Diddle, Diddle, Dumpling, My Son John
"Diddle, Diddle, Dumpling, My Son John" is an English language nursery rhyme. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 19709.
Lyrics
[edit]One modern version is:
- Diddle, diddle, dumpling, my son John,
- Went to bed with his trousers on;
- One shoe off, and the other shoe on,
- Diddle, diddle, dumpling, my son John.[1]
Alternate versions include:
- Diddle diddle dumpling, my son John
- Went to bed with his britches on.
- One shoe off, and one shoe on;
- Diddle diddle dumpling, my son John.[2]
- Deedle, deedle, dumpling, my son John,
- Went to bed with his stockings on;
- One shoe off, and one shoe on,
- Deedle, deedle, dumpling, my son John.[3]
Origins
[edit]The rhyme is first recorded in The Newest Christmas Box published in London around 1797. It may be derived from 'Diddle, diddle, diddle Dumpling', a traditional street cry of hot dumpling sellers.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b I. Opie and P. Opie (1951). The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes (1st ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 245–6. (2nd ed. 1997)
- ^ Wright, The Original Mother Goose (1916), as quoted on mothergooseclub.com
- ^ Smith, The Little Mother Goose (1912), as quoted on mothergooseclub.com
- BBC 'Inside number 9' TV episode with the same name
- Sky's British black comedy 'Hunderby', set in the 1830s, features the song as evening entertainment accompanied by a traditional crumhorn.
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