Buzz
If you've only heard one Mardi Gras song, chances are it's "Iko Iko," the popular track by the Dixie Cups from 1965. An earlier version, called "Jock-a-mo," was released by James "Sugar Boy" Crawford in 1953. Since then, many artists, from Dr. John to the Grateful Dead to Cyndi Lauper, have put their spin on it. This lively, teasing chant has roots in the traditional back-and-forth vocal challenges between two tribes during a Mardi Gras parade. The chorus goes something like this:
Hey now! Hey now! Iko iko wan dey Jock-a-mo fi no wan an dey Jock-a-mo fi na ney.
Every version recorded varies slightly, but no one really understood its meaning. Crawford picked up these phrases during parade confrontations, and the Dixie Cups shared that their grandmother had sung it to them.
There are countless theories about the meaning of this song, as varied as its many renditions: Jock-a-mo could mean "brother John," "jokester," or "Giacomo;" Jock-a-mo fin a ney might mean "kiss my ass," or "John is dead"; Iko might mean "I go," "pay attention," "gold," or "hiking around"; the words could have origins in French, Yoruba, or Italian...
Reporter Drew Hinshaw decided to investigate the song's origins after noticing the similarity between the Iko refrain and a powerful call-and-response chant he heard at a parade in Ghana: "Iko Iko! Aayé!" In a 2009 article for New Orleans music magazine Offbeat, he describes showing the lyrics to a local linguistics professor, who believed they were rooted in a West African language. A Creole Studies professor in the US, however, thought it was a blend of Yoruba and French Creole and proposed the following interpretation:
Enòn, Enòn! Code Language! Aiku, Aiku nde. God is watching. Jacouman Fi na Jacouman causes it ida-n-de We will be emancipated. Jacouman Fi na dé Jacouman urges it; we will wait.
Meanwhile, Wikipedia states that some unidentified "creole lingua specialists" support this French-based Creole interpretation:
Ena! Ena! Hey now! Hey now! Akout, Akout an deye Listen, listen at the back Chaque amoor fi nou wa na né All the love made our king be born Chaque amoor fi na né All the love made our king be born
Another hypothesis circulating on various folk music forums suggests that the "jock-a-mo" part might stem from a Native American language, where "chokma finha" translates to "very good." This theory at least aligns with Crawford's account of his 1953 original recording, where he sang "chock-a-mo," but the record label mistakenly printed it as "jock-a-mo."
It seems unlikely that we will ever conclusively determine the origin of these words or their original meaning. However, it’s possible that, from the very first time the phrases were chanted, the diverse cultures—Africans, Native Americans, French, and English—that formed the unique linguistic and cultural blend of New Orleans all understood it in their own way. And regardless, they still had a great time.
