Lala Mtoto Lala
Key: C~60 BPMGuitar & Piano chords
A traditional Swahili lullaby sung across East Africa — in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda — as the sun goes down and the birds settle for the night. Its simple, circular words invite a child to let go of the day and drift toward sleep. Here you will find a singable English adaptation, the meaning, and chords.
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Verse 1
C F C
Lala mtoto, lala,
F C G7
Jua limezama.
(Sleep, my child, sleep — the sun has gone down.)
C F C
Sleep now, little one, sleep,
F C G7
The sun has gone to rest.
Verse 2
C F C
Lala, lala, lala,
F C G7
Ndege wamelala.
(Sleep, sleep, sleep — all the birds are sleeping.)
C F C
Sleep, sleep, sleep, my dear,
F C G7
All the birds are sleeping near.
Play it
Chords — guitar & piano
C
Guitar
Piano
F
Guitar
Piano
G7
Guitar
Piano
Good to know
What this song means
Lala Mtoto Lala is a traditional Swahili lullaby sung across East Africa — in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda — as the sun goes down and the birds settle for the night. Its simple, circular words gently invite a child to let go of the day and drift toward sleep, just as the rest of the world quiets around them.
Traditional Swahili lullaby, passed down through oral tradition. The English lines here are a singable adaptation for this arrangement, offered as a respectful tribute — not a literal translation.
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- 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.
- Translation: our own meaning-for-meaning translation, written for understanding. The sung words stay in the original language.
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