“Petit Papa Noël” is one of the most famous French-language Christmas Carols. It was recorded in 1946 by Tino Rossi for the film Destins. It has sold over 30 million copies worldwide and is the best-selling single of all time in France. In December of 1991, after it was released on CD, it peaked at number 6 on the SNEP Singles Chart.

This video is the original full version from the film. I was slightly torn on what video to use for this one. While I think there’s something very cool about providing the film footage, there are moments where the song is somewhat muffled by the film sounds. However, the album version that Tino Rossi performed was a shortened version of the song, and since I also wanted to include the full lyrics, ultimately I went with the film version. If 1940’s cinematography isn’t your jam, there are many other covers out there of this song. I personally like this full-version cover by Canadian singer Roch Voisine.

Song information from Wikipedia.

About the Artist

Constantin “Tino” Rossi is a singer and film actor from Ajaccio, Corsica. As a young man, he played guitar and sang around his hometown. He later moved to Marseille to perform in resort clubs along the French Riviera. In the early 1930s, he moved to Paris where he quickly achieved success. Throughout his career, he recorded more than 2000 songs, sold over 200 million albums, and appeared in more than 25 films, the most famous of which was Si Versailles m’était conté. The Christmas song “Petit Papa Noël” was one of his most famous hits and sold over 30 million copies worldwide. He is one of the best-selling artists of all time and is the recipient of the prestigious Grand Prix du Disque music award.

Biographical information from Wikipedia.

Cultural References, Idioms and Explanations

‘Papa Noël’ – Literally translating as ‘Daddy Christmas’, this is a name in French for Santa Claus. It is a little less formal than the other option ‘Père Noël’.

‘manteau’ – This term usually means ‘coat’, however, when discussing snow, as in this song, it is usually translated as ‘blanket’.

‘Font une dernière prière’ – This is a good example of how phrases don’t translate word for word. While in English one ‘says’ a prayer, in French the verb ‘faire’ is used, which would translate literally as ‘to do a prayer’ or ‘to make a prayer’.

‘soulier’ – This is an older, outdated word for ‘shoe’. Traditionally French children would leave a shoe or pair of shoes at the base of the tree or fireplace, similar to what Anglo-Saxons do with a stocking, for Santa to pass and leave gifts inside. This is a tradition that is mostly dying out.

‘se couvrir’ – The verb ‘couvrir’ means ‘to cover’. However, when used reflexively it can mean ‘to wrap up’ or ‘to bundle up’, for example in order to stay warm when going outside. It can also mean ‘to put on a hat’. Either meaning would make sense in the context of this song.

‘aller + inf’ – The verb ‘aller’ means ‘to go’. As in English, when this verb is used with a place, it implies movement towards that place. But when it is used with another verb, it implies that that action will be performed in the future. For example ‘I am going to the store’ ‘(je vais au magasin’) vs ‘I am going to eat’ (‘je vais manger’). There are several examples in this song:

• tu vas avoir si froid – you are going to be so cold
• Les enfants vont faire dodo – The children are going to go to sleep
• tu vas pouvoir commencer – you will be able to start

‘avoir froid’ – This is one of the many phrases that uses ‘avoir’ in French. Meaning ‘to be cold’, it translates literally as ‘to have cold’.

‘à cause de’ – Literally translating as ‘at the cause of’, this phrase means ‘because of’ or ‘due to.

‘tarder à quelqu’un de faire quelque chose’ – The verb ‘tarder’ means ‘to be late’ or ‘to be slow’. However, when used impersonally towards someone (here: il me tarde) it means ‘cannot wait to do’ or ‘long to do’.

‘se mettre à’ – Literally translating as ‘to put oneself to’, this phrase means ‘to start’, ‘to begin’, ‘to get to’ or ‘to set to’.

‘le jour se leve’ – Literally translating as ‘the day gets up’, this phrase means ‘dawn is breaking’, ‘it’s getting light’, or ‘the sun is coming up’.

‘il faudra’ – This is the future tense conjugation of the verb ‘falloir’, which is an interesting one as it is only ever used in the third person singular. It conveys a necessity or something that has to happen. It will be followed by an infinitive or a verb in the subjunctive mood. For example ‘il faut que j’aille’ (I have to go).

‘en chemin’ – As one would expect this phrase means ‘on the road’.

‘joujou’ – This is a term meaning ‘toy’ in childlike language. It repeats the first syllable of the standard term ‘jouet’, which is a common construction for nicknames in French.

‘je t’ai commandés’ – You might notice that the past participle ‘commandés’ here has an extra ‘s’ at the end. In the passé composé, verbs taking the auxiliary verb ‘avoir’ do not usually alter the past participle to agree with the subject (unlike verbs taking ‘être’). However, when a direct object precedes the verb in the sentence, then the past participle must agree. The extra ‘s’ here is in agreement with ‘joujoux’ (toys).

‘fair dodo’ – The term ‘dodo’ is a slang term meaning ‘sleep’. The phrase ‘faire dodo’ (literally to do/make sleep) is usually used for children and means ‘to go to bed’ or ‘to go to sleep’.

‘le marchand de sable est passé’ – The phrase ‘le marchand de sable’ literally translates as ‘the sand merchant’ and is the name in French for ‘the sandman’. The larger phrase ‘le marchand de sable est passé’, literally translating as ‘the sandman has passed by’, is a phrase that is said to tired children when it is time for bed. English equivalents are ‘looks like it’s past someone’s bedtime’ or ‘time for bed, sleepyhead’.

‘j’en demande pardon’ – This is an example of the adverbial pronoun ‘en’, when it is used to replace the object of the preposition ‘de’. When used this way it is often translated as ‘about it’. Here ‘en’ refers to what the child is asking forgiveness for, not being well-behaved, which was mentioned on the line before (Je n’ai pas été tous les jours très sage). The sentence could have been ‘Je te demande pardon de ne pas avoir été tous les jours très sage’, but with the reason coming first it is shortened to ‘j’en demande pardon’ (I ask forgiveness for it), with ‘en’ standing in for the entire previous phrase.

Activities

We’ve created flashcards, games, and exercises to practice vocabulary and grammatical concepts found in this song. Check out our Activities Page to take your learning further!

Song Lyrics with Grammatical Breakdown

Mouse over a term for grammatical information. A chart of the terms and grammatical information can be found here.

Petitpetitsmall, little | adj | masc sing Papapapafather, dad, daddy | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa NoëlNoëlChristmas | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa

[Intro]
C’cethis, that, it | pron | shortened to c' before a vowelestêtreto be | verb | third pers sing pres lalathe | def art | fem sing bellebeaubeautiful, attractive, handsome; pleasant; good, excellent | adj | fem sing nuitnuitnight | noun | fem sing dedeof; from | prep NoëlNoëlChristmas | noun | masc sing
Lalathe | def art | fem sing neigeneigesnow | noun | fem sing étendétendrespread; hang; stretch | verb | third pers sing pres sonsonhis, her, its, one's | poss adj | masc sing manteaumanteaucoat; mantle, blanket; mantelpiece | noun | masc sing blancblancwhite | adj | masc sing
Etetand | conj leslesthe | def art | masc and fem pl yeuxœileye | noun | masc pl levéslevéraised, held up | adj | masc pl versverstoward, towards; around, about | prep lelethe | def art | masc sing cielcielsky | noun | masc sing
Ààat, to, in | prep genoux,genouknee; lap (pl) | noun | masc pl leslesthe | def art | masc and fem pl petitspetitsmall, little | adj | masc pl enfantsenfantchild, kid | noun | masc and fem pl
Avantavantbefore | prep dedeof; from | prep fermerfermerclose, shut; turn off; shut down | verb | infin leslesthe | def art | masc and fem pl paupièrespaupièreeyelid | noun | fem pl
Fontfaireto do; to make | verb | third pers pl pres uneunea | indef art | fem sing dernièredernierlast | adj | fem sing prièreprièreprayer | noun | fem sing

[Chorus]
Petitpetitsmall, little | adj | masc sing Papapapafather, dad, daddy | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa NoëlNoëlChristmas | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa
Quandquandwhen | adv, conj tutuyou | pron | sec pers sing, inform descendrasdescendrego down; get off | verb | sec pers sing fut dude + lefrom the, of the | prep + art cielcielsky | noun | masc sing
Avecavecwith | prep desdessome | indef art | masc and fem pl jouetsjouettoy | noun | masc pl parparby, through | prep milliersmillierthousand | noun | masc pl
N’nenot, no | adv | used with another neg term, such as 'ne … pas' | shortened to n' before vowelsoublieoublierto forget | verb | sec pers sing impera pasne … pasnot | adv | the 'ne' may be omitted in colloquial speech monmonmy | poss adj | masc sing petitpetitsmall, little | adj | masc sing souliersouliershoe | noun | masc sing

[Verse 1]
Ililhe, it | pron mememe | pron | dir and indir obj, reflex, first pers sing tardetarderto be late, be slow | verb | third pers sing pres | tarder à qqn de faire qch = cannot wait to do, long to do tanttantso much; so (adj) … that, such (noun) … that | adv quequethat, than | conj lelethe | def art | masc sing jourjourday | noun | masc sing | le jour se lève = dawn is breaking, it's getting light sesehimself, herself, oneself, itself, themselves, each other | pron | third pers, sing and pl reflex | le jour se lève = dawn is breaking, it's getting light lèveleverto raise, lift | verb | first pers sing pres | le jour se lève = dawn is breaking, it's getting light
Pourpourto; for | prep | to' before verbs, 'for' before nouns or pron's voirvoirto see | verb | infin sisiif | conj tutuyou | pron | sec pers sing, inform m’meme; myself | pron | first pers sing, dir obj, indir obj, and reflex | shortened to m' before vowelsasavoirto have | verb | sec pers sing pres | aux verb used with the pp to form the p.c. apportéapporterto bring | verb | pp
Toustousall, all of, every | adj leslesthe | def art | masc and fem pl beauxbeauhandsome, attractive, beautiful | adj | masc pl joujouxjoujoutoy | noun | masc pl | childlike language quequethat, than | conj jejeI | pron | first pers sing voisvoirto see, watch | verb | first pers sing pres enento, in | prep rêverêvedream, daydream; wish | noun | masc sing
Etetand | conj quequethat, than | conj jejeI | pron | first pers sing t’teyou | pron | dir obj, indir obj, and reflex, sec pers sing | can be shortened to t' before vowels in colloquial languageaiavoirto have | verb | first pers sing pres | aux verb used with the pp to form the p. c. commandéscommanderto order, be in charge | verb | pp | s for agreement with preceeding dir obj

[Post-Chorus]
Maismaisbut | conj avantavantbefore | prep dedeof; from | prep partirpartirto leave | verb | infin
Ililhe, it | pron | il faut = have to, must, it is necessary faudrafalloirneed, be needed; have to, must | verb | third pers sing fut | il faut = have to, must, it is necessary bienbienwell; a lot; good, fine | adv teteyou; yourself | pron | dir obj, indir obj, and reflex, sec pers sing couvrircouvrircover, wrap; cover up; put a lid on; compensate for; be heard over, drown out; include; serve; give coverage, report on | verb | infin | se couvrir = to wrap up, bundle up; put a hat on
Dehorsdehorsoutside, outdoors | adv tutuyou | pron | sec pers sing, inform vasallerto go | verb | sec pers sing pres | aller + inf = to be going to do avoiravoirto have | verb | infin | avoir froid = to be cold sisiso | adv froidfroidcold | noun | masc sing | avoir froid = to be cold
C’cethis, that, it | pron | shortened to c' before a vowelestêtreto be | verb | third pers sing ununa | indef art | masc sing peupeulittle, a little (bit), not much | adv ààat, to, in | prep | à cause de = because of, due to causecausecause, reason, grounds; case | noun | fem sing | à cause de = because of, due to dedeof; from | prep | à cause de = because of, due to moimoime | pron | dir and indir obj, first pers sing

[Chorus]
Petitpetitsmall, little | adj | masc sing Papapapafather, dad, daddy | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa NoëlNoëlChristmas | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa
Quandquandwhen | adv, conj tutuyou | pron | sec pers sing, inform descendrasdescendrego down; get off | verb | sec pers sing fut dude + lefrom the, of the | prep + art cielcielsky | noun | masc sing
Avecavecwith | prep desdessome | indef art | masc and fem pl jouetsjouettoy | noun | masc pl parparby, through | prep milliersmillierthousand | noun | masc pl
N’nenot, no | adv | used with another neg term, such as 'ne … pas' | shortened to n' before vowelsoublieoublierto forget | verb | sec pers sing impera pasne … pasnot | adv | the 'ne' may be omitted in colloquial speech monmonmy | poss adj | masc sing petitpetitsmall, little | adj | masc sing souliersouliershoe | noun | masc sing

[Verse 2]
Lelethe | def art | masc sing marchandmarchandmerchant, trader, seller, shopkeeper | noun | masc sing | marchand de sable = sandman dedeof; from | prep | marchand de sable = sandman sablesablesand | noun | masc sing | marchand de sable = sandman estêtreto be | verb | third pers sing pres | aux verb used with pp in p.c. passépasserto pass, go past; to spend(time) | verb | pp
Leslesthe | def art | masc and fem pl enfantsenfantchild, kid | noun | masc and fem pl vontallerto go | verb | third pers pl pres | aller + inf = to be going to do fairefaireto do; to make | verb | infin | faire dodo = to go to bed/sleep (childlike language) dodododosleep; bed | noun | masc sing | faire dodo = to go to bed/sleep (childlike language)
Etetand | conj tutuyou | pron | sec pers sing, inform vasallerto go | verb | sec pers sing pres | aller + inf = to be going to do pouvoirpouvoirto be able to | verb | first pers sing pres commencercommencerto begin, start | verb | infin
Avecavecwith | prep tatayour | poss adj | fem sing hottehottesack | noun | fem sing sursuron, upon; on top of, above | prep lelethe | def art | masc sing dosdosback | noun | masc sing
Auà + leat the, to the | prep + def art | masc sing sonsonsound | noun | masc sing desde + lesfrom the, of the | prep + def art | masc and fem pl clochesclochebell | noun | fem pl desde + lesfrom the, of the | prep + def art | masc and fem pl égliseséglisechurch | noun | fem pl
Tatayour | poss adj | fem sing distributiondistributiondelivery; layout, distribution; supply; casting | noun | fem sing dedeof; from | prep surprisessurprisesurprise | noun | fem pl

[Chorus]
Petitpetitsmall, little | adj | masc sing Papapapafather, dad, daddy | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa NoëlNoëlChristmas | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa
Quandquandwhen | adv, conj tutuyou | pron | sec pers sing, inform descendrasdescendrego down; get off | verb | sec pers sing fut dude + lefrom the, of the | prep + art cielcielsky | noun | masc sing
Avecavecwith | prep desdessome | indef art | masc and fem pl jouetsjouettoy | noun | masc pl parparby, through | prep milliersmillierthousand | noun | masc pl
N’nenot, no | adv | used with another neg term, such as 'ne … pas' | shortened to n' before vowelsoublieoublierto forget | verb | sec pers sing impera pasne … pasnot | adv | the 'ne' may be omitted in colloquial speech monmonmy | poss adj | masc sing petitpetitsmall, little | adj | masc sing souliersouliershoe | noun | masc sing

[Post-Chorus 2]
Sisiif | conj tutuyou | pron | sec pers sing, inform doisdevoirhave to, need to, must | verb | sec pers sing pres t’teyou | pron | sec pers sing, dir obj, indir obj, and reflex | shortened to t' before vowelsarrêterarrêterto stop | verb | infin | s'arrêter = to stop, to come to an end
Sursuron, upon; on top of, above | prep leslesthe | def art | used with pl nouns toitstoitroof; roof over your head, home | noun | masc pl dude + lefrom the, of the | prep + art mondemondeworld, crowd, people, everybody | noun | masc sing entierentierwhole, entire | adj | masc sing
Touttoutall, all of, every one of, the whole | adj | masc sing çaçathis, that, it | pron avantavantbefore | prep demaindemaintomorrow | adv matinmatinmorning | noun | masc sing
Metsmettreto put, to place | verb | sec pers sing impera | se mettre à = start, begin, get to, set to toitoiyou | pron | sec pers sing, informal vite,vitefast, quickly; soon | adv vitevitefast, quickly; soon | adv enenabout it, some (of it), of them | pron | en chemin = on the road chemincheminpath, way | noun | masc sing | en chemin = on the road

[Verse 3]
Etetand | conj quandquandwhen | adv, conj tutuyou | pron | sec pers sing, inform serasêtreto be | verb | sec pers sing fut sursuron, upon; on top of, above | prep tontonyour | poss adj | masc sing beaubeaubeauty, beautiful things | noun | masc sing nuagenuagecloud | noun | masc sing
Viensvenirto come | verb | sec pers sing impera d’abordd'abordfirst, first of all; beforehand | adv sursuron, upon; on top of, above | prep notrenotreour | poss adj | masc and fem sing maisonmaisonhouse, home; household | noun | fem sing
JejeI | pron | first pers sing n’nenot, no | adv | used with another neg term, such as 'ne … pas', shortened to n' before vowelsaiavoirto have | verb | first pers sing pres | aux verb used with the pp to form the p. c. pasne … pasnot | adv | the 'ne' may be omitted in colloquial speech étéêtreto be | verb | pp toustousall, all of, every | adj | masc pl leslesthe | def art | masc and fem pl joursjourday | noun | masc pl trèstrèsvery | adv sagesagegood, well-behaved; wise, sensible | adj | masc and fem sing
Maismaisbut | conj j’jeI | pron | first pers sing | shortened to j' before vowelsenenabout it, some (of it), of them | pron demandedemanderto ask, request | verb | first pers sing pres pardonpardonforgiveness | noun | masc sing

[Chorus]
Petitpetitsmall, little | adj | masc sing Papapapafather, dad, daddy | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa NoëlNoëlChristmas | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa
Quandquandwhen | adv, conj tutuyou | pron | sec pers sing, inform descendrasdescendrego down; get off | verb | sec pers sing fut dude + lefrom the, of the | prep + art cielcielsky | noun | masc sing
Avecavecwith | prep desdessome | indef art | masc and fem pl jouetsjouettoy | noun | masc pl parparby, through | prep milliersmillierthousand | noun | masc pl
N’nenot, no | adv | used with another neg term, such as 'ne … pas' | shortened to n' before vowelsoublieoublierto forget | verb | sec pers sing impera pasne … pasnot | adv | the 'ne' may be omitted in colloquial speech monmonmy | poss adj | masc sing petitpetitsmall, little | adj | masc sing souliersouliershoe | noun | masc sing (x2)

Petitpetitsmall, little | adj | masc sing Papapapafather, dad, daddy | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa NoëlNoëlChristmas | noun | masc sing | Papa Noël = Santa

Lyrics with Translation

Songs in any language often leave room for multiple interpretations. Following is my interpretation of the song lyrics.

Petit Papa Noël
Little Santa Claus

[Intro]
C’est la belle nuit de Noël
It’s the beautiful Christmas night
La neige étend son manteau blanc
The snow extends its white blanket
Et les yeux levés vers le ciel
And eyes raised to the sky
À genoux, les petits enfants
On their knees, little children
Avant de fermer les paupières
Before closing their eyelids
Font une dernière prière
Say one last prayer

[Chorus]
Petit Papa Noël
Little Santa Claus
Quand tu descendras du ciel
When you come down from the sky
Avec des jouets par milliers
With toys by the thousands
N’oublie pas mon petit soulier
Don’t forget my little stocking

[Post-Chorus 1]
Mais, avant de partir
But, before you go
Il faudra bien te couvrir
You’ll have to bundle up
Dehors tu vas avoir si froid
Outside you’re going to be so cold
C’est un peu à cause de moi
It’s kind of because of me

[Verse 1]
Il me tarde tant que le jour se lève
I really can’t wait for dawn to break
Pour voir si tu m’as apporté
To see if you brought me
Tous les beaux joujoux que je vois en rêve
All the beautiful toys I see in my dreams
Et que je t’ai commandés
And that I ordered from you

[Chorus]
Petit Papa Noël
Little Santa Claus
Quand tu descendras du ciel
When you come down from the sky
Avec des jouets par milliers
With toys by the thousands
N’oublie pas mon petit soulier
Don’t forget my little stocking

[Verse 2]
Le marchand de sable est passé
It’s time for bed (The sandman has passed by)
Les enfants vont faire dodo
The children are going to go to sleep
Et tu vas pouvoir commencer
And you’ll be able to start
Avec ta hotte sur le dos
With your sack on your back
Au son des cloches des églises
To the sound of church bells
Ta distribution de surprises
Your delivery of surprises

[Chorus]
Petit Papa Noël
Little Santa Claus
Quand tu descendras du ciel
When you come down from the sky
Avec des jouets par milliers
With toys by the thousands
N’oublie pas mon petit soulier
Don’t forget my little stocking

[Post-Chorus 2]
Si tu dois t’arrêter
If you have to stop
Sur les toits du monde entier
On the whole world’s rooftops
Tout ça avant demain matin
All this before tomorrow morning
Mets toi vite, vite en chemin
Get quickly, quickly on the road

[Verse 3]
Et quand tu seras sur ton beau nuage
And when you’re on your beautiful cloud
Viens d’abord sur notre maison
Come first to our house
Je n’ai pas été tous les jours très sage
I wasn’t very good every day
Mais j’en demande pardon
But I ask for forgiveness for it

[Chorus]
Petit Papa Noël
Little Santa Claus
Quand tu descendras du ciel
When you come down from the sky
Avec des jouets par milliers
With toys by the thousands
N’oublie pas mon petit soulier (x2)
Don’t forget my little stocking (x2)

Petit Papa Noël
Little Santa Claus

Grammatical Concepts Used in this Song

• Possessive Adjectives:
  • La neige étend son manteau blanc
  • Viens d’abord sur notre maison
  • N’oublie pas mon petit soulier
  • Avec ta hotte sur le dos
  • Ta distribution de surprises
  • Et quand tu seras sur ton beau nuage

• Contractions:
  • a + le
    • Au son des cloches des églises
  • de + les
    • Au son des cloches des églises

• Object Pronouns:
  • Il me tarde tant que le jour se lève
  • Pour voir si tu m‘as apporté
  • Et que je t‘ai commandés
  • Mais j’en demande pardon

• Regular with spelling change:
  • lever
    • Il me tarde tant que le jour se lève

• Irregular:
  • être
    • C’est la belle nuit de Noël
    • C’est un peu à cause de moi
  • faire
    • Font une dernière prière
  • devoir
    • Si tu dois t’arrêter

• Expressions with avoir:
  • Dehors tu vas avoir si froid

• Reflexive:
  • Il faudra bien te couvrir
  • Il me tarde tant que le jour se lève
  • Si tu dois t’arrêter
  • Mets toi vite, vite en chemin

• Aller + infinitive:
  • Dehors tu vas avoir si froid
  • Les enfants vont faire dodo
  • Et tu vas pouvoir commencer

• Future:
  • Quand tu descendras du ciel
  • Et quand tu seras sur ton beau nuage
  • Il faudra bien te couvrir

• Imperative:
  • N’oublie pas mon petit soulier
  • Mets toi vite, vite en chemin
  • Viens d’abord sur notre maison

• Passé Composé:
  • avoir
    • Pour voir si tu m’as apporté
    • Et que je t’ai commandés (agreement with proceeding d.o.)
    • Je n’ai pas été tous les jours très sage
  • être
    • Le marchand de sable est passé