[Wer hat die schönsten Schäfchen?]1
Die hat der [gold'ne]2 Mond,
Der hinter [unsern]3 Bäumen
Am Himmel [drüben]4 wohnt.

Er kommt am späten Abend,
Wenn alles schlafen will,
Hervor aus seinem Hause
Zum Himmel leis' und still.

Dann weidet er die Schäfchen
Auf seiner [blauen]5 Flur,
Denn all' die weißen Sterne
Sind seine Schäfchen nur.

Sie tun [sich]6 nichts zu Leide
Hat eins das and're gern,
Und [Schwestern sind und Brüder]7
Da droben Stern [an]8 Stern.

Und soll ich dir ein's bringen,
So darfst du niemals schrei'n,
Mußt freundlich wie die Schäfchen
Und wie ihr Schäfer sein.

About the headline (FAQ)

View original text (without footnotes)
¹ Dresel: "Die allerschönsten Schäfchen"
² Sandberger: "liebe"
³ Reichardt: "jenen"
⁴ Reichardt: "droben"
⁵ Sandberger: "bunten"
⁶ Reichardt: "uns"
⁷ Sandberger: "Schwester sind und Bruder"
⁸ Dresel: "am"

Text Authorship:

• by August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben (1798 - 1874), no title [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

• by Wilhelm Baumgartner (1820 - 1867), "Vom Monde", op. 13 (Zwölf Jugendlieder, 3 und 4 stimmig, für Sopran und Alt) no. 2 (1848) [ sopranos and altos ] [sung text not yet checked]
• by Leo Blech (1871 - 1958), "Das Lied vom Monde", op. 28 no. 2, copyright © 1925 [ voice and piano ], from Neun Liedchen großen und kleinen Kindern vorzusingen, Sechste Folge, no. 2, Universal Edition [sung text not yet checked]
• by Otto Dresel (1826 - 1890), "Das Lied vom Monde", 1849 [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Carl Götze (1836 - 1887), "Wer hat die schönsten Schäfchen", op. 182 (Sechs Lieder im Volkston für Sopran (oder Tenor) mit Pianoforte) no. 5, published 1886 [ soprano or tenor and piano ], Bremen, Praeger & Meier [sung text not yet checked]
• by Johann Friedrich Reichardt (1752 - 1814), "Wer hat die schönsten Schäfchen?", 1790, note: these words were published with this music well after it was composed [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Friedrich Reichel , "Wer hat die schönsten Schäfchen", op. 6 (Vier Terzetten) no. 2, published 1874 [ vocal trio ], Leipzig, Kistner  [sung text not yet checked]
• by Karl Heinrich Carsten Reinecke (1824 - 1910), "Wer hat die schönsten Schäfchen?", op. 37 (Acht Kinderlieder) no. 7 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
• by Adolf Sandberger (1864 - 1943), "Wer hat die schönsten Schäfchen?", op. 22 (Fünf Lieder und Gesänge) no. 5 [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Othmar Schoeck (1886 - 1957), "Wiegenlied", WoO. 15 (1904-05) [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

• ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "Who has the most beautiful little sheep?", copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
• FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2007-08-19
Line count: 20
Word count: 96

Who has the most beautiful little sheep?
The [golden]1 moon does,
Who lives behind [those]2 trees
In the heavens up [high]3.

[He]4 comes in the late evening,
When everything wants to sleep,
Out from his house
To the sky softly and quietly.

Then he tends his little sheep
On his [blue]5 meadow,
For all of the white stars
Are his little sheep.

They do [us]6 no harm.
Each is fond of the others,
And sisters and brothers above
Are star by star.

And if you want me to bring you one,
You must never scream,
You must be as amiable
As those little sheep and their shepherd.