A children’s song from the Nandi of Kenya (see also Who Will Throw Goat’s Dung at Me for another Nandi song for children) celebrating the arrival of the new moon.
When the moon is new
The children, if they are Nandi,
When the moon is new,
They spit at it and they say
Welcome moon!
If you eat anything, may it choke you
If I eat anything may it do me good.
If the old men see the moon,
They say to it
Pst! Guard the children and the cattle
Come, moon in your goodness,
guard the children and the cattle,
Then guard me until you die.
Here is the original in Nandi:
Arawet ne-ko-lel
Ingo-‘ro lakõk-ap-Nandi
Arawet ne-ko-lel,
Ko-ñgut-yi ko-‘le-chi
Pelepele arawa!
Ingi-am kii, ko-‘ket-in;
Ingã-am-ki, ko-‘is‑a.
Ingo-‘ro poiisiek arawet,
ko-‘le-chi
‘Ptu, tuk-u‑a lakok ak tuka
Nyo arawá-ni ne-mie,
Tuk-u‑a lakuk ak tuka,
Tuk-u‑a koi tun ingi-me
from ‘The Nandi: Their Language and Folklore’ (1909),
A.C. Hollis
