Hinkan, koli, Ging Gang Goolie, part of the program for a 1905 New Year's cabaret
"Ging Gang Gooli(-e)" or "Ging Gang Goo" (below "Ging Gang") is a gibberish song, widely spread around the world. It is popular among Scouts and Girl Guides.
Origin
In 1905 the song, with Scandinavian spelling of the gibberish, was presented at a New Year’s cabaret in Gothenburg, Sweden.[1][2] The lyrics and the melody were presumably derived from student singing in Central Europe. Robert Baden-Powell is often quoted as the originator of the song, but there is no evidence that he was involved in its creation nor its introduction. After early adoption by the Scandinavian Scout organisations, the song became eventually (starting in the 1940s and 1950s) a global hit among Scouts. The Ging Gang melody is today the same as in 1905, whereas the spelling of the lyrics has changed in translations.
Hinkan, kolikolikolikolifejsan / Kinkan koh, kinkan koh
Ava, illa shava / O illa shava / Kolifejs!
Ava, illa shava / O illa shava / Kolifejs!
Tjolafalla, tjolafalla!
Phoneticized to English (earliest documented version 1952; many other variations in spelling and phonemes exist):
Ging gang, goolie goolie goolie goolie watcha / Ging gang goo, Ging gang goo
Ging gang, goolie goolie goolie goolie watcha / Ging gang goo, Ging gang goo
Heyla, heyla sheyla / Heyla sheyla / Heyla, ho!
Heyla, heyla sheyla / Heyla sheyla / Heyla, ho!
Shallawalla, shallawalla! / Shallawalla, shallawalla!
Oompah-oompah! / Oompah-oompah!
Versions
In 1926, the probably earliest commercial record with a version of Ging Gang, Kinkan, was recorded in New York by the Columbia Phonograph Company: an arrangement for male choir Kinkan-Halvan, with Gleeklubben in Brooklyn and the musical group Lyran.[3] The second part, "Halvan", is a drinking song from the 1860s.
In 1969, a version was recorded by British comedic group The Scaffold. Released as a single, "Gin Gan Goolie" reached number 38 on the UK Singles Chart.[4]
In 1978, members of the British parody satire band The Rutles recorded a version of the song. The song was only released in the UK, and never officially released as part of an album.[citation needed]
In 1991 Dorothy Unterschutz, a CanadianScout Leader from Edmonton, wrote a dramatization of the song in the form of a tale named "The Great Grey Ghost Elephant". It was published in Scouts Canada's The Leader magazine in the 1991 June–July Issue (p. 7). The tale has also become a hit.[5]
In 2024, the song became an internet meme when American TikTok content creator, Agustin Calderon Silverio, also known colloquially as Don Pollo, performed his own rendition of the song and uploaded it on to TikTok, which has garnered and reignited more interest in the classic song. Additionally, due to increased popularity in the song, many content creators on TikTok have hopped onto the bandwagon and started to remix and produce covers of Ging Gang Goolie into different music genres and performance styles, further sparking interest in the song.
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