Tzena Tzena Tzena
DESCRIPTION: Hebrew, urging the girls to "tzena," that is, go out and see the soldiers in the mosheva settlement; they should not hide from "virtuous" men
AUTHOR: Word: Jehiel Hagges (Yechiel Chagiz) / Music: Issachar Miron (Stefan Michrovsky) (source: Wikipedia)
EARLIEST DATE: 1941 (date of composition, according to Wikipedia)
KEYWORDS: foreignlanguage soldier courting
FOUND IN:
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Averill-CampSongsFolkSongs, p. 444, 497, "Tzena Tzena Tzena" (notes only)
NOTES [102 words]: Famously recorded by The Weavers in 1950, on the reverse of their recording of "Goodnight Irene"; they neither knew what it meant nor who had written it. It seems unlikely they would have recorded it had they realized what it said!
Presumably the girl scout camps which use it don't know either. There is an English version in some modern Scout songbooks, but it has has clearly been defanged quite a bit:
Tzena, Tzena, Tzena, Tzena
Can't you hear the music playing
In the city square
Tzena, Tzena, Tzena, Tzena
Come where all our friends will find us With the dancers there
Tzena, Tzena
Join the celebration. - RBW
Last updated in version 6.3
File: ACSF444T
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