List of nursery rhymes

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The terms "nursery rhyme" and "children's song" emerged in the 1820s, although this type of children's literature previously existed with different names such as Tommy Thumb Songs and Mother Goose Songs. [1] The first known book containing a collection of these texts was Tommy Thumb's Pretty Song Book , which was published by Mary Cooper in 1744. [2] The works of several scholars and collectors helped document and preserve these oral traditions as well as their histories. These include Iona and Peter Opie, Joseph Ritson, James Orchard Halliwell, and Sir Walter Scott. [3]

Nursery rhymes

The following is a list of nursery rhymes.

TitleOther titlesPlace of originDate first recorded
Ah! vous dirai-je, maman 'Oh! Shall I tell you, Mama'France18th century
Aiken Drum Scotland1825
Apple Pie ABC 'Apple Pie ABC'England17th century/1672
Akka bakka bonka rakka Norway1888
All The Pretty Little Horses 'All the Pretty Horses', 'Hush-a-bye'USA
Apples and Bananas North America1985
Arthur o' Bower EnglandLate 18th century
A Sailor Went To Sea 'The Sailor Song', 'A Sailor Went To The Sea Sea Sea', 'A Father Went To The Sea', 'A Father Went To The Sea Sea Sea'England1885
A Wise Old Owl USA1915
A-Tisket, A-Tasket 'A Tisket A Tasket'USAc. 1879
A-Hunting We Will Go England1777
Akai Kutsu '赤い靴' or 'Red Shoes'Japan1922
Alphabet Song 'ABC', 'The Alphabet Song', 'The ABC Song'USA1835
Alouette 'Lark'Canada1870
Animal Fair USA1898
Ants Go Marching 'When Johnny Comes Marching Home', 'The Ants Go Marching', 'The Animals Went in Two by Two'USA1863
As I was going by Charing Cross 'As I was going to Charing Cross'England17th century
As I was going to St Ives Englandc. 1730
Baa, Baa, Black Sheep Englandc. 1744
Baby Shark Korea or Germany2007
Backe, backe Kuchen 'Bake a Cake, Bake a Cake'Germany1850
Bahay Kubo 'Field House'Philippines
Baloo Baleerie Scotland1949
Billy Boy USA1912
Bingo 'B-I-N-G-O', 'B-I-N-G-O with his name-O', 'Bingo with his name O'Englandc. 1780
Bobby Shafto's Gone to Sea 'Bobby Shafto'England1805
Bye, Baby Bunting England1784
Can you count the stars Germany1837
The Cat Sat Asleep by the Side of the Fire England
Chizhik-Pyzhik 'Чи́жик-Пы́жик'Russia1994
Christmas Is Coming USA
Cock-a-Doodle Doo England1765
Come Follow Me (To the Redwood Tree) 'Come Follow Me'USA
Daisy Bell or Daisy DaisyEngland1882
Dandini Dandini Dastana 'Dan-dini Dan-dini Dastana', 'Dandini', 'Dan-dini'Turkey
Did You Ever See a Lassie? USA or Scotland1895-1900
Diddle, Diddle, Dumpling, My Son John England1797
Ding Dong Bell 'Ding Dong Dell'England1580
Do Your Ears Hang Low? England
Doctor Foster England1844
Dong, Dong, Dongdaemun '동, 동, 동대문'Korea
Down By the Bay USA or UK
Down By The Station 'Down at the Station', 'Down by the station early in the morning'USA or England1948
Down Down Baby 'The Roller Coaster Song'USAmid 20th century
Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe 'Eenie, Meenie, Minie, Mo'Britain, USA or Finland1888
Eeper Weeper 'Heeper Peeper'Englandlate 19th early 20th century
Five Little Ducks 'May Limang Pato Akong Nakita'Philippines1921
Five Little Monkeys '5 Little Monkeys', 'Five Little Monkeys Jumping On The Bed', '5 Little Monkeys Jumping On The Bed'USA1871
Five Little Speckled Frogs '5 Green & Speckled Frogs'USA20th century
For He's a Jolly Good Fellow 'The Bear Went Over The Mountain'England1709
Foxy's Hole England16th century
Frère Jacques 'Brother John', 'Are You Sleeping', 'Are you sleeping, Brother John?'Francec. 1780
Frog Went A-Courting 'Frog Wen A-Courtin''England1549-1611
Georgie Porgie Englandc. 1850
Girls and Boys Come Out To Play 'Boys and Girls Come Out to Play'England1708
Goosey Goosey Gander England1784
Green Gravel Englandc. 1835
Green Grow The Rushes, O England
Happy Birthday To You 'Birthday Song', 'Happy Birthday'USA1893
Hark, Hark! The Dogs Do Bark England
Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes 'Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes', 'Head and Shoulders'England1961, pre 1960
Here Comes an Old Soldier from Botany Bay 'Here Comes an Old Soldier' or 'Old SoldierUSA, Australia or British IslesLate 19th Century
Here We Go Looby Loo 'Looby Loo', 'Loopty Loo', 'Loop de Loo', 'Here We Go Loopty Loo'USA
Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush 'Mulberry Bush', 'This Is the Way', 'This is the way (we)'Englandc. 1850
Hey Diddle Diddle Englandc. 1765
Hickory Dickory Dock 'Hickety Dickety Dock'Englandc. 1744
The Hokey Cokey 'Hokey Pokey'England1826
Horsey, Horsey England1937
Hot Cross Buns England1797
How Many Miles to Babylon? Scotland1801
Humpty Dumpty England1803
Hush Little Baby 'Hush Little baby, don't say a word'USAbefore 1918
I Can Sing a Rainbow 'Sing a Rainbow', 'I Can see a Rainbow'USA1955
Ichinensei Ni Nattara '一年生になったら' or 'When I Become A First Grader'Japan1966
If Wishes Were Horses, Beggars Would Ride 'If wishes were horses'Britain1605
If You're Happy and You Know It 'If You Are Happy and You're Know it', 'If You're Happy and You're Know it, Clap Your Hands'USA1916
I Do Not Like Thee, Doctor Fell England1680
I Had a Little Nut Tree England1789
I Have Two Hands Philippinesearly 20th century
I'm a Little Teapot USA1939
I'll Tell Me Ma 'The Wind'England, adapted in Ireland1988
I've Been Working On The Railroad 'Working on the Railroad', 'I Have Been Working on the Railroad'USA1894
I Love Little Pussy 'I Love Little Kitty'England1830
It's Raining, It's Pouring USA1939
Itsy Bitsy Spider 'Eensy Weensy Spider', 'Insey Winsey Spider', 'Incy Wincy Spider', 'The Itsy Bitsy Spider'USA1910
Jack and Jill Englandc. 1765
Jack-a-Nory Englandc. 1760
Jack Be Nimble Englandc. 1815
Jack Sprat England1639
John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt USA or Canada19th century
Johnny Johnny Yes Papa British Empire20th century
Kookaburra 'Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree'Australia1932
Ladybird Ladybird 'Ladybug Ladybug'Britainc. 1744
Land of the Silver Birch Canada1920s
Lavender's Blue 'Lavender Blue'Englandlate 17th century
Lazy Mary 'Lazy Mary Will You Get Up'USA or UK
Little Arabella Miller USA20th century
Little Bo-Peep 'Little Bo-Peep has lost her sheep'Englandc. 1805
Little Boy Blue Englandc. 1744
Little Bunny Foo Foo England
Little Chickens 'Little Chickies' or 'Los Pollitos Dicen'Spain1875
Little Jack Horner 'Little Jack Horner sat in a corner'England1725
Little Miss Muffet 'Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet'England1805
Little Poll Parrot England1853
Little Robin Redbreast Englandc. 1744
Little Tommy Tucker Englandc. 1744
London Bridge Is Falling Down 'My Fair Lady' or 'London Bridge'Englandc. 1744
Lucy Locket 'Lucy Locket lost her pocket'England or USA1842
Mary Had a Little Lamb 'Mary had a Little Lamb, Little Lamb, Little Lamb'USA1830
Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary Englandc. 1744
Malbrough s'en va-t-en guerre 'Marlborough has left for the war', 'Mort et convoi de l'invincible Malbrough', 'The death and burial of the invincible Marlborough'France1709
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John "Black Paternoster"Britain1656
Miss Polly had a Dolly 'Miss Molly Had a Dolly', 'Miss Polly', 'Miss Polly had a little dolly', 'Miss Polly had a dolly who was sick, sick, sick', 'Miss Molly had a dolly who was sick, sick, sick'USA1865
Monday's Child England1838
Needles and Pins England1843
Nuts in May 'Gathering Nuts in May'England1894
Oh Dear! What Can the Matter Be? 'Johnny's So Long at the Fair'England1770s
Old King Cole England1708-1709
Old MacDonald Had a Farm 'Old McDonald Had a Farm', 'Old MacDonald', 'Old McDonald', 'Ol' McDonald', 'Ol' McDonald Had a Farm', 'Ol' MacDonald', 'Ol' MacDonald'USA1917
Old Mother Hubbard England1805
On Top of Old Smoky USA1951
One for Sorrow Britainc. 1780
One for the Money USA1820s
One Potato, Two Potato 'One Potato, Two Potatoes'England1870
One, Two, Buckle My Shoe '1, 2, Buckle My Shoe'USA or UK1805
One, Two, Three, Four, Five '1, 2, 3, 4, 5', '1, 2, 3, 4, 5, Once I Caught A Fish Alive', 'One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Once I Caught A Fish Alive'Englandc. 1765
Oranges and Lemons Englandc. 1744
Pat-a-Cake, Pat-a-Cake, Baker's Man "Pat-a-cake", "patty-cake" or "pattycake"England1698
Pease Porridge Hot 'Peas Porridge Hot' or 'Pease Pudding Hot'Englandc. 1765
Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater USAc. 1825
Peter Piper England1813
Polly Put the Kettle On England1803
Polly Wolly Doodle USA
Poor Mary 'Poor Jenny' or 'Poor Sally'England1880s
Pop Goes the Weasel England1850s
Pretty Little Dutch Girl USA1940s
The Queen of Hearts Britain1782
Pussy Cat Pussy Cat Britain1805
Rain Rain Go Away 'Rain, Rain Go Away, come again another day'England17th century or earlier
Ride a Cock Horse to Banbury Cross 'Ride a Cock Horse', 'Ride a White Horse to Banbury Cross'England1784
Ring-a-Ring o' Roses 'Ring Around the Rosie'England1881
Rock-a-bye Baby 'Hush a bye Baby', 'Rock a Bye Baby on the treetop'Englandc. 1765
Roses Are Red England1784
Round and Round the Garden Britain1940s
Row, Row, Row Your Boat USA1852
Rub-a-Dub Dub England1798
See Saw Margery Daw Britainc. 1765
Sea shanty 'chantey' or 'chanty'Britain, Scotland Or Ireland
Shabondama 'シャボン玉' or 'Soap Bubbles'Japan1922
She'll Be Coming Round The Mountain 'When She Comes', 'She'll be Coming Around the Mountain (When she comes)', 'She will be coming round (around) the mountain (when she comes)'USA
Simple Simon England1764
Sing a Song of Sixpence Englandc. 1744
Skidamarink 'Skinnamarink', 'Ski-dy-mer-rink-adink-aboomp', 'Skiddy-Mer-Rink-A-Doo'USA1910
Skip to my Lou 'Skip to my Lou, My Darling', 'Skip to the Lou'USA
Solomon Grundy Britain1842
Soft Kitty USA
Star Light, Star Bright USAlate 19th century
Sticks and Stones Britainbefore 1872
Sur le Pont d'Avignon France15th Century
Taffy was a Welshman Englandc. 1780
Ten in the Bed 'There were ten in the Bed', '10 in the Bed', 'There were 10 in the bed'USA
Ten Green Bottles 'Ten Green Bottles hanging on the wall', '10 Green Bottles hanging on the Wall', '10 Green Bottles'UK1830
Ten Little Indians USA1868
The Farmer in the Dell 'The Farmer's in his Den'Germany1820
The Grand Old Duke of York 'The Noble Duke of York'England1642
The Lion and the Unicorn England1708-1709
The More We Get Together USA1679
The Moon Has Been Arisen Germany1779
The Muffin Man 'Do you know the muffin man?'Englandc. 1820
The Old Woman and her Pig 'The Old Woman who found a Silver Penny'England
The Three Jovial Huntsmen Britain1880
The Wheels on the Bus 'The Bus', 'The Wheels on the Bus go Round and Round', 'Wheels on the bus go round and round'USA1939
There Was a Crooked Man Britain1842
There Was a Man in Our Town 'The Wondrous Wise Man' or 'There Wan a Man in Thessaly'England1897
There was an Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe England1794
There Was an Old Woman Who Lived Under a Hill England1714
This Is The House That Jack Built 'The House That Jack Built'England1755
This Little Piggy 'This Little Pig'Englandc. 1760
This Old Man 'Nick Nack Paddy Whack', 'Knick Knack Paddywhack', 'Nick Nack Paddywhack', 'Knick Knack Paddy Whack'England1906
Three Blind Mice England1609
Three Little Kittens USA1843
Three Wise Men of Gotham Englandc. 1765
Thumbelina USA1951
Tinker, Tailor England1695
To Market, to Market England1611
Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son Britain1795
Tweedledum and Tweedledee Britain1805
The Twelve Days of Christmas England Or Britainc. 1780
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (Lyrics)France, UK1806
Two Little Dickie Birds 'Two Little Black Birds'Britainc. 1765
Two Tigers 'Two Little Tigers' or 'Liang Zhi Lao Hu'China1845
Walking, Walking 'Walking, Walking, hop, hop, hop' USA
Weddings and Funerals England
Wee Willie Winkie Scotland1841
What Are Little Boys Made Of? 'What Are Little Girls Made Of?'Britainc. 1820
When I was a Bachelor Englandc. 1833 [4]
When the Boat Comes In North East England1826
When the Saints Go Marching in USA
Where is Thumbkin USA
Where, O Where Has My Little Dog Gone? 'Der Deitcher's Dog'Germany1846
Who Killed Cock Robin? 'The Cock Robin Song'Englandc. 1744
Who stole the cookie from the cookie jar? 'Who stole the cookie'. 'Who took the cookie', 'Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?', 'Cookie jar song'England
Wind the Bobbin Up England1890s
Wynken, Blynken, and Nod USA1889
Yankee Doodle USA1780s
Yon Yonson 'Jon Jonson', 'Jan Jansen', 'Yan Yansen', 'Yohn Yohnson', 'John Johnson'USA1890

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References

  1. Holden, Robert (1992). Twinkle, Twinkle, Southern Cross: The Forgotten Folklore of Australian Nursery Rhymes. Canberra: National Library Australia. p. 1. ISBN   064210560X.
  2. Bathroom Readers' Institute (2011). Uncle John's Endlessly Engrossing Bathroom Reader. New York: Simon and Schuster. ISBN   9781607104599.
  3. Styles, Morag (1997). From the Garden to the Street: Three Hundred Years of Poetry for Children. London: Cassell. p. 84. ISBN   0304332240.
  4. "When I Was a Little Boy I Lived by Myself: Nursery Rhyme" . Retrieved 20 July 2022.