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Did you know that the great songwriter and activist Woody Guthrie wrote Ḥanukkah music? It’s true. Though Guthrie himself was not Jewish, Marjorie Greenblatt, his second wife and their children were, and he would write Ḥanukkah songs for the kids in his neighborhood in the 1940s. Two of these songs were recorded by Moses Asch, head of Folkways Records, in 1949 — a kid’s song called “Hanuka Dance,” and a twenty-verse ballad retelling the story of Ḥanukkah called “The Many and the Few.” Below is an original Hebrew translation of “The Many and the Few,” preserving the meter of the original. With a simple melody and a lot of historical research, it could certainly be sung at a Ḥanukkah event.
A recording of the Hebrew is forthcoming. For further information about the original songs in question and Woody Guthrie’s connection with the Yiddish folk world, check here and here.
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| Translation (Hebrew) | Source (English) |
|---|---|
שְׁמִי מֶֽלֶךְ כּֽוֹרֶשׁ וַאַֽעֲבֶר קוֹל תָּשׁוּב יְהוּדָה לְבֵיתָהּ לִבְנוֹת עוֹד־פַּֽעַם אֶת־בֵּית מִקְדָּשֵׁךְ בְּתוֹךְ עֲבַר נַהֲרָא׃ |
My name is King Cyrus, my order I give, You Jews can go back to your home To build your holy temple again In the land of Palestine. |
זִמַּֽרְנוּ רָקַֽדְנוּ עַל־דֶּֽרֶךְ מִדְבָּר בְּשׁוּב לְאַדְמַת יִשְׂרָאֵל עָבַֽדְנוּ בְּמַעַדְרִים וְאִתִּים יָדֵֽינוּ כּוֹנְנוּ מַעֲשֶׂה׃ |
We’ve sung and danced o’er the hot rocky roads Back to Eretz Yisroel’s land We worked with plow and rake and hoe And we blessed the works of our hands |
שְׁמִי עֶזְרָא הַכֹּהֵן הַסֹּפֵר הֵבֵֽאתִי אִתִּי אֶת־סִפְרִי הֶעֱלֵֽיתִי מֵאֶֽרֶץ בָּבֶל אֶת־צֹאנִי לְאֶֽרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל׃ |
My name is Ezra the Teacher man I brought my scroll book along I brought my flock to Yisroel From that land called Babylon |
אֶקְרָא לִפְנֵיכֶם אֶת־תַּלְמוּד תּוֹרָתִי תִּשְׁמְעוּ חֲזוֹן הַנְּבִיאִים וְאַתֶּם תִּפְרוּ וְתִרְבּוּ עַד־מְאֹד כִּי־תִּשְׁמֹר בַּתּוֹרָה בֶּאֱמֶת׃ |
I’ll read you my Talmud Torah book And the prophet’s dreams to you And you’ll be fertile and multiply If you keep your Torah true |
שְׁמִי אָלֶכְּסַֽנְדֶּר קוֹרְאִים לִי גָּדוֹל חֲצִי כׇּל־הָאָֽרֶץ תַּחְתַּי קֽוּמוּ וְעִמְדוּ לְפָנַי עֲבָדַי כִּי־אֶגְוַע אֵאָסֵף אֶל־עַמִּי׃ |
My name is Alexander the Great More than half of this wide world is mine Come stand around, my servants all I’m wrapped on my bed here to die |
אַתָּה מֶֽלֶךְ סוּרְיָה וּכְנַֽעַן תַּעֲמֹד אַנְטִיּֽוֹכוּס הָרְבִיעִי לְהַשְׁמִיד בַּיְּהוּדִים הַמְּמָאֲנִים לַעֲבֹד עֲבוֹדַת אֱלִּילִים׃ |
As the King of Syria and Palestine Antiochus the Fourth, you’ll stand To kill the Jews if they refuse To worship our idols and gods |
שְׁמִי חַנָּה וּבְנִי בְּכוֹרִי עוֹמֵד לִפְנֵי הַנָּגִיד חֶטְאוֹ שֶׁשָּׁמַר אֶת־חֻקּוֹת הַשַּׁבָּת רָאִֽיתִי בַּהֲרִיגָתוֹ׃ |
My name is Hannah, my first born son Now stands before this king Guilty of keeping the Sabbath laws By the soldiers I see him slain |
אֶחָד וְאֶחָד הִכּוּ אֶת־בָּנַי שִׁבְעָה נִרְצָחִים לְעֵינַי כִּי שָׁמְרוּ אֶת־מִצְוֺת הַתּוֹרָה הַקְּדוֹשָׁה אֲשַׁלֵּם בַּדָּמִי הַשָּׁפוּךְ׃ |
It’s one by one my seven sons In front of my eyes cut down For keeping to the Torah laws I pay with my warm blood now |
שְׁמִי מַתִּתְיָֽהוּ בָּנַי חֲמִשָּׁה וְדַֽרְנוּ בְּעִיר מוֹדִיעִין הַמֶּֽלֶךְ חִיְּבֵֽנוּ לַעֲבֹד אֱלִילִים הָרַֽגְנוּ אֶת־שְׁנֵי נְעָרָיו׃ |
My name is Mattathias, I’ve got five sons In Modi’in City we dwell They tried to make me bow down to their gods Two of the King’s flunkeys I killed |
מֵאָה שֶׁיִּלָּחֲמוּ לִהְיוֹת יְהוּדִים עָלוּ הַגִּבְעָֽתָה אִתִּי עַל־עֶֽרֶשׂ דְּוַי אֶקְרָאֶה מַנְהִיגְכֶם הוּא יְהוּדָה הַמַּכַּבִּי׃ |
A hundred or more who’ll fight to be Jews Did come to these hills with me On my death bed your leader I’ll name ‘Tis Judah, the Maccabee |
שְׁמִי יְהוּדָה הַמַּכַּבִּי עַל־שֵׁם הַמַּקֶּֽבֶת נִקְרָא לִפְנֵי הַקְּרָב נִתְפַּלֵּל לֵאלֹהִים עַד כׇּל־אוֹיְבֵֽינוּ יִפְּלוּ׃ |
My name is Judah, the Maccabee By the name of the hammer I’m called We’ll pray to God before every fight Till all of our enemies fall |
הַמּוֹשֵׁל אַפּוֹלֽוֹנְיוֹס הָרַֽגְתִּי הַיּוֹם נִתַּֽצְנוּ אֶת־כׇּל־צְבָאוֹ הַמְּעַט חַיָּלָיו בָּרֽוּחַ בָּרְחוּ הָרֹב פְּגָרִים בֶּעָפָר׃ |
Appolonius, the Governor, this day I killed And his army we did bust Some few of his soldiers run away in the wind But most we’ve dropped dead in the dust |
שְׁמִי סֵירוֹן וּבָאתִי מִסִּרְיוֹן לְהַשְׁמִיד אֶת־הַהוּא מַכַּבִּי חֵילִי הוּא גָּדוֹל וְחֵילוֹ הוּא קָטֹן אַךְ בְּכׇל־זֹאת הוּא נִצַּח אוֹתִי׃ |
Syron is my name, from Syria came To destroy that fool Maccabee My army was great, his army was small But he somehow did win over me |
מְסִירַת הָרַבִּים בְּיַד הַמְּעַטִּים לָאֵל אֵין בִּכְלָל בְּעָיָה רַק כַּמָּה שָׁעוֹת וְנִשְׁבָּר צְבָאִי מִלֵּֽאנוּ אֶת־הָעֵֽמֶק בְּדָם׃ |
To deliver the many to the hands of his few For God this is no trick at all In a few short hours my army did break And we flooded this valley with blood |
לִיסִֽיַאס שְׁמִי וְזֹאת מַחֲשַׁבְתִּי לִשְׂרֹף בָּם בְּתוֹךְ שֵׁנָתָם בָּֽאתִי הִנָּם כְּבָר יָצְאוּ גַּם עָבְרוּ רֵיקָם הָיָה כׇּל־אׇהֳלָם׃ |
My name is Lysias, I dreamed up a plan To burn the Jews tents as they slept When I got there, their tents were all bare And the Maccabee’s army had left |
וְהוּא הִסְתַּעֵר עֲלֵי־מַחֲנָתִי וְהֵמִית אֶת־אַלְפֵי חַיָּלַי פִּילַי פָּרָשַׁי וְכׇל־אֶֽלֶף רַגְלִי נָקַב יְהוּדָה בַּזָּנָב׃ |
He stormed my own camp as my soldiers did sleep And he killed several thousand in fear My elephants, my horsemen, my foot-soldiers, all Judah hammered them down from the rear |
שִׁיר לִירוּשָׁלַֽיִם בְּשׁוּב יְהוּדָה לִבְנוֹת עוֹד הַפַּֽעַם בֵּיתִי לַעֲקֹר וּלְהַכְרִית בַּשָּׁמִיר וּבַשַּֽׁיִת שֶׁנָּבַט סָבִיב עַל־שְׁעָרַי׃ |
My name is Jerusalem where Judah came back To build up my Temple once more To cut down the weeds and thorny brush That grows ‘round my windows and doors |
אֲבָנִים שְׁלֵמוּת נִבְנֶה בִּתְפִלָּה בִּלְבָבוֹת שְׁלֵמִים כַּיְּהוּדִים אַהֲבַת עוֹלַם חֶֽסֶד מָסְרוּ הַשּׂוֹנְאִים בְּיַד אוֹהֲבֵי אֱלֹהִים |
Whole stones, whole stones, we’ll build and pray To God as a wholehearted Jew God’s love the hateful many did place In the hands of a God loving few |
מָצָֽאנוּ כַּד שֶֽׁמֶן קָטָן בַּמִּקְדָּשׁ מַסְפִּיק רַק לַלַּֽיְלָה הַהוּא הַכַּד הַקָּטָן נִשְׂרַף שְׁמוֹנָה יָמִים לְהָאִיר אֶת־הָאוֹר הֶחָדָשׁ |
We found in our temple a little oil jug Just enough for the lamps for one night That one little jug burned eight whole days And it kept our new temple in light |
לָכֵן שְׁמוֹנָה נֵרוֹת וְשַׁמָּשׁ נַדְלִיק כׇּל־חֹֽרֶף שֶׁבָּא וְיוֹצֵא נַזְכִּֽירָה רַבִּים בְּיַד מְעַטִּים וְזֶֽרַע יְהוּדָה נְבָרֵךְ |
Eight candles we’ll burn and a ninth one too Every New Year that comes and goes We’ll think of the many in the hands of the few And thank God we are seeds of the Jews |
Recording(s)
“The Many and the Few | רַבִּים בְּיַד מְעַטִּים (Rabim b’Yad M’atim) — a Hebrew adaptation of Woody Guthrie’s Ḥanukkah ballad by Isaac Gantwerk Mayer” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International copyleft license.
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Associated Image:
Woody Guthrie playing for kids, ca. 1940s
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ויהי נעם אדני אלהינו עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננהו "May the pleasantness of אדֹני our elo’ah be upon us; may our handiwork be established for us — our handiwork, may it be established." –Psalms 90:17
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