If you have little kids at home, you must be familiar with the song A Ram Sam Sam. Accompanied by wild hand gestures and catchy tune, it is no wonder why kindergarten and preschool children made it into a fun game. The lyrics may seem nonsensical, but the repetition and alliterations make this nursery rhyme attractive for pre-k singing.
Let us learn more about this rhyme, understand its meaning and play along with its words!
A Ram Sam Sam
A ram sam sam is a kids' folk music originating from Morocco. Since its inception, this popular children's song has undergone several revisions. The other versions change "A ram" to "Aram" and "Sam Sam" to "Zam Zam."
The lyrics often get distorted according to the accents and dialects of different countries. Sometimes ""a Rafiq"" gets mispronounced as ""agapee"" or ""arami"" and ""a ram sam sam"" sounds like ""a ram sa sa"" or ""a ram zam zam.""
A Ram Sam Sam (Kid'sKid's Song): Full Lyrics & Meaning
The song usually goes like this:
A ram sam sam, a ram sam sam
Guli guli guli guli guli ram sam sam
A ram sam sam, a ram sam sam
Guli guli guli guli guli ram sam sam
A Rafiq, a Rafiq
Guli guli guli guli guli ram sam sam
A Rafiq, a Rafiq
Guli guli guli guli guli ram sam sam
In Moroccan Arabic it is written as:
الرَّم صَم صَم
الرَّم صَم صَم , الرَّم صَم صَم
ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي
ﯖولِّي الرَّم صَم صَم
الرَّم صَم صَم , لرَّم صَم صَ ,
ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي
ﯖولِّي الرَّم صَم صَم
الرفيق الرفيق
ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي
ﯖولِّي الرَّم صَم صَم
الرفيق الرفيق
ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي ﯖولِّي
ﯖولِّي الرَّم صَم صَم
The song is usually sung in the Moroccan dialect and is in the Arabic language. It does not have much meaning attached to the lyrics; "A ram sam sam" have no real meaning. However, "guli" translates to "tell me," and "a Rafiq" means companion, comrade, friend, or mate.
Another version of the song, given by The Spinners, a Liverpool folk group, exists in Aramaic language. Its lyrics are:
Aram sa-sa, aram sa-sa,
Gulli gulli gulli gulli gulli gulli ram ra-sa. (2x)
Arami, arami,
Gulli gulli gulli gulli gulli gulli ram ra-sa. (2x)
What are the Ram Sam Sam movements?
To make the song even more interesting, Ram sam sam has specific movements attached to it. While there are many different interpretations and versions, the most common one is:
A ram sam sam, a ram sam sam - Pound fists on top of each other and then left to right, left to right again.
Guli guli guli guli - Swoop your hands around each other in a circle repeatedly.
A Rafiq - Put both your hands in the air and bring them while wiggling your fingers.
This is just one version of the many variations you can try out! You can have the children clapping their hands, moving fingers near the scalp ("crazy" move), or pulling hands from the bottom as if they're stuck in quicksand.
Printable lyrics:
Download these amazing lyrics for your children's room and make them live your childhood as well! Find it here.
A Ram Ram Sam Sam Photo lyrics
You can watch the following Youtube video for reference:
The A Ram Sam Sam Game Explained
You can even turn it into a game! Moreover, there are two different ways that you can enjoy it.
First, you have to repeat the song again and again. The only catch? You'llYou'll have to eliminate one part each time. You can make hand gestures but are not allowed to speak out the part verbally.
For example, for the first elimination, you can remove "A ram sam sam." Don'tDon't speak it but continue making the gestures. Next round, you can remove Guli guli. Remember, you cannot remove continuous words!
The second way is by singing the song very fast. Increase tempo every round till you cannot say the words correctly!
FAQ
Ram sam sam guli guli is a piece of popular folk music from Morocco, written in Arabic. It has gained quite popularity amongst children across the world and is now a children's song and game.
Ram sam sam originates from the Moroccan region and is spoken in that dialect. There is no particular meaning behind the lyrics, nor does the entire verse makes any sense. Individually, guli means "tell me," while Rafiq means "companion."
Leave a Reply