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“Vive le Vent”: the French “Jingle Bells” Posted by on Dec 24, 2010 in Culture, Music, Vocabulary

So far, we have seen two French Carols throughout this week:

– “Petit Papa Noël (A French Carol)

– “Rodolphe le renne au nez rouge (Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer)

Today, and since you’ve already asked for this one specifically, we’ll feature “Vive le Vent”, otherwise known to les anglophones as Jingle Bells!


* VIVE LE VENT (Interpreted by GINETTE RENO):

Sur le long chemin tout blanc de neige blanche

On the long path all white from the white snow

Un vieux monsieur s’avance avec sa canne dans la main

An old man walks by with his walking stick in hand

Et tout là-haut le vent qui siffle dans les branches

And all the way up there, the wind that blows into the branches
Lui souffle la romance qu’il chantait petit enfant

Whistles to him the romance that he sung as a little kid


Vive le vent, vive le vent, vive le vent d’hiver

Long live the wind, long live the wind, long live the wind of winter
Qui s’en va sifflant, soufflant dans les grands sapins verts, oh !

Which goes whistling, blowing into the big green Christmas trees, oh!

Vive le temps, vive le temps, vive le temps d’hiver

Long live the time, long live the time, long live the time of Winter

Boule de neige et jour de l’an, et bonne année grand-mère

Snowball and New Year’s Day, and Happy New Year Grandma!
Joyeux, Joyeux Noël au mille bougies

Happy, Happy Christmas with a thousand candles

Quand chantent vers le ciel les cloches de la nuit, oh !

When sing toward the sky the bells of the night, oh!

Vive le vent, vive le vent, vive le vent d’hiver

Long live the wind, long live the wind, long live the wind of Winter

Qui rapportent aux vieux enfants leurs souvenirs d’hier

Who brings to the old kids their memories of yesterday

* * *

Et le vieux monsieur descend vers le village

And the old man goes down to the village

C’est l’heure où tout est sage et l’ombre danse au coin du feu

It’s the time when everything is nice and the shadow dances nearby the fire

Mais dans chaque maison il flotte un air de fête

But in each house, a tune of celebration floats

Partout la table est prête et l’on entend la même chanson, oh !

Everywhere the table is ready, and you could hear the same song, oh!

* * *

Boule neige et jour de l’an, et bonne année grand-mère

Snowball and New Year’s Day, and Happy New Year Grandma

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