A-Hunting We Will Go

"A-Hunting We Will Go" is a popular folk song and nursery rhyme composed in 1777 by English composer Thomas Arne. Arne had composed the song for a 1777 production of The Beggar's Opera in London.

The a- is an archaic intensifying prefix; compare "Here We Come A-wassailing/Here We Come A-caroling" and lyrics to "The Twelve Days of Christmas" (e.g., “Six geese a-laying”).

Lyrics
A-hunting we will go, A-hunting we will go Heigh-ho, the derry-o, A-hunting we will go.

A-hunting we will go, A-hunting we will go We'll catch a fox and put him in a box And never let him go (Modern versions often change the last line to “And then we’ll let him go”.)

Each consequent verse gets modified by putting in a different animal:
 * "...a fish and put him on a dish..."
 * "...a bear and cut his hair..."
 * "...a pig and dance a little jig..."
 * "...a giraffe and make him laugh..."
 * "...a mouse and put him in a house..."

Earlier versions of the song switch the words "a-hunting" with "a-roving", dating back to old roving drinking songs from the 16th century.