Chad Gadya or Had Gadya (Aramaic: חַד גַדְיָא chad gadya, "one little goat", or "one kid"; Hebrew: "גדי אחד gedi echad") is a playful cumulative song in Aramaic and Hebrew.Birnbaum, Philip, The Birnbaum Haggadah (1976, NY, Hebrew Publ'g Co.) page 156 ("phrased in the simplest style of Aramaic-Hebrew"); similarly, Birnbaum, Philip, Encyclopedia of Jewish Concepts (1975, NY, Hebrew Publ'g Co.) page 203, s.v. Had Gadya; Cohen, Jeffrey M., 1001 Questions and Answers on Pesach (1996, NJ, Jason Aronson Inc.) page 173 ("a variation of a popular German folk song, .... its Aramaic is faulty,..."); Guggenheimer, Heinrich, The Scholar's Haggadah (1995, NJ, Jason Aronson Inc.) page 390 ("questionable Aramaic"); Glatzer, Nahum N., The Schocken Passover Haggadah (1996, NY, Schocken Books) page 119 ("written in poor Aramaic with a scattering of Hebrew words...."). It is sung at the end of the Passover Seder, the Jewish ritual feast that marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. The melody may have its roots in Medieval German folk music.Roth, Cecil, The Haggadah, A New Edition (1959, London, Soncino Press) page 85 ("Some pundits assert that the Had Gadya is based upon the famous old German nursery-rhyme, Der Herr der schickt den Jokel aus, which was generally sung upon the feast of St. Lambert (September 17th); itself, as a matter of fact, probably the imitation of an older French original. This theory is by no means surely established," The German nursery rhyme is included in Kohut, George Alexander, "Le Had Gadya et les Chansons Similaires", Revue des Etudes Juives, vol. 31 (nr. 62), (Paris, Oct–Dec 1895) pages 243–244; it begins "The boss (or the Lord) sent the yokel out to mow the grain, but the yokel didn't mow the grain and he didn't come home. So the boss sent his poodle to bite the yokel, but the poodle didn't bite him and the yokel didn't mow ....." and goes on and on finally to send out the Devil to take the executioners who failed to hang the butcher who was supposed to slaughter the ox which was sent to drink the water that was meant to put out the fire that was sent to burn the whip that was sent to beat the poodle, and finally the boss comes himself and all those tasks are finally done. There is also a French nursery rhyme, "The Old Woman and her Pig", with a similar listing – but it is significant that in both the German and French nursery rhymes that characters are reluctant and refuse to do their natural or assigned activities, whereas in Had Gadya "the position is absolutely reversed.... the agents display no manner of unwillingness to perform the work of destruction, to exhibit their mastery over their inferiors." Abrahams, Israel, Festival Studies: Being Thoughts on the Jewish Year (1906, Philadelphia) page 108. It appeared in Haggadahs printed in Prague in 1527 and 1590, and an early version appears in a siddur from the Jewish community of Provence, circa 13th to 14th century. This makes it a more recent inclusion in the traditional Passover seder liturgy.Roth, Cecil, The Haggadah, A New Edition (1959, London, Soncino Press) page 85; Idelsohn, Abraham Z., Jewish Music in Its Historical Development (1929, NY, Henry Holt & Co.) page 361; Idelsohn, Abraham Z., Jewish Liturgy and It Development (1932, NY, Henry Holt & Co.) page 186; Nulman, Macy, The Encyclopedia of Jewish Prayer (1993, NJ, Jason Aronson Inc.) page 145, s.v. Had Gadya. It did not appear in the printed in 1526, but it did appear in the 1527 Prague Haggadah, and in the 1590 Prague Haggadah accompanied by a German translation. The Jewish Encyclopedia (1906, NY) vol. 8 page 190 s.v. "Had Gadya".
The song is popular with children and similar to other cumulative songs:For example, "There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly", This Is the House That Jack Built and, begging the reader's pardon, The Twelve Days of Christmas. George Alexander Kohut provided a bibliography of comparable poems in his article "Le Had Gadya et les Chansons Similaires", Revue des Etudes Juives, vol. 31 (nr. 62), (Paris, Oct–Dec 1895) pages 240–246; also, Newell, William Wells, "The Passover Song of the Kid and an Equivalent from New England", Journal of American Folk-Lore, vol.18, nr. 68 (Jan–March 1905) pages33-48. Echad Mi Yodea, ("Who Knows 'One'?") another cumulative song, is also in the Passover Haggadah.
Lyrics
EnglishOne Little Goat Romanization of AramaicChad Gadya Transliteration of Aramaicħad gadyā Aramaicחַד גַּדְיָא Verse 1: One little goat, one little goat: Chad gadya, chad gadya, ħaḏ gaḏyā, ħaḏ gaḏyā, Which my father bought for two zuzim. dizabin abah bitrei zuzei. dəzabbīn abbā biṯrē zūzē. Verse 2: One little goat, one little goat: Chad gadya, chad gadya, ħaḏ gaḏyā, ħaḏ gaḏyā, Then cat came, and ate the goat, ve-ata shunra ve-akhlah le-gadya wəʔāṯā šūnrā wəʔāḵlā ləgaḏyā Which my father bought for two zuzim. dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. dəzabbīn abbā biṯrē zūzē. Verse 3: One little goat, one little goat: Chad gadya, chad gadya, ħaḏ gaḏyā, ħaḏ gaḏyā, Then dog came, and bit the cat, that ate the goat, ve-ata kalba ve-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya wəʔāṯā ḵalbā wənāšaḵ ləšūnrā, dəʔāḵlā ləgaḏyā Which my father bought for two zuzim. dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. dəzabbīn abbā biṯrē zūzē. Verse 4: One little goat, one little goat: Chad gadya, chad gadya, ħaḏ gaḏyā, ħaḏ gaḏyā, Then stick came, and beat the dog, ve-ata chutra, ve-hikkah le-khalba wəʔāṯā ħūṭrā, wəhikkā ləḵalbā that bit the cat, that ate the goat, de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya dənāšaḵ ləšūnrā, dəʔāḵlā ləgāḏyā Which my father bought for two zuzim. dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. dəzabbīn abbā biṯrē zūzē. Verse 5: One little goat, one little goat: Chad gadya, chad gadya, ħaḏ gaḏyā, ħaḏ gaḏyā, Then fire came, and burned the stick, ve-ata nura, ve-saraf le-chutra wəʔāṯā nūrā, wəśārap̄ ləħūṭrā that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat, de-hikkah le-khalba, de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya dəhikkā ləḵalbā, dənāšaḵ ləšūnrā, dəʔāḵlā ləgāḏyā Which my father bought for two zuzim. dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. dəzabbīn abbā biṯrē zūzē. Verse 6: One little goat, one little goat: Chad gadya, chad gadya, ħaḏ gaḏyā, ħaḏ gaḏyā, Then water came, and put out the fire, ve-ata maya, ve-khavah le-nura wəʔāṯā mayyā, wəḵāḇā lənūrā that burned the stick, that beat the dog, de-saraf le-chutra, de-hikkah le-khalba dəšārap̄ ləħūṭrā, dəħikkā ləḵalbā that bit the cat, that ate the goat, de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya dənāšaḵ ləšūnrā, dəʔāḵlā ləgāḏyā Which my father bought for two zuzim. dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. dəzabbīn abbā biṯrē zūzē. Verse 7: One little goat, one little goat: Chad gadya, chad gadya, ħaḏ gaḏyā, ħaḏ gaḏyā, Then ox came, and drank the water, ve-ata tora, ve-shatah le-maya wəʔāṯā tōrā, wəšāṯā ləmayyā that put out the fire, that burned the stick, de-khavah le-nura, de-saraf le-chutra dəḵāḇā lənūrā, dəšārap̄ ləħūṭrā that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat, de-hikkah le-khalba, de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya dəhikkā ləḵalbā, dənāšaḵ ləšūnrā, dəʔāḵlā ləgāḏyā Which my father bought for two zuzim. dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. dəzabbīn abbā biṯrē zūzē. Verse 8: One little goat, one little goat: Chad gadya, chad gadya, ħaḏ gaḏyā, ħaḏ gaḏyā, Then slaughterer (Shohet) came, and killed the ox, ve-ata ha-shochet, ve-shachat le-tora wəʔāṯā hašōħēṭ, wəšāħaṯ ləṯōrā that drank the water, that put out the fire, de-shatah le-maya, de-khavah le-nura dəšāṯā ləmayyā, dəḵāḇā lənūrā that burned the stick, that beat the dog, de-saraf le-chutra, de-hikkah le-khalba dəšārap̄ ləħūṭrā, dəhikkā ləḵalbā that bit the cat, that ate the goat, de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya dənāšaḵ ləšūnrā, dəʔāḵlā ləgāḏyā Which my father bought for two zuzim. dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. dəzabbīn abbā biṯrē zūzē. Verse 9: One little goat, one little goat: Chad gadya, chad gadya, ħaḏ gaḏyā, ħaḏ gaḏyā, Then angel of death came, and slew the slaughterer, ve-ata mal'akh ha-mavet, ve-shachat le-shochet wəʔāṯā malʔaḵ hammāweṯ, wəšāħaṭ ləšōħēṭ who killed the ox, that drank the water, de-shachat le-tora, de-shatah le-maya dəšāħaṭ ləṯōrā, dəšāṯā ləmayyā that put out the fire, that burned the stick, de-khavah le-nura, de-saraf le-chutra dəḵāḇā lənūrā, dəšārap̄ ləħūṭrā that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat, de hikkah le-khalba, de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya dəhikkā ləḵalbā, dənāšaḵ ləšūnrā, dəʔāḵlā ləgāḏyā Which my father bought for two zuzim. dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. dəzabbīn abbā biṯrē zūzē. Verse 10: One little goat, one little goat: Chad gadya, chad gadya, ħaḏ gaḏyā, ħaḏ gaḏyā, Then came The Holy One, Blessed be He, ve-ata ha-Kadosh Baruch Hu wəʔāṯā haqqadōš bārūḵ hū and smote the angel of death, who slew the slaughterer, ve-shachat le-mal'akh ha-mavet, de-shachat le-shochet wəšāħaṭ ləmalʔaḵ hammāweṯ, dəšāħaṭ ləšōħēṭ who killed the ox, that drank the water, de-shachat le-tora, de-shatah le-maya dəšāħaṭ ləṯōrā, dəšāṯā ləmayyā that put out the fire, that burned the stick, de-khavah le-nura, de-saraf le-chutra dəḵāḇā lənūrā, dəšārap̄ ləħūṭrā that beat the dog, that bit the cat, that ate the goat, de-hikkah le-khalba, de-nashakh le-shunra, de-akhlah le-gadya dəhikkā ləḵalbā, dənāšaḵ ləšūnrā, dəʔāḵlā ləgāḏyā Which my father bought for two zuzim. dizabin abba bitrei zuzei. dəzabbīn abbā biṯrē zūzē. Verse 11: One little goat, one little goat. Chad gadya, chad gadya, ħaḏ gaḏyā, ħaḏ gaḏyā,
Symbolism
As with any work of verse, Chad Gadya is open to interpretation. According to some modern Jewish commentators, what appears to be a light-hearted song may be symbolic. One interpretation is that Chad Gadya is about the different nations that have conquered the Land of Israel: The kid symbolizes the Jewish people; the cat, Assyria; the dog, Babylon; the stick, Persia; the fire, Macedonia; the water, Roman Empire; the ox, the Saracens; the slaughterer, the Crusaders; the angel of death, the Ottomans. At the end, God returns to send the Jews back to Israel. The recurring refrain of 'two zuzim' is a reference to the two stone tablets given to Moses on Mount Sinai (or refer to Moses and Aaron). Apparently this interpretation was first widely published in pamphlet published in 1731 in Leipzig by Philip Nicodemus Lebrecht. This interpretation has become quite popular, with many variations of which oppressor is represented by which character in the song.For example, in the Cecil Roth Haggadah, the cat is Assyria, the dog is Babylon, the stick is Persia, the water is Greece, the ox is Rome, the butcher is the Moslem empire, and the Angel of Death is the Christian nations of Europe. Roth, Cecil, The Haggadah, a new edition (1959, London, Soncino Press) pages 87–88. Another interpretation, attributed to the Vilna Gaon, in which most of the characters are identified with Biblical figures, the ox is a reference to Rome, which destroyed the Second Temple, and evidently serves to represent all the oppression and persecution since then, the butcher who slaughters the ox is the Messiah ben Joseph, who (in some unspecified future period) wages war against all the enemies of Jewry, and who is eventually killed – by the Angel of Death, who is then killed by the Almighty, ushering in a Golden Age in which the Jewish nation will be fully restored. Herczzeg, Yisrael Isser, Vilna Gaon Haggadah: The Passover Haggadah with Commentaries by the Vilna Gaon and his son, R' Avraham (1993, Brooklyn, Mesorah Publ'ns) pages 130–136; Kahane, Binyamin Zev, The Haggada of the Jewish Idea (2003, Ariel, The Center of the Jewish Idea) pages 222–227; Idelsohn, Abraham Z., Jewish Liturgy and It Development (1932, NY, Henry Holt & Co.) pages 186–187.