Greetings Darklings 🌙✨ I hope you enjoy delving into the mysterious and dark origins of the nursery rhyme "Rock-a-Bye Baby." It took quite a bit of time and extensive research to unravel the complex story behind this lullaby. I wanted to ensure that I presented the history in a clear, understandable, and entertaining way. I appreciate your patience, and I'm excited to hear your thoughts on this intriguing exploration. Let me know what you think in the comments below! :) Some incredibly kind souls have offered to support the channel further. If you're inclined to 'buy me a coffee,' here is the link: www.buymeacoffee.com/theresurrectionists 🖤
This may sound a bit weird but, I have always wondered if it referenced a woman's reproductive system and what happens during actual child birth?! 😂 I know it sounds like a far stretch, but is it possible?
As a child I asked my great grandmother about the songs meaning, pointing out that it seemed a rather horrible end for a baby. She told me that it wasn't a story about a baby's end. That it was the story of birth. That the tree was the womb, the wind blowing was labor, the bough breaking was the water breaking and the cradle was the afterbirth. I have no idea what version is correct but the meaning my great grandmother gave stuck with me all of these years.
I always wondered what was up with Rockabye Baby since I was a kid - what did they mean we were likely to fall out of our bed and die? Adults were no help!
I always sang my children to sleep, especially after giving birth to my first daughter only two weeks after my six month old niece died of SIDS. I couldn't bring myself to lay her down for hours and hours, so I would sing. I particularly loved this little chant bcuz I could hit all the notes, but, due to the darkness that surrounded its ending, and the recent events in my life, at the time, I changed the lyrics in the last line and my daughter, a new mother herself, only recently realized I'd been singing it to her incorrectly all these years, BUT, has continued our family's version of the song, which goes like this: Rock'a'bye, Baby, in the tree top... When the wind blows, the cradle will rock... When the bow breaks, the cradle will fall... And Mom will catch Baby, cradle and all... I've made variations to it throughout the years to accommodate whomever I was singing to, like nieces and nephews, and now grandchildren, such as... "But Grandma will catch you, cradle and all." OR "But, Aunt G, will catch Sammy, cradle and all." The idea being, of course, that our babies can go to sleep resting assured that they're safe, regardless of whether it's from storms knocking cradles and houses down, or hungry wolves at the door! Lol!! Good Lord, what were people thinking?! 😂
I am starting to wonder if these strange lullabies and children's stories are a kind of jargon spoken by the underground rebellious factions as a symbol of unity so the like minded could safely identify each other.
Love these ideas, I find the last one perhaps the best one. I can imagine the children in the street singing this. Amazing to think that when I was teaching nursery reception classes and my own children I was passing on a verbal history.
The King James story is the one my grandmother told me. I wish it were the innocent Native American story so sweet . This nursery rhyme is the one that holds a deeper meaning for me, as my older brothers and sisters thought they could recreate it with a wheel barrow. They placed me in a wheel barrow between a forked branch and told me not to move or I would fall. So being the youngest (3-4 years) I had to do it. I was still for a while, while my brothers and sisters played house below me, with the dog house directly below the branch. So after a time, I became bored and tried to crawl out, the wheel barrow tumbled and I crashed into the dog house. I had a head wound and blood was dripping down my face. My brothers and sisters begged me not to tell mom, but luckily I had more sense.
Marvelous. You work so hard on these videos, and I would argue that in fact they are getting better, (if that's possible) I love the way you always give us a few variations so we can make our own minds up. Thank you.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you can see improvement across my videos; I try to make each one better than the last! :) 🖤 Thank you for your support, it really means the world to me :)
The Native American theory seems quite plausible to me, I mean, apparently they were literally hanging babies in cradleboards in trees and singing lullabies. I can see how this could easily be a bit misinterpreted when folks back in England heard about that😂 I do think the King James meaning may have gotten applied afterwards though
I didn’t see the James the 2nd connection coming! It does make sense to “Rock-a-Baby. I truly thought this was just an innocent lullaby. I really enjoyed this one. Thank you for another good one 😊
I love the Idea of teasing the new mates on the ships. Calling him a baby. I can Imagine when they returned home after that first voyage all the sailors getting roaring drunk in an inn and hoisting him up on their shoulders whilst drunkingly singing the rhyme!
I'm not usually one to comment, but the depths you go to are unparalleled. Thank you for all the work that must go into making these. I truly look forward to & enjoy watching/ learning from your content.
Beautifully executed, with every truth possible well explained, respected, simply well done! I have looked into it myself quite a bit a (minute ago) and agree with literally everything you said here. So much love here! Peace
I don't know whether sailors created this rhyme of just adopted it, but it's easy to imagine them using these words to taunt someone who was fearful of their turn in the crow's nest.
Excuse me. But is that " buy me a coffee?" Or a " coffin?" In any case, I believe that the King James story is the most accurate. It makes more sense. Thank you for doing such an in-depth research and time to give the most interesting and accurate accounting of these nursery rhymes. Love the stories behind them.
'Buy a Coffin' would be much more on-brand wouldn't it?! 😂 Though being English, I do wish there was the option to 'Buy a Cup of Tea' ;) You're very welcome! I'm so happy you're enjoying the videos :) 🖤
Thank you for sharing these summaries and reintroducing the exploration into these cultural features. I have followed some of my curiosity with a little reading on the subjects of the stories you discuss, and my interest was definitely piqued then. Now, I enjoy thinking through them anew, and with some added information. Regarding the lullaby, I note that your descriptions focus exclusively on decoding the text and translation of the words. I wonder if there are clues embedded in the music associated with the lullaby. Modality or rhythmic conventions, for example, might hint at a region where the music may have first paired with the lyrics, thus making possible connections to the lyrical contents, by which a context may be gleaned. Maybe the music supported different lyrics before being associated with those we now associate with the lullaby? An example of another song that has experienced such a change is "Greensleeves", which crossed into Christian tradition from a secular origin. It seems possible that the melody of this lullaby may have been repurposed within a folk tradition, maybe like Blues or Jazz standards as a format for conveying stories within a community.
I don't know that any of my children even know this one since I never sang it to them. When I was a child, I always wondered why anyone sang it to a baby, considering a fall could result in death. It also says "when" the bought breaks, not "if. Sketchy.. lol Anyway, brand new subscriber. I've been enjoying the history! Thank you. 💕🦇
I was expecting tales of women who couldn't support another mouth to feed putting babies in precarious places in hopes of their demise.. so this was actually more tame than I had expected. Quite interesting history lessons:) thank you for all the time and research you put into these wonderful videos ❤
The Spanish version: "Sleep child, sleep now or the wolf will eat you up". I read, long time ago, an essay about nursery rhymes by Federico García Lorca and most of them were awful threat to children to remain unheard and quite.😮
I love this channel! Maybe do a video on the phrase ‘being read the riot act’. Or maybe also the origins of Little Red Riding Hood? This channel deserves many more subscribers!
Old nursery rhymes probably had more than one hidden meaning at the time and we can only speculate what they are based on the time they were popular in, and meanings probably changed over time. This is fascinating.
I am so glad you are back. You have the best voice on UA-cam and listening to you soothes me if I have a bad day. It may also be that you are so articulate with the English language and that in itself is greatly appreciated in today’s world.
I am sooo happy I came in early on your channel! (maybe a half dozen videos) I am riveted from beginning to end of each subject and appreciate the work you put into this! You make them, I’ll watch them!! Stuart from Connecticut, USA.
My dearest L - I'm late in picking-up on this one, so sorry! May I just say - it's simply astonishing. Your incredible research leaves me gasping! - but then it's inserted into a complex video of clips and quotes and amazingly sourced illustrations and facsimiles and historic visual material. Quite stunning! I've never admired anything on UA-cam more (or even, as much; or remotely close). Please can I be your #1 admirer? Profoundly, Michael x
I love your videos and I have always found this lullaby creepy. Oddly Head Shoulders Knees and Toes was the main song I sang to my daughter when she was a baby as well as the French Are You Sleeping Brother John
Origins are merely a great hook. The actual history you explore & relate to is better than any school history class . The story telling by you alone .The visuals , the period art . Is a delight . Each video you create is a work of art . That's what I think !
Now I want to see Dustin Hoffman's Captain Hook taunt Robin William's Peter Pan with a recital of Rock-a-Bye Baby as he struggles to climb the ship's mast.
Aged 75 I now look back and remember being told by my mother that my parents would place me between their seated thighs often in a blanket and hold my arms and gently bounce me and recite this rhyme. When it got to the end, they would suddenly open their legs and I would drop an inch or so into the blanket and we’d all giggle like mad. This was a prelude to the more vigorous bouncing on the lap while reciting, ‘My Mistress went a mim mim mim mim, (to gentle bounces), my Master went a trot trot trot trot (a little more bounce), and my (whatever the child’s name was) went a gallop a gallop etc., to real bouncing! Even more giggles and laughs. Your very lovely presentation, narrated so beautifully, certainly brought a lot of concepts to the table and was very captivating. I can see how old folklore tales converted to poetry and playful lullabies then became a play on deep political happenings and a way to speak out a hidden wish for the death of a huge threat to a mainly Protestant nation and of the the possibility of the dreaded and an unwanted National and Religious Fervor revived! I can see many samples of these sorts of rhymes brought together and mixed to suit the particular wishes of that, or those, individuals with similar rhetoric and perhaps modified again to hide, but shout out in silent mockery, their heartfelt wishes of a political agenda; all of which is certainly thought provoking. Food for thought without a doubt! I followed in my parents footsteps and recited this to both my daughter and then my son, in the same manner of that of my parents and of course to much giggling and laughter.
I know who was the real Miss Muffet. Her father was involved with the study of insects and arachnids. The British loved to make fun of those people who were thought of as different by way of having educational or scientific pursuits.
I'm thoroughly enjoying every episode! My very first book with paper pages instead of cloth was a huge Mother Goose reader, and that was halfway through the last century, so it was awhile ago. As I watch and listen, I can, "see," that book again from the pov of my grandfather's lap as he reads to me and shows me the pictures...wonderful memories... And then, as someone who is utterly fascinated by origins, be it etymology or culture, as well as a puzzle solver, all the possibilities of those origins start to engage my imagination and keep my thoughts occupied for hours. Hugely entertaining. On this one, I think the story of the Old Pretender's birth was probably closest to the actual one. As soon as I saw the second verse, I thought of that possibility, although it's also possible that the second verse was added long after the first... Looking forward to more... 🥰
Was that Mother Goose white with a black and white checkered pattern around the edges? That was what mine looked like. I always thought they were strange stories for anyone to just make up and have them stick around so long, but it makes a lot more sense as an adult to have them be symbolic and allegorical.
@@nlm6183 I can remember almost everything except what the book looked like. It was very big compared to my own stature at the time, and it was partially illustrated. It was seventy years ago, so these days it might compare well to something the size of an encyclopedia. ☺
@@ChelleLlewes mine wasnt too thick but it was LARGE for a book, tall and wide. I loved it so much my mom kept it and i still have it, somewhere, in the things she left me. :)
This rhyme took me back when I was in kindergarten. I always thought the cradle should be in tree tops to be rocked by the wind, that's something a little Asian girl who lives in rural provinces who never seen a cradle will definitely think. When I was in grade 2 and saw a drawing of a cradle and a baby in it it made me think why would a cradle be in tree top and once it falls the poor baby will fall down and the baby won't survive. From then on I disliked this rhyme because how can a cradle with a baby be placed on tree tops just to let it fall and kill the baby. That was my own understanding of the rhyme not knowing where it originated and why I never song this rhyme to any of my babies to put them to sleep
As a kid I learned all of these nursery rhymes (I can still recite most of them) but I never once questioned their origins and/or meanings. Thinking about it today, this feels weird. Why are kids taught rhymes with no purpose to daily life?
It's so interesting how nursery rhymes often were Political commentary on the current times like Humpty Dumpty was supposedly about the King at the time, I think, and Ring Around the Rosie was really about the plague destroying the world at the time.
Wonderfully put together, as usual. It seems to me that the most straightforward the origin, the more likely it is to be true. Hence the native American and the maritime suggestions sound the most plausible by far.❤
I wonder if there’s an element of caution. If left unattended for the tree and the breeze to pacify the baby, there is a chance that an ill wind could prove disastrous. Not a situation of abuse, but failure to watch the baby closely enough or a warning against being a lazy caregiver.
I'd go for the 17th century political origin for a couple of reasons, overt political critisms of the time could have severe consequences therefore were often veilled in allegory and symbolism, plus among the common folk illiteracy was high and access to written sources of information such as pamphlets often unaffordable or unavailable so rhymes would in that situation be a way of circulating political comment on significant events and current affairs among commoners. Subsequently the rhymes circulating among rhe commons would be picket up by compilers of nursery stories in books aimed at an educated middle and upper class audience who could afford books, then expensive items, but in these the subversive political messages were lost, and by then no longer socially relevant, their context lost. So that explanation gets my vote.
Wonderful! Love all the esoteric references and fascinating derivations. Your research is amazing, what an enjoyable video. The Egyptology reference especially intrigues me, I’m off to see if I can get a copy of the book.
Thank you for this upload. All very thought provoking . As with all English/UK myths and legends it could very well be a combination of all of the above.
Thank you for introducing me to a story about potential ancestors. My grandfather was born in St Helen's and spent time on the Isle of Man before living in Liverpool. After world War 2 he moved to South Africa where I live. Unfortunately I hever her his mother and his father died in the 1918 flu pandemic. Tracing our history has been really interesting. I do wonder if this is a branch we haven't encountered before
I think the maritime connection rings true- my grandfather was one of the last of the Cape Horners, and the stories he told fit this theory very well. Thanks for your well-researched and beautifully narrated channel.
In my logical mind I think this may have been a warning to give up a practice that had been used for a long time to get a baby to sleep. As the baby grew, but had been accustomed to napping or sleeping in a swaying branch, the branch may have becomed weakened and the growing child's weight would cause the branch to break. After enough deaths in this manner were reported, perhaps this rhyme came into play with midwives teaching it to new mothers in order to avoid this common practice.
Wow so many theories 🤔 This time I'm not sure which to go with. Thank you for your work to unravel it. But I think I'm going with the wolf 🐺. Really enjoyed it thank you 👍🏻
Very educational channel, I have a suggestion for a future video. I would love to know the origins of the nursery rhyme the crooked man living in the crooked house. Thats another very mysterious one.
I enjoy your videos. At the beginning of this one, You had mentioned similarities between Hush-a-by and Rock-a by, Yet you never gave any further coverage on the latter. I do wish you would cover the origins of Hush-a by baby? And If like to point out that bring being rhymes and lullabies, They aren't similar, They have different lyrics and totally different timesThe original lyrics to Hush-a by baby are really very dark and when people heard me singing the full original version, They were ready to commit me!
Thank you again for another fantastic ( if a little creepy in a good way ) video! So many plausible options it is difficult to make any real decision. That said, what intrigues me the most is how oral tradition seems the resounding theme, that we are pretty much all familiar with these little ditties, they all convey some deeper meaning that seems lost in 'modern' times, or did these evolve into what we now regard as slogans or chants? Keep 'em coming!!!
I've always attributed this particular rhyme to a disgruntled mother and housewife. I think most old stories such as Red Riding Hood, etc. were made up to scare children from going into the forest alone.
Honestly, I went to bed last night wondering if Rock a Bye Baby , the creepiest nursery rhyme in the world, had ever been featured on this channel. Grrrrrr, so crazy to find it posted today…
For years I have believed the James II version to be the origin of this nursery rhyme and I still believe that to be true... but, you have done some wonderful research into alternative versions... thanks so much... love your videos...
Greetings My Darkling - I enjoy your videos very much. Keep them coming. My two favorite theories are the cradleboard and the crow's nest. Either one works for me.
WOW..I just found your channel..YOU have a wonderful voice..I'm hooked..I've always wondered how these rhythms came about and what the true meaning is..As we well know..There are many evil things that are made to seem good..Manipulation is the same .no matter the period of time..THANK YOU 😂
The descent from Egyptian ideas, thousands of years prior, sounds overstretched to me. I always had the vague idea, from I know not where, was about a baby born to be king but the familial branch was at risk. The idea being that if that family was overthrown, the whole extended family of the baby would fall, , bough and branch. This would fit either He ray VI, king at 9 months old during the dangerous Hundred Years War, or Mary Queen of Scots, Queen at 6 days old.
I'm keen on the James II version. We have the luxury of time and distance, but can you imagine being afraid your country might be invaded or your government overthrown? Imagine living in an occupied territory during WWII... I have such sympathy for our ancestors! Great video as always. :) Thank you!
"You're father's a nobleman/ Your mother's a queen." Did a queen have an affair resulting in an illegitimate son? Could have been sung by a nanny taking care of a child, in sececy? (There are rumours about Sir Francis Bacon's heritage.) Just saying...;)
There were many rumors about the would-be James III (later called “the young pretender” when he attempted to regain the throne; people who supported his cause were called Jacobins, as Jacob and James are two versions of the same name). One such rumor I remember learning about was that that people believed that he was “placed in a bedpan by a maid.” Yeah…. Not only was his legitimacy questioned, it was even questioned if the queen had even given birth.
The queen had lost other babies , it was said she might have lost her child and switched babies with a living child , it started a tradition , Royal births had to be witnessed by I think the prime minister, Referenced in the Crown S6 Queen Elizabeth II said her father put a stop to it , when his grandson who is now Charles III was born in 1948.
It is unlikely that the lullaby is talking about English history. It's much deeper. There is a similar Russian lullaby. It says: “Don’t lie down on the edge, otherwise a gray wolf will come and carry you into the forest under the willow tree.” The same images of a tree, a wolf, danger. Most likely, these are the rudiments of an ancient spell that saves a child from sudden death.
IMO, one might say, "All of the above?" There were no copyright laws back then and people might have reused certain rhymes to the contemporary issues of the day. Today, we call them "memes," IMO., As a musician and songwriter, I am interested in how our predecessors worked their media. Your videos are much appreciated. Thanks
With such an amazing voice from the narrator, I'm not sure the backing music adds a lot, it rather detracts the content and I personally find it more difficult to concentrate on the narration. However, I only recently discovered this channel and am happy I did. Incidentally a charcoal maker in Kent, Toys Hill in fact, for two years in the early 90's
Greetings Darklings 🌙✨
I hope you enjoy delving into the mysterious and dark origins of the nursery rhyme "Rock-a-Bye Baby." It took quite a bit of time and extensive research to unravel the complex story behind this lullaby. I wanted to ensure that I presented the history in a clear, understandable, and entertaining way.
I appreciate your patience, and I'm excited to hear your thoughts on this intriguing exploration. Let me know what you think in the comments below! :)
Some incredibly kind souls have offered to support the channel further. If you're inclined to 'buy me a coffee,' here is the link:
www.buymeacoffee.com/theresurrectionists
🖤
I did 🖤🖤🖤
Oh, and Java up Queen of Darklings 😁
This may sound a bit weird but, I have always wondered if it referenced a woman's reproductive system and what happens during actual child birth?! 😂 I know it sounds like a far stretch, but is it possible?
Your voice sounds very much like the good looking girl who does the met office weather videos?
As a child I asked my great grandmother about the songs meaning, pointing out that it seemed a rather horrible end for a baby. She told me that it wasn't a story about a baby's end. That it was the story of birth. That the tree was the womb, the wind blowing was labor, the bough breaking was the water breaking and the cradle was the afterbirth. I have no idea what version is correct but the meaning my great grandmother gave stuck with me all of these years.
I love this explanation.
I like that
This is far better than the other, that's for sure.
I like your grandma's version more.
This makes more sense than anything else I've heard.
I remember, as a very small child having this sung to me, finding it cold and strange, harsh.
Me too! I never like it as a child
I always wondered what was up with Rockabye Baby since I was a kid - what did they mean we were likely to fall out of our bed and die? Adults were no help!
Love this channel for me its not only very great explanations on the odd nursery rhymes we have grown up learning its also a history lesson.
Thank you so much :) 🖤
I always sang my children to sleep, especially after giving birth to my first daughter only two weeks after my six month old niece died of SIDS. I couldn't bring myself to lay her down for hours and hours, so I would sing. I particularly loved this little chant bcuz I could hit all the notes, but, due to the darkness that surrounded its ending, and the recent events in my life, at the time, I changed the lyrics in the last line and my daughter, a new mother herself, only recently realized I'd been singing it to her incorrectly all these years, BUT, has continued our family's version of the song, which goes like this:
Rock'a'bye, Baby, in the tree top...
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock...
When the bow breaks, the cradle will fall...
And Mom will catch Baby, cradle and all...
I've made variations to it throughout the years to accommodate whomever I was singing to, like nieces and nephews, and now grandchildren, such as...
"But Grandma will catch you, cradle and all."
OR
"But, Aunt G, will catch Sammy, cradle and all."
The idea being, of course, that our babies can go to sleep resting assured that they're safe, regardless of whether it's from storms knocking cradles and houses down, or hungry wolves at the door! Lol!!
Good Lord, what were people thinking?!
😂
Most underrated comment ever❤beautiful, you have a kind heart, childen are safe w you❤🎉
Beautiful ❤
I've just stumbled upon this channel. It's right up my alley. Love the hidden meanings.
Perfect narration too..a beautiful voice.
Thank you 😊
Thank you so much! :) 🖤
I could listen to her all night on loop...whewwww.. 🖤🫶🖤🫶🖤
I am starting to wonder if these strange lullabies and children's stories are a kind of jargon spoken by the underground rebellious factions as a symbol of unity so the like minded could safely identify each other.
There's a word for that: Shibboleth
@@boxsterman77thank you. Wonderful nugget.
Mid-evil dirty jokes.
It was
I believe that you may be right !!!
Love these ideas, I find the last one perhaps the best one. I can imagine the children in the street singing this. Amazing to think that when I was teaching nursery reception classes and my own children I was passing on a verbal history.
The King James story is the one my grandmother told me. I wish it were the innocent Native American story so sweet . This nursery rhyme is the one that holds a deeper meaning for me, as my older brothers and sisters thought they could recreate it with a wheel barrow. They placed me in a wheel barrow between a forked branch and told me not to move or I would fall. So being the youngest (3-4 years) I had to do it. I was still for a while, while my brothers and sisters played house below me, with the dog house directly below the branch. So after a time, I became bored and tried to crawl out, the wheel barrow tumbled and I crashed into the dog house. I had a head wound and blood was dripping down my face. My brothers and sisters begged me not to tell mom, but luckily I had more sense.
Marvelous. You work so hard on these videos, and I would argue that in fact they are getting better, (if that's possible) I love the way you always give us a few variations so we can make our own minds up. Thank you.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you can see improvement across my videos; I try to make each one better than the last! :) 🖤 Thank you for your support, it really means the world to me :)
Very much agree. I do see improvement and more finely expressed reasons for each rhyme. Keep up the good work.
The Native American theory seems quite plausible to me, I mean, apparently they were literally hanging babies in cradleboards in trees and singing lullabies. I can see how this could easily be a bit misinterpreted when folks back in England heard about that😂 I do think the King James meaning may have gotten applied afterwards though
I didn’t see the James the 2nd connection coming! It does make sense to “Rock-a-Baby. I truly thought this was just an innocent lullaby. I really enjoyed this one. Thank you for another good one 😊
You're very welcome! I'm so happy you enjoyed it :) 🖤
I am in awe with your research and the various possible notions! I had always believed it was a telling what happens if a child should misbehave.
I wish I had you as my history teacher .you tell history as it should have been taught.
I love the Idea of teasing the new mates on the ships. Calling him a baby. I can Imagine when they returned home after that first voyage all the sailors getting roaring drunk in an inn and hoisting him up on their shoulders whilst drunkingly singing the rhyme!
'Greetings Darklings'.... got me there. love it ❤
Agreed...
Me too! LOVE being a Darkling, and having myself addressed as one. It's like being acknowledged
I'm not usually one to comment, but the depths you go to are unparalleled. Thank you for all the work that must go into making these. I truly look forward to & enjoy watching/ learning from your content.
Thank you so much! I'm so happy to hear that :) Thank you for the kind words, they mean the world to me! 🖤
Beautifully executed, with every truth possible well explained, respected, simply well done! I have looked into it myself quite a bit a (minute ago) and agree with literally everything you said here. So much love here! Peace
Thank you! I'm so happy you enjoyed it :) 🖤
I don't know whether sailors created this rhyme of just adopted it, but it's easy to imagine them using these words to taunt someone who was fearful of their turn in the crow's nest.
I Love that explanation! 😂
Easy to see this being true.
Love this channel! Thanks for your hard work! I’m going with the King James theory. The cradleboard theory is interesting!
Thank you! I'm so happy you're enjoying my channel :) 🖤
I think you got it absolutely correct on the last one! It’s almost always royalty that gets the reminder!🌿🌸
Excuse me. But is that " buy me a coffee?" Or a " coffin?"
In any case, I believe that the King James story is the most accurate.
It makes more sense.
Thank you for doing such an in-depth research and time to give the most interesting and accurate accounting of these nursery rhymes.
Love the stories behind them.
'Buy a Coffin' would be much more on-brand wouldn't it?! 😂 Though being English, I do wish there was the option to 'Buy a Cup of Tea' ;) You're very welcome! I'm so happy you're enjoying the videos :) 🖤
Thank you for sharing these summaries and reintroducing the exploration into these cultural features. I have followed some of my curiosity with a little reading on the subjects of the stories you discuss, and my interest was definitely piqued then. Now, I enjoy thinking through them anew, and with some added information.
Regarding the lullaby, I note that your descriptions focus exclusively on decoding the text and translation of the words. I wonder if there are clues embedded in the music associated with the lullaby. Modality or rhythmic conventions, for example, might hint at a region where the music may have first paired with the lyrics, thus making possible connections to the lyrical contents, by which a context may be gleaned. Maybe the music supported different lyrics before being associated with those we now associate with the lullaby? An example of another song that has experienced such a change is "Greensleeves", which crossed into Christian tradition from a secular origin. It seems possible that the melody of this lullaby may have been repurposed within a folk tradition, maybe like Blues or Jazz standards as a format for conveying stories within a community.
I don't know that any of my children even know this one since I never sang it to them. When I was a child, I always wondered why anyone sang it to a baby, considering a fall could result in death. It also says "when" the bought breaks, not "if. Sketchy.. lol
Anyway, brand new subscriber. I've been enjoying the history! Thank you. 💕🦇
the rhyme being related to a tavern song of rebellion seems the most logical to me.
I was expecting tales of women who couldn't support another mouth to feed putting babies in precarious places in hopes of their demise.. so this was actually more tame than I had expected. Quite interesting history lessons:) thank you for all the time and research you put into these wonderful videos ❤
The Spanish version:
"Sleep child, sleep now or the wolf will eat you up".
I read, long time ago, an essay about nursery rhymes by Federico García Lorca and most of them were awful threat to children to remain unheard and quite.😮
I love this channel! Maybe do a video on the phrase ‘being read the riot act’. Or maybe also the origins of Little Red Riding Hood?
This channel deserves many more subscribers!
Thank you so much :) 🖤 And thank you for the wonderful suggestions!
I remember when Marge Simpson sang this to baby Maggie. Maggie's face at the end was priceless!
Old nursery rhymes probably had more than one hidden meaning at the time and we can only speculate what they are based on the time they were popular in, and meanings probably changed over time. This is fascinating.
I am so glad you are back. You have the best voice on UA-cam and listening to you soothes me if I have a bad day.
It may also be that you are so articulate with the English language and that in itself is greatly appreciated in today’s world.
Oh thank you! What a lovely thing to say! I'm so happy you're enjoying my channel :) 🖤
Fascinating, much appreciated
Glad you enjoyed it! :) 🖤
Love these and no intrusive adverts
I am sooo happy I came in early on your channel! (maybe a half dozen videos) I am riveted from beginning to end of each subject and appreciate the work you put into this! You make them, I’ll watch them!! Stuart from Connecticut, USA.
Thank you! I'm so happy you're enjoying my channel :) 🖤
This is my new fav channel! The edit, the story, the history- the darkness! ❤ it. Time 2 recommend 😮😊❤
Wow!! Your research is incredible/ very enjoyable content. Great narration voice.
I've kinda assumed it was in reference to postpartum depression and psychosis... It's not just a modern day issue obviously.
My dearest L - I'm late in picking-up on this one, so sorry! May I just say - it's simply astonishing. Your incredible research leaves me gasping! - but then it's inserted into a complex video of clips and quotes and amazingly sourced illustrations and facsimiles and historic visual material. Quite stunning! I've never admired anything on UA-cam more (or even, as much; or remotely close). Please can I be your #1 admirer? Profoundly, Michael x
I love your videos and I have always found this lullaby creepy. Oddly Head Shoulders Knees and Toes was the main song I sang to my daughter when she was a baby as well as the French Are You Sleeping Brother John
Thank you! I always found this one creepy too!
Origins are merely a great hook. The actual history you explore & relate to is better than any school history class . The story telling by you alone .The visuals , the period art .
Is a delight . Each video you create is a work of art .
That's what I think !
Thank you so much :) 🖤
Now I want to see Dustin Hoffman's Captain Hook taunt Robin William's Peter Pan with a recital of Rock-a-Bye Baby as he struggles to climb the ship's mast.
Good lord, I hope you meant "recital." Too late! Now I can never be rid of that mental image.
Seriously, though, bad place for a typo.
@@johnopalko5223 Thanks for the heads up, I edited the mistake, but for anybody wondering, YES, I DID THAT!
😂😂😂
I've got both hands on my phone, but I still have a tight grip on the seat 😂🤣😂
Another Great video, thank you.😊 😊 xx
You're very welcome! I'm so happy you enjoyed it :) 🖤
Aged 75 I now look back and remember being told by my mother that my parents would place me between their seated thighs often in a blanket and hold my arms and gently bounce me and recite this rhyme. When it got to the end, they would suddenly open their legs and I would drop an inch or so into the blanket and we’d all giggle like mad. This was a prelude to the more vigorous bouncing on the lap while reciting, ‘My Mistress went a mim mim mim mim, (to gentle bounces), my Master went a trot trot trot trot (a little more bounce), and my (whatever the child’s name was) went a gallop a gallop etc., to real bouncing! Even more giggles and laughs. Your very lovely presentation, narrated so beautifully, certainly brought a lot of concepts to the table and was very captivating. I can see how old folklore tales converted to poetry and playful lullabies then became a play on deep political happenings and a way to speak out a hidden wish for the death of a huge threat to a mainly Protestant nation and of the the possibility of the dreaded and an unwanted National and Religious Fervor revived! I can see many samples of these sorts of rhymes brought together and mixed to suit the particular wishes of that, or those, individuals with similar rhetoric and perhaps modified again to hide, but shout out in silent mockery, their heartfelt wishes of a political agenda; all of which is certainly thought provoking. Food for thought without a doubt! I followed in my parents footsteps and recited this to both my daughter and then my son, in the same manner of that of my parents and of course to much giggling and laughter.
Hello Wonderfuling 😘, So many to choose but I like the crows nest and the nod to nobility! Stay safe n well. TFS, GB :)
Thank you so much :) 🖤
I enjoyed this and for me it's a toss up between the French fable and King James. Can't wait until you tell me who Little Miss Muffitt is. lol
I know who was the real Miss Muffet. Her father was involved with the study of insects and arachnids. The British loved to make fun of those people who were thought of as different by way of having educational or scientific pursuits.
I'm thoroughly enjoying every episode! My very first book with paper pages instead of cloth was a huge Mother Goose reader, and that was halfway through the last century, so it was awhile ago. As I watch and listen, I can, "see," that book again from the pov of my grandfather's lap as he reads to me and shows me the pictures...wonderful memories...
And then, as someone who is utterly fascinated by origins, be it etymology or culture, as well as a puzzle solver, all the possibilities of those origins start to engage my imagination and keep my thoughts occupied for hours. Hugely entertaining.
On this one, I think the story of the Old Pretender's birth was probably closest to the actual one. As soon as I saw the second verse, I thought of that possibility, although it's also possible that the second verse was added long after the first...
Looking forward to more... 🥰
Thank you! I'm so happy you enjoyed it :) 🖤
Was that Mother Goose white with a black and white checkered pattern around the edges? That was what mine looked like.
I always thought they were strange stories for anyone to just make up and have them stick around so long, but it makes a lot more sense as an adult to have them be symbolic and allegorical.
@@nlm6183 I can remember almost everything except what the book looked like. It was very big compared to my own stature at the time, and it was partially illustrated. It was seventy years ago, so these days it might compare well to something the size of an encyclopedia. ☺
@@ChelleLlewes mine wasnt too thick but it was LARGE for a book, tall and wide. I loved it so much my mom kept it and i still have it, somewhere, in the things she left me. :)
@@nlm6183 Lucky you! I wish I still had my old copy...
I love this channel, it is so interesting and informative! It makes you learn history with a twist.😊
Thank you! I'm so happy you're enjoying my channel :) 🖤
This rhyme took me back when I was in kindergarten. I always thought the cradle should be in tree tops to be rocked by the wind, that's something a little Asian girl who lives in rural provinces who never seen a cradle will definitely think. When I was in grade 2 and saw a drawing of a cradle and a baby in it it made me think why would a cradle be in tree top and once it falls the poor baby will fall down and the baby won't survive. From then on I disliked this rhyme because how can a cradle with a baby be placed on tree tops just to let it fall and kill the baby. That was my own understanding of the rhyme not knowing where it originated and why I never song this rhyme to any of my babies to put them to sleep
As a kid I learned all of these nursery rhymes (I can still recite most of them) but I never once questioned their origins and/or meanings. Thinking about it today, this feels weird. Why are kids taught rhymes with no purpose to daily life?
Truly fascinating; thank you for another awesome video :D
Thank you so much :) 🖤
It's so interesting how nursery rhymes often were Political commentary on the current times like Humpty Dumpty was supposedly about the King at the time, I think, and Ring Around the Rosie was really about the plague destroying the world at the time.
Once again a very good job! I love your work.
Thank you,
Thank you very much! Glad you enjoyed it! :) 🖤
Wonderfully put together, as usual.
It seems to me that the most straightforward the origin, the more likely it is to be true. Hence the native American and the maritime suggestions sound the most plausible by far.❤
Thank you!!!
I had requested this .
Who knew the number of diverse meanings it had!
Amazing research 🎉
My pleasure! I'm so happy you enjoyed it :) 🖤
I wonder if there’s an element of caution. If left unattended for the tree and the breeze to pacify the baby, there is a chance that an ill wind could prove disastrous. Not a situation of abuse, but failure to watch the baby closely enough or a warning against being a lazy caregiver.
Amazing research / pictures / pleasant voice 😊❤
British babies of women doing farm work were also placed in baskets hung from trees while their mothers worked.
Another fantastic video. I absolutely love your channel.
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it! :) 🖤
I'd go for the 17th century political origin for a couple of reasons, overt political critisms of the time could have severe consequences therefore were often veilled in allegory and symbolism, plus among the common folk illiteracy was high and access to written sources of information such as pamphlets often unaffordable or unavailable so rhymes would in that situation be a way of circulating political comment on significant events and current affairs among commoners. Subsequently the rhymes circulating among rhe commons would be picket up by compilers of nursery stories in books aimed at an educated middle and upper class audience who could afford books, then expensive items, but in these the subversive political messages were lost, and by then no longer socially relevant, their context lost. So that explanation gets my vote.
Wonderful! Love all the esoteric references and fascinating derivations. Your research is amazing, what an enjoyable video. The Egyptology reference especially intrigues me, I’m off to see if I can get a copy of the book.
Glad you enjoyed it! :) You can read it online (at least a good portion of it, which is what I did!)
Thank you for this upload.
All very thought provoking .
As with all English/UK myths and legends it could very well be a combination of all of the above.
Thank you for introducing me to a story about potential ancestors. My grandfather was born in St Helen's and spent time on the Isle of Man before living in Liverpool. After world War 2 he moved to South Africa where I live. Unfortunately I hever her his mother and his father died in the 1918 flu pandemic. Tracing our history has been really interesting.
I do wonder if this is a branch we haven't encountered before
I think the maritime connection rings true- my grandfather was one of the last of the Cape Horners, and the stories he told fit this theory very well. Thanks for your well-researched and beautifully narrated channel.
Thank you for sharing your insights :) 🖤
In my logical mind I think this may have been a warning to give up a practice that had been used for a long time to get a baby to sleep. As the baby grew, but had been accustomed to napping or sleeping in a swaying branch, the branch may have becomed weakened and the growing child's weight would cause the branch to break. After enough deaths in this manner were reported, perhaps this rhyme came into play with midwives teaching it to new mothers in order to avoid this common practice.
Thanks
Thank you so much for your generosity! Your support means the world to me 🖤🖤🖤
I'm going with the Stuart option. Good analysis.
Thank you so much :) 🖤
Thanks for this 1.. i asked for it a while ago..but i will have to re-watch this a good few times.. it threw me as a kid.. thanks again.xxx
Wow so many theories 🤔 This time I'm not sure which to go with. Thank you for your work to unravel it. But I think I'm going with the wolf 🐺. Really enjoyed it thank you 👍🏻
Thank you! I'm so happy you enjoyed it :) 🖤
Very interesting video - thank you.
You're very welcome! I'm so happy you enjoyed it :) 🖤
Love these! Excellent behaviour!
I’ve hade these baby rhymes running through my head for days. Thanks for the clarification.
You're very welcome! I'm so happy you enjoyed :) 🖤
Very educational channel, I have a suggestion for a future video. I would love to know the origins of the nursery rhyme the crooked man living in the crooked house. Thats another very mysterious one.
Thank you so much! And thank you for the suggestion - it's certainly an intriguing rhyme! :) 🖤
I enjoy your videos. At the beginning of this one, You had mentioned similarities between Hush-a-by and Rock-a by, Yet you never gave any further coverage on the latter. I do wish you would cover the origins of Hush-a by baby?
And If like to point out that bring being rhymes and lullabies, They aren't similar, They have different lyrics and totally different timesThe original lyrics to Hush-a by baby are really very dark and when people heard me singing the full original version, They were ready to commit me!
Thank you again for another fantastic ( if a little creepy in a good way ) video! So many plausible options it is difficult to make any real decision. That said, what intrigues me the most is how oral tradition seems the resounding theme, that we are pretty much all familiar with these little ditties, they all convey some deeper meaning that seems lost in 'modern' times, or did these evolve into what we now regard as slogans or chants?
Keep 'em coming!!!
Thank you so much :) 🖤
I've always attributed this particular rhyme to a disgruntled mother and housewife. I think most old stories such as Red Riding Hood, etc. were made up to scare children from going into the forest alone.
The pirate shanty just fits the best...
With so many variations it's a possibility that more than one theory could be true, just adapting an existing rhyme to new circumstances.
I love these videos so much
Thank you so much :) 🖤
I never liked this lullaby. I never wanted a baby to fall from a broken tree branch.
Aren't there any nice "truths" about any of the nursery rhymes?
What great research! I subscribed by the way.
Thank you! I'm so happy you enjoyed it :) 🖤
Love your channel ❤
Honestly, I went to bed last night wondering if Rock a Bye Baby , the creepiest nursery rhyme in the world, had ever been featured on this channel. Grrrrrr, so crazy to find it posted today…
For years I have believed the James II version to be the origin of this nursery rhyme and I still believe that to be true... but, you have done some wonderful research into alternative versions... thanks so much... love your videos...
You're very welcome! I'm so happy you enjoyed it :) 🖤
Greetings My Darkling - I enjoy your videos very much. Keep them coming. My two favorite theories are the cradleboard and the crow's nest. Either one works for me.
Thank you! I'm so happy you enjoyed it :) 🖤
WOW..I just found your channel..YOU have a wonderful voice..I'm hooked..I've always wondered how these rhythms came about and what the true meaning is..As we well know..There are many evil things that are made to seem good..Manipulation is the same .no matter the period of time..THANK YOU 😂
Thank you! I'm so happy you're enjoying my channel :) 🖤
You have an amazing voice. I would love for you to be a voice actor for Lara Croft.
Thank you! If the game makers happen to see this, I'm more than happy to take on that role! ;D 🖤
Sounds like a song or rhyme about keeping secrets ''If the wind blows ''. similar to don't rock the boat.
The descent from Egyptian ideas, thousands of years prior, sounds overstretched to me. I always had the vague idea, from I know not where, was about a baby born to be king but the familial branch was at risk. The idea being that if that family was overthrown, the whole extended family of the baby would fall, , bough and branch. This would fit either He ray VI, king at 9 months old during the dangerous Hundred Years War, or Mary Queen of Scots, Queen at 6 days old.
Great observations, thank you! :)
I'm keen on the James II version. We have the luxury of time and distance, but can you imagine being afraid your country might be invaded or your government overthrown? Imagine living in an occupied territory during WWII... I have such sympathy for our ancestors! Great video as always. :) Thank you!
I always thought the words were a bit rugged when I sang my babies to sleep with it. Thanks for that - jury's out on this one!
I believe the King James version. It strikes me as very authentic
Marvelous 😘
"You're father's a nobleman/
Your mother's a queen."
Did a queen have an affair resulting in an illegitimate son?
Could have been sung by a nanny taking care of a child, in sececy?
(There are rumours about Sir Francis Bacon's heritage.) Just saying...;)
There were many rumors about the would-be James III (later called “the young pretender” when he attempted to regain the throne; people who supported his cause were called Jacobins, as Jacob and James are two versions of the same name). One such rumor I remember learning about was that that people believed that he was “placed in a bedpan by a maid.” Yeah…. Not only was his legitimacy questioned, it was even questioned if the queen had even given birth.
The queen had lost other babies , it was said she might have lost her child and switched babies with a living child , it started a tradition , Royal births had to be witnessed by I think the prime minister, Referenced in the Crown S6 Queen Elizabeth II said her father put a stop to it , when his grandson who is now Charles III was born in 1948.
Yeah, it’s James II. Makes perfect sense in the context of the times and how people thought.
It is unlikely that the lullaby is talking about English history. It's much deeper. There is a similar Russian lullaby. It says: “Don’t lie down on the edge, otherwise a gray wolf will come and carry you into the forest under the willow tree.” The same images of a tree, a wolf, danger. Most likely, these are the rudiments of an ancient spell that saves a child from sudden death.
Oh thank you for sharing! That might also link back to the French Fable that was referenced too!
IMO, one might say, "All of the above?"
There were no copyright laws back then and people might have reused certain rhymes to the contemporary issues of the day. Today, we call them "memes," IMO.,
As a musician and songwriter, I am interested in how our predecessors worked their media. Your videos are much appreciated. Thanks
Thank you for your time and enthusiasm, when you must be busy anyway Susie.
With such an amazing voice from the narrator, I'm not sure the backing music adds a lot, it rather detracts the content and I personally find it more difficult to concentrate on the narration. However, I only recently discovered this channel and am happy I did. Incidentally a charcoal maker in Kent, Toys Hill in fact, for two years in the early 90's