón.
El reloj da la hora,
pero lo ignora
ese pequeño ratón.
Por un reloj de latón,
se sube un pequeño ratón.
El reloj da las dos,
y le entra la tos
a ese pequeño ratón.
Por un reloj de latón,
se sube un pequeño ratón.
El reloj da las tres,
y se baja al revés
ese pequeño ratón.
Up a clock made of brass,
climbs a little mouse.
The clock strikes the time,
but he just ignores it,
that little mouse.
Up a clock made of brass,
climbs a little mouse.
The clock strikes two,
and he starts to cough,
that little mouse.
Up a clock made of brass,
climbs a little mouse.
The clock strikes three,
and he comes down backwards,
that little mouse.
So tell us about the Baby Listen version of Hickory Dickory Dock in Spanish
For us at Baby Listen, it’s crucial that the songs we feature from the English-speaking world sound great in Spanish. So in our Spanish version of Hickory Dickory Dock, the words really do fit in beautifully with the melody.
Can you translate a phrase like Hickory Dickory Dock into Spanish or any other language? You have to be guided by the sound and because there’s no real meaning to get across, you can be quite free! So we’ve gone for a first line that has the right rhythm for the song – which is so important – and where the meaning fits too.
Our Spanish version is also about a mouse running up and down a clock, of course, and keeps that lovely rhythmic quality of the original. There are clock chimes and we think our version of Hickory Dickory Dock is the only one in the world to have… a clock solo!
Is this the gentlest version of Hickory Dickory Dock in Spanish?
We think so – it’s a perfect version for parents bringing their babies & toddlers up with Spanish!
More from the Baby Listen blog:
Musical bumps: do babies learn their first songs in the womb?
It’s quite common for parents to play music to their unborn baby in the hope that it will improve their development… but does it have any effect?
Research carried out at the University of Helsinki has shown that…
This natural and fun activity really helps you learn another language
Intuitively, we seem to know that singing things helps us to remember them – think of all the song lyrics you know.
But does singing in another language help you to learn it?
Songs we love: Twinkle twinkle little star
Is this the most famous nursery song in English? What’s the history of Twinkle Twinkle? And how do you sing it in Spanish with Baby Listen?
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