Kum Ba Yah

Kum ba yah, my Lord, kum ba yah!

Kum ba yah, my Lord, kum ba yah!

Kum ba yah, my Lord, kum ba yah!

Oh Lord, kum ba yah!

Someone's sleeping, Lord, kum bah yah . . .

Someone's crying, Lord . . .

Someone's singing, Lord . . .

Someone's laughing, Lord . . .

Someone's praying, Lord . . .

Someone's Scouting, Lord . . .

Someone's camping, Lord . . .

Kum ba yah, my Lord, . . .

This well known song has an unusual African collection. Kum Ba Yah probably means "Come by here" in an African-American creole dialect called Gullah from South Carolina in the USA. Missionaries probably took the song to Africa in the 1930's, where it was later "rediscovered" in Angola in the 1950's, leading some to believe that the song had its origins in Angola. It became a popular peace song in the 1960s. It's been popular - and, let's be honest, a bit of a cliche - ever since.