Multicultural & Non-English Songbook

Hello 'Round the World

Music and lyrics by Jenny & David Heitler-Klevans

©2011 Jenny & David Heitler-Klevans

An international, multi-lingual echo song with a reggae groove.   When Jenny went to South Africa in 2003, she marveled not only at the number of languages spoken there (11 official languages), but also at the many different types of greetings for elders, children, strangers, individuals and groups.

Lyrics

(Spoken intro:)
If you wanted to say "hello" to everyone on the planet, you would have to learn almost 3,000 languages and greet around 7 billion people.

(Chorus with echo:)
Hello
Aloha                                                     Hawaiian
Bonjour                                                  French
Dumela             (doo-MAY-lah)                Tswana (Southern Africa)

(Verse 1:)
Around the world, when people meet
In a home or on the street
They say hello and it’s so neat
So many different ways to greet

(Chorus:)
Hello            
Hola                         (oh-la)                           Spanish
Shalom                     (shah - lome)                 Hebrew
Konichiwa             (ko-nee-chee-wah)             Japanese

(Verse 2:)
Some wave "hi" and some shake hands
Some bow down and some just stand
Applaud, embrace or kiss a hand
So many ways in different lands

(Chorus:)
Hello
Jambo                         (jahm-bow)                         Swahili
Salaam                       (sah-lahm)                         Arabic
Kaixo                         (kai-show)                            Basque (Spain)

(Verse 3:)
Greeting the young or greeting the old
You can be shy or you can be bold
An "r" can be flat or it can be rolled
But a smile is the same around the world

(Chorus:)
Hello                                                       English
Terve                (tehr-vay)                        Finnish
Privyet             (preev-yet)                        Russian
Namaste           (nah-mas-tay)                  Hindi (India)

(Bridge:)
At the break of day or when the sun goes down
An elder or a child, a stranger or a friend
In the South or the East, in the North or the West
How we say hello, it all depends -

(Chorus:)
Hello, Hello
Molo, Molo                 (MOH-loh)                            Xhosa (pron. Kosah--South Africa)
Ni hao, Ni hao             (nee how)                           Mandarin (China)
Zdravo                         (zdrah-vo)                         Slovenian

(Chorus:)
Hello, Hello
God dag, God dag             (go dag)                         Norwegian
Aqui, Aqui                         (ah-kee)                        Mohican
Guten tag                         (goo-ten tahg)                German

(Chorus:)
Hello, Hello
Hey mon, Hey mon           (hay mahn)                      Jamaican
Iakwe, Iakwe                  (ya-kway)                         Marshallese (Marshall Islands)
Chao ban                        (dow bahn)                       Vietnamese
Konichiwa                     (ko-nee-chee-wah)              Japanese
Namaste                         (nah-mas-tay)                   Hindi (India)
Hello.

Echo on the Chorus sections

Using maps, find all the places in the world where each language is spoken.

Have each student do a bit of research about one of the languages mentioned in the song

Find songs about:

Terms of Use

All songs posted in the CMN Song Library are protected by copyright and are provided by the generosity of the owner/artist. You may perform songs you find here in classrooms and camps without the copyright owner’s permission. For all other performances, you must first obtain a performance license through BMI, SESAC or ASCAP or obtain the copyright owner’s express prior written permission.