Had Gadia

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"Had Gadia" is a playful cumulative song, written in Aramaic with Hebrew words interspersed, traditionally sung at the conclusion of the Passover Seder. It is believed to have developed from Medieval German folk music.

1 Lyrics
2 In other media
3 See also
4 References

[edit] Lyrics

Note: "kid" is used in the sense of "a young goat".

One little kid, one little kid,
Which my father bought for two zuzim.
One little kid, one little kid.

The cat came, and ate the kid,
Which my father bought for two zuzim.
One little kid, one little kid.

The dog came, and bit the cat, that ate the kid,
Which my father bought for two zuzim.
One little kid, one little kid.

The stick came, and beat the dog,
that bit the cat, that ate the kid,
Which my father bought for two zuzim.
One little kid, one little kid.

The fire came, and burned the stick,
 that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the kid,
Which my father bought for two zuzim.
One little kid, one little kid. 

The water came, and extinguished the fire,
 that burned the stick, that beat the dog,
 that bit the cat, that ate the kid,
Which my father bought for two zuzim.
One little kid, one little kid. 

The ox came, and drank the water,
 that extinguished the fire, that burned the stick,
 that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the kid,
Which my father bought for two zuzim.
One little kid, one little kid. 

The slaughterer came, and killed the ox,
 that drank the water, that extinguished the fire,
 that burned the stick, that beat the dog,
 that bit the cat, that ate the kid,
Which my father bought for two zuzim.
One little kid, one little kid. 

The Angel of Death came, and slew the slaughterer,
 who killed the ox, that drank the water,
 that extinguished the fire, that burned the stick,
 that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the kid,
Which my father bought for two zuzim.
One little kid, one little kid. 

Then came the Holy One, Blessed be He,
 and smote the Angel of Death, who slew the slaughterer,
 who killed the ox, that drank the water,
 that extinguished the fire, that burned the stick,
 that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the kid,
Which my father bought for two zuzim.
One little kid, one little kid.

[edit] In other media

A version of "Had Gadia" performed by Chava Alberstein bookends the Natalie Portman film Free Zone, with a slightly different translation of the lyrics used for the English subtitles than what is found above (the animal is a lamb, not a kid), and with an additional verse relating to the "hellish circle" of violence in the Middle East.^[1]