Iranian Lullabies

One of the most outstanding and significant cultural elements of every society is its oral literature, studying which allows researchers to know the innermost and hidden parts of the life of each nation and the depth of their thoughts and feelings. Oral literature comprises a collection of songs, lullabies, quotes, proverbs, legends, riddles, etc., which are intertwined with the life and culture of the people of each era, and are passed on from one generation to the next.

Oral Literature of Iran

Iran is one of the richest cultures in terms of oral literature, which has taken a special form in every corner of Iran in accordance with the geography and culture of that region. Many grandparents tell their grandchildren the stories they have heard from their parents and grandparents and, thus, play a role in transmitting Iran’s oral literature.

Lullaby, An Important Part of Oral Literature

Oral literature is manifested in every aspect of daily life. Since the distant past, mothers have improvised songs and poems to calm their children and put them to sleep, which have become known as “lullaby”. Today, lullabies are an important part of Iranian oral literature. Lullaby is perhaps the first verbal communication between mother and child and the first sound that babies hear. With their beautiful sense of motherhood, mothers insert all their feelings into the lullabies they sing.

Features

Mothers usually sing their memories, sorrows, and joys in lullabies and talk about their wishes for their children’s future. Apart from transferring affection and telling stories, lullabies, are sometimes dedicated to telling epics and teaching. In terms of theme, love songs have the closest lyrics to lullabies. Although lullabies are usually performed with soft and soothing melodies, many different melodies can be noticed in performing them.

Kurd, Lor, Turk, Leks, etc. tribes of Iran have created a rainbow of oral literature and lullabies in this land. The people of each of these ethnicities sing lullabies and communicate with their children with their own worldviews and with their own melodies and words. Among these tribes, lullabies have acquired special names, which are usually derived from the constant component of poems. For example, Turkmen call it “Hodi Hodi Ho| and Kurds and Laks call it “Laveh Laveh”.

Iranian lullabies cannot be confined to certain poems in an absolute way, but in general, the poems that are sung as a lullaby are usually accompanied by a chorus and have a repetitive component. In terms of structure, lullabies are often eight-syllable or eleven-syllable and are formed in two to five stanzas.

Some Examples of Iranian Lullabies

Even though the translation of the lullabies causes the loss of their prosody structure, however, the tenderness in them can be well understood in the translations. Some examples of Azari lullabies of Iran are:

“The mountains are full of flowers

And the petals are the size of a scarf

Show me a child

which is more beautiful than my flower”

“Your garden is full of roses

Your place to play is there

I wish

I will see your horse riding!”

An example of Qashqaei lullabies:

“Lala lala sweet tongue

Lala lala my dear flower

It is night and Lulu comes

Sleep while a loved one is cooing for you

The road reaches the valley with a twist

Look: Who’s hooting?”

And, an example of Persian lullabies:

“Lala lala my pistachio flower

Dad is on a trip

Lala lala poppy flower

Your dad is gone, may God be with him

Lala Lala my raisin flower

Dad is gone, don’t worry

Lala lala my delicate flower

Your dad has gone to the army

Lala lala my mint flower

Your dad has gone and I feel lonely

Lala lala my lily flower

Your father has come, the apple of my eyes”