Kana mada
A Fijian version of Frère Jacques…
Cassava is a root that's eaten in Fiji. It's typically boiled or fried.
Kana mada
Please Eat
Children's Song
Children's Song
(Fijian)
(English)
Kana mada,
Kana Mada
Tavioka,
Tavioka
Kena icoi* na bele**,
Kena icoi na bele
Na ika,
Na ika.
Please eat
Please eat,
Cassava
Cassava,
Fish with some bele greens
Fish with some bele greens,
Some fish,
Some fish!
.
Notes
*The Fijian-English Dictionary by Ron Gatty gives this definition of "icoi" as follows:
icoi v. at a meal, the garnish (meat, fish, for example) eaten along with root-crop (taro, yam, cassava) or other starch food (bread, biscuits, rice); at a tea, the garnish might be biscuits or cake that supplements the tea beverage. The basic item of any meal is the starch food, traditionally the Fijian root-crops, the 'true food' kakana dina as distinct from the garnish na kena icoi.
**Bele (pictured at top) - Is a plant called "aibika" in English (Abelmoschus manihot) – According to Wikipedia, "In Fiji, the common names for this plant are bele and vauvau. The leaves are one of the principal traditional green vegetables of Fiji (along with taro leaves and a wide variety of wild ferns)."
Thanks and Acknowledgements
Thanks to Taylor for helping with the translation of cassava!