With Anna · Six Celtic nations

Celtic Lullabies

IrishScottish GaelicWelshManxBretonCornish

Slow, rocking songs from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, the Isle of Man, Brittany and Cornwall: lands of harps, pipes and old languages, where lullabies were sung in Gaelic, Welsh, Manx and Breton long before they were written down. Here you will find our Celtic songs in one place, each with its words, its meaning and its story.

Ireland

Songs in Irish (Gaeilge) and from the Irish-speaking regions, and the songs of Ireland's travelling families.

Seoithín SeóAn old Irish-language lullaby, hummed low between the words. Gaeltacht LullabyA song from the Irish-speaking regions of the west. Irish Traveller LullabyA lullaby of Ireland's travelling community. NewToo-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-RalThe famous Irish-American lullaby refrain from 1913. NewDanny BoyThe Londonderry Air as slow Irish sleep music. NewDown by the Salley GardensYeats's poem and an old Irish tune, quiet and wistful.

Scotland

Songs in Scottish Gaelic and in Scots, from the Hebrides to the Lowlands.

Bà Bà Mo LeanabhA Scottish Gaelic lullaby for "my child". Hebridean LullabyA song from the islands of the Outer Hebrides. Lowland Scots LullabyA lullaby in Scots from the Lowlands. NewThe Skye Boat SongThe rocking boat song that families use as a lullaby.

Wales

Songs in Welsh (Cymraeg), and the Welsh communities that carried them across the sea.

Suo GânThe best known Welsh lullaby. Cwsg, Cwsg, Fy NghariadA Welsh lullaby: "sleep, sleep, my love". Welsh LullabyA song from Wales. Patagonia Lullaby (Welsh)A Welsh song from the Welsh settlers of Patagonia, in Argentina. NewAr Hyd y NosThe Welsh evening song known in English as All Through the Night.

Isle of Man

Songs in Manx Gaelic (Gaelg) from the island in the middle of the Irish Sea.

Manx Fishing LullabyA song from the fishing communities of the Isle of Man. Cadil, Cadil, My Little OneA Manx lullaby: "sleep, sleep, my little one".

Brittany and Cornwall

The Celtic languages of western France and south-west England.

Breton LullabyA song from Brittany, in north-western France. Cornwall LullabyA song from Cornwall, in south-west England.

Celtic roots in Spain

Galicia and Asturias, in the north-west of Spain, share a Celtic heritage of pipes and old tunes.

Galician LullabyA song from Galicia. Asturias LullabyA song from Asturias.

A story to go with the songs

An ancient Irish legend about four swans, told as a fairy tale.

The Children of LirAn Irish legend of four children turned into swans.

Good to know

About these songs

Some of these songs are traditional, passed on by voice with no known author. Others have a known author and are in the public domain. For each one we say which it is, and where the words and the tune come from. The newest pages, such as Ar Hyd y Nos or The Skye Boat Song, are songs that many families already know under their English names.

More songs to sing & play

Back to all our nursery rhymes and lullabies, each one with a different friend.

← All nursery rhymes Compare Lullaby Traditions 🌍

Sources & rights

Words and melody: see the credits in the text of this page. Older songs are traditional or in the public domain; songs by known authors keep their authors' credit.
Recording and arrangement: real instruments played by hand, no AI music, by Relax In No Time.
Chords: written by us for guitar and piano.

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