Dinka Lullaby
▶ More lullabies on YouTube
Dinka Lullaby Lyrics. An original lullaby inspired by the Dinka people of South Sudan, whose lives are built around cattle and the seasonal floodplains of the White Nile. Cattle sit at the very center of Dinka identity, and it’s common for a young man to compose and sing a personal praise song dedicated to his favorite ox, celebrating its color, horns, and markings in loving detail, a tradition that ties poetry, music, and daily life together in a way found in few other cattle-herding cultures. Here you will find the lyrics, meaning, and chords.
Lyrics & chords
An original arrangement, with guitar & piano chords above each line.
Verse
What the words mean
Chords — guitar & piano
What “Dinka Lullaby” Means
In Dinka, “ma” (spoken with a high tone) means mother — used here as a gentle term of endearment for a beloved child. The Dinka people of South Sudan build their lives around cattle, moving each dry season to the White Nile’s floodplains for fresh grazing. This original lullaby draws on those cattle-herding and river-plain images of Dinka life, with “ma” used as a warm address rather than a literal translation.
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
- An original lullaby by Relax In No Time, inspired by the musical traditions of its region. The words, melody, arrangement and recording are ours.
- Recording and arrangement: real instruments played by hand, no AI music, by Relax In No Time.
- Chords: written by us for guitar and piano.
- Translation: our own meaning-for-meaning translation, written for understanding. The sung words stay in the original language.
Spotted a mistake or know a better source? Tell us. How we work · Get in touch