"P'tit Quinquin" is a song by Alexandre Desrousseaux which was written in the

Picard language Picard ( , also , ) is a ''langue d'oïl'' of the Romance languages, Romance language family spoken in the northernmost of France and parts of Hainaut province, Hainaut province in Belgium. Administratively, this area is divided between the Fr ...

(the local dialect of which is called chti or chtimi in

Nord-Pas-de-Calais Nord-Pas-de-Calais (; ; West Flemish: ''Nôord-Nauw van Kales'') was a former regions of France, administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new Regions of France, region Hauts-de-France. It consisted of the ...

) in 1853. Picard is a — now-endangered — language closely related to French, and is spoken in

Hauts-de-France Hauts-de-France (; ; ), also referred to in English as Upper France, is the northernmost region of France, created by the territorial reform of French regions in 2014, from a merger of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy. Its prefecture is Lille. ...

region (a merger of

and

Picardy Picardy (; Picard language, Picard and , , ) is a historical and cultural territory and a former regions of France, administrative region located in northern France. The first mentions of this province date back to the Middle Ages: it gained it ...

) of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and in parts of the Belgian region of

Wallonia Wallonia ( ; ; or ), officially the Walloon Region ( ; ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—along with Flemish Region, Flanders and Brussels. Covering the southern portion of the c ...

. This simple

lullaby A lullaby (), or a cradle song, is a soothing song or piece of music that is usually played for (or sung to) children (for adults see music and sleep). The purposes of lullabies vary. In some societies, they are used to pass down cultural knowl ...

(''P'tit quinquin'' means "little child") demonstrates the revival of Picard in the area, to the extent that it became the marching song of the northern soldiers leaving for the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

of 1870. Today it could be called the unofficial anthem of the French city of

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

, and more generally of the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France. Extended Picard lyrics (after first

stanza In poetry, a stanza (; from Italian ''stanza'', ; ) is a group of lines within a poem, usually set off from others by a blank line or indentation. Stanzas can have regular rhyme and metrical schemes, but they are not required to have either. ...

External links

Le P'tit quinquin
- Full lyrics in Picard (left), and a translation into French (right); also has a sound file of the chorus being sung in Picard (.wav and .ra formats) {{Authority control Lullabies Traditional children's songs Songs about children 1853 songs Picard language

See also

External links