Kagome Kagome

Kagome, kagome (かごめかごめ) is a Japanese children's game. One child is chosen as the oni (literally "demon or ogre", but translates in games as "it") and sits blindfolded (or with his eyes covered). The other children join hands and walk in circles around the oni while chanting the song for the game. When the song stops, the oni speaks aloud the name of the person behind him, and if he is correct, that person will exchange places with the oni.

Lyrics

In Japanese, this song can be rendered several ways including:

Japanese characters	reading in English letters
かごめかごめ籠の中の鳥は	Kagome Kagome Kago no naka no Tori wa
いついつ出やる　夜明けの晩に	Itsu Itsu deyaru? Yoake no ban ni
鶴と亀と滑った	Tsuru to kame ga subetta.
後ろの正面だあれ。	Ushiro no shoumen daare ?

Translation:

Kagome, Kagome, the bird in the cage,
when will you come out?
In the evening of the dawn,
the crane and turtle slipped.
Who stands right behind you now?

Sometimes the last few lines are translated literally as the following:

At dawns and evenings.
Who is in front of the back,
where a crane and turtle slipped and fell?

A version heard on Tactics(anime/manga)
Episode 3: The Mountain's Fairy tale
Kagome Kagome
crouch little bird inside your cage,
when oh when will he get out?
Up before the light of dawn.
Crane and turtle slipped and fell,
who is behind you can you tell?

External links