Last Updated: 7 March 2023

Le vieux MacDonald is the French version of Old MacDonald had a farm, a traditional English song with lyrics dating back to at least the early 18th century.

The story of the song

Old Macdonald Had A Farm is one of the oldest nursery rhymes in English might have been written in 1706 at the latest.

The song was probably written by Thomas D'Urfey for an opera that year before it became a very popular folk song amongst people in the UK, Ireland and Northern America.

The song can be cumulative (similar to Mon âne), with the animal sounds from all the earlier verses added to each subsequent verse.

Mon Grand-Est

Farm in the Lorraine region © French Moments

Le vieux MacDonald

Lyrics, music, free download... let's learn more about the popular song:

The lyrics in French

There are several versions of the song in French.

Couplet 1

Le vieux MacDonald a une ferme
hi ha hi ha ho
Et qu’est-ce qu’il a donc dans sa ferme ?
Hi ha hi ha ho
Il a des poules et des dindons
Il a des chèvres et des cochons
Le vieux MacDonald a une ferme
Hi ha hi ha ho


Couplet 2

Le vieux MacDonald a une ferme
Hi ha hi ha ho
Et qu’est ce qu’il a donc dans sa ferme ?
hi ha hi ha ho
Il a des poules et des dindons
Il a des chèvres et des cochons
Il a des boeufs et des moutons
Le vieux MacDonald a une ferme
Hi ha hi ha ho


Couplet 3

Le vieux MacDonald a une ferme
Hi ha hi ha ho
Et qu’est ce qu’il a donc dans sa ferme ?
Hi ha hi ha ho
Il a des poules et des dindons
Il a des chèvres et des cochons
Il a des boeufs et des moutons
Il a des oies et des pigeons
Le vieux MacDonald a une ferme
Hi ha hi ha ho


Couplet 4

Le vieux MacDonald a une ferme
Hi ha hi ha ho
Et qu’est ce qu’il a donc dans sa ferme ?
Hi ha hi ha ho
Il a des poules et des dindons
Il a des chèvres et des cochons
Il a des boeufs et des moutons
Il a des oies et des pigeons
Il a des biches et des oursons
Le vieux MacDonald a une ferme
Hi ha hi ha ho


Couplet 5

Le vieux MacDonald a une ferme
Hi ha hi ha ho
Et qu’est ce qu’il a donc dans sa ferme ?
Hi ha hi ha ho
Il a des poules et des dindons
Il a des chèvres et des cochons
Il a des boeufs et des moutons
Il a des oies et des pigeons
Il a des biches et des oursons
Des fourmis et des hannetons
Le vieux MacDonald a une ferme
Hi ha hi ha ho

Translation of the lyrics into English

Here is an approximative translation into English:

Verse 1

Old MacDonald has a farm
hi ha hi ha ho
And what does he have on his farm?
Hi ha hi ha ho
He's got chickens and turkeys
He's got goats and pigs
Old MacDonald has a farm
Hi ha hi ha ho


Verse 2

Old MacDonald has a farm
Hi ha hi ha ho
And what does he have on his farm?
hi ha hi ha ho
He's got chickens and turkeys
He's got goats and pigs
He's got oxen and sheep
Old MacDonald has a farm
Hi ha hi ha ho


Verse 3

Old MacDonald has a farm
Hi ha hi ha ho
And what does he have on his farm?
Hi ha hi ha ho
He's got chickens and turkeys
He's got goats and pigs
He has oxen and sheep
He's got geese and pigeons
Old MacDonald has a farm
Hi ha hi ha ho


Verse 4

Old MacDonald has a farm
Hi ha hi ha ho
And what does he have on his farm?
Hi ha hi ha ho
He's got chickens and turkeys
He's got goats and pigs
He has oxen and sheep
He has geese and pigeons
He's got deer and cubs
Old MacDonald has a farm
Hi ha hi ha ho


Verse 5

Old MacDonald has a farm
Hi ha hi ha ho
And what does he have on his farm?
Hi ha hi ha ho
He's got chickens and turkeys
He's got goats and pigs
He has oxen and sheep
He has geese and pigeons
He has deer and cubs
Ants and beetles
Old MacDonald has a farm
Hi ha hi ha ho

Download the Lyrics for FREE!

No need to type name or email 😀

Le vieux MacDonald © French Moments

Dans la ferme à Mathurin

Another French version of the rhyme is called "Dans la ferme à Mathurin" (In Mathurin's Farm).

This version is an excellent way to teach small children the calls of farm animals and their phonetics.

French Nursery Rhymes

My challenge for the year 2023 is to publish 80 French Nursery Rhymes lyrics and descriptions (list below). Come back as time goes by to discover the new articles:

About the author

Pierre is a French/Australian who is passionate about France and its culture. He grew up in France and Germany and has also lived in Australia and England. He has a background teaching French, Economics and Current Affairs, and holds a Master of Translating and Interpreting English-French with the degree of Master of International Relations, and a degree of Economics and Management. Pierre is the author of Discovery Courses and books about France.

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