Liedtext (Lyrics)
Der vollständige Liedtext von „Auf der Donau wollen wir fahren“ mit englischer Übersetzung.
Auf der Donau woll'n wir fahren wo das Schifflein sich dreht. Und das Schifflein heißt (Name) und der/die (Name) fährt mit.
#English translation
On the Danube we want to sail, where the little boat turns round. And the little boat is called (Name), and (Name) comes along for the ride.
#Auf der Donau wollen wir fahren at a glance
- Country of origin
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- Sung in
- German
- Words by
- Traditional
- First known
- traditional circle game; author unknown
- Best for ages
- 2–7
- Mood
- dancing, playful
- Last updated
- 25 July 2026
Meaning and origin
This is less a song than a game with a tune, built around a blank to be filled in. The children imagine a little boat turning on the Danube, and the boat is named after one of them — und das Schifflein heißt … — whereupon that child “comes along” for the ride, stepping into the circle or joining the leader before the game begins again with someone else’s name.
The point of it is inclusion: over a few rounds every child hears their own name sung and takes their turn aboard the boat. No author or firm origin is recorded for this version — it is one of the many traditional circle games handed down by ear in kindergartens, kept alive because it gives a group of children a gentle, fair way to take turns.
Common questions
- How is "Auf der Donau wollen wir fahren" played?
- As a naming circle game. The children pretend to sail a little boat on the Danube; the boat is given one child's name, and that child then "comes along" — usually stepping into the middle of the ring or joining the leader — before the game repeats with the next name.
- What is the Donau?
- The Donau is the Danube, one of Europe's great rivers, which flows through southern Germany and on across central Europe. Here it is simply the setting for the imaginary boat ride.
- Who wrote "Auf der Donau wollen wir fahren"?
- No author or origin is recorded for this version. It is a traditional children's circle game of the kind passed on by ear in playgroups, where the blank "(Name)" is filled with each child in turn.
