Jewish Traces in Unexpected Places: Mayim Mayim - The Israeli Folk Song/Dance That All Japanese Know

The popular Israeli folk song Mayim Mayim (i.e. 'Water, Water' in Hebrew), whose lyrics are based on a biblical promise for salvation, is now the well-known tune accompanying countless Japanese video games. Now that's a Jewish trace in a very unexpected place. 

As Gabriela Gaselowitz wrote in Tablet, 

Everyone in Japan knows Mayim Mayim.

How did this happen? It began in the post-WWII occupation of Japan, led by General Douglas MacArthur. As part of the (admittedly somewhat forced) cultural exchange, the United States decided to teach the youth in Asia folk dances.

They enlisted the aid of Rickey Holden, a prominent square and folk dance-caller, scholar, and educator.Holden does not appear to be Jewish, but he did visit Israel to study folk dance. That’s most likely where he learned Mayim Mayim. Over the course of 1957 and 1958, he went on a world tour that included Japan and Taipei.

It’s not clear if he’s solely responsible for teaching the dance in Japan, but in Taiwan it’s closely associated with him. (In fact, Israeli dance in general is popular in Taiwan, but it was Mayim Mayim that started it all.)

Here's a video of the original Israeli song in a film clip from 1959 followed by an example of its use in the opening sequence of a Japanese children's show.

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

 




(A tip of the kippah to Henry Goldberg for bringing this video to my attention.)