Talk:List of nursery rhymes

The date for "Head, Shoulders Knees and Toes" cannot be correct. Was singing this song / rhyme in Ontario Canada in the late 1950's — Preceding unsigned comment added by Malcolm53ca (talk • contribs) 04:39, 27 November 2023 (UTC)

Alternate Song Titles
How come "All Around the Mulberry Bush" links to Pop Goes the Weasel? -Anonymous


 * Because "All Around the Mulberry Bush" is an alternate title for "Pop Goes the Weasel." (It's the first line in the song.) Rangergordon (talk) 00:19, 24 August 2008 (UTC)


 * Yes, but the first line All around the Mulberry Bush is a later American addition to what is a British nursery rhyme, so we should stick to originals here. Orphan Wiki  19:44, 2 January 2010 (UTC)

Uniqueness of Page
how is this page different from the Category:Nursery_rhymes page? should they be somehow merged? Origamikaren 23:52, 29 April 2007 (UTC)


 * Where as this is a list, more likely to be found easy by browsers, the category just aids classification. Orphan Wiki  19:45, 2 January 2010 (UTC)

Genuine Nursery Rhymes?
Many of the "nursery rhymes" listed here are not actually nursery rhymes. For instance, "Christmas Is Coming" is a traditional carol, not a nursery rhyme.

Similarly, "The Farmer in the Dell," "Frère Jacques," "Pop Goes the Weasel," "I'm a Little Teapot," "Old MacDonald" and "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" are children's songs; "Hush Little Baby" and "Rock-a-bye Baby" are lullabies; "Froggy Went A-Courting" is a folk song; "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles" and "Mairzy Doats" are popular songs; and "She Sells Seashells" is a tongue-twister.

I have nothing against any of these wonderful songs and rhymes, and I realize that they appeal to children. But a nursery rhyme can't be just any lyric or saying that kids like. A nursery rhyme is more like a story or a chant: Most nursery rhymes don't have set melodies. Those that have been set to music, such as "Humpty Dumpty" are still primarily known as rhymes, not musical works.

So, even though I love "Mairzy Doats," we must recognize that it's not a nursery rhyme, but actually a novelty pop song from the WWII era. "There Was an Old Woman Who Swallowed a Fly" is a wonderful folk tune--but it's not a nursery rhyme. Rangergordon (talk) 00:19, 24 August 2008 (UTC)

I agree, there is a distinction between a traditional nursery rhyme and a commerical children's song. I plan to clean up the list. If someone wants to do an article for 'List of Children's songs' they can put them there. --Sabrebd (talk) 10:20, 11 April 2009 (UTC) This now done--Sabrebd (talk) 22:35, 18 April 2009 (UTC)


 * Good points made there. And they don't just appeal to children. These songs (especially the British ones which are generally older, and which make up the majority anyway) are an important link to our past and our culture. Orphan Wiki  19:48, 2 January 2010 (UTC)


 * There still seems to be a lot of overlap and confusion between this list and the List of playground songs.Shazen27 (talk) 01:21, 1 December 2014 (UTC)

Red links maybe associated with the following.....
--222.67.211.189 (talk) 08:16, 26 May 2010 (UTC)
 * http://220.181.38.82/m?word=flash,http://www.gfes.tpc.edu.tw/board/abc-song/fpOemYObrn6jm5iimak3.swf,,[make+new+friends+keep+the+old]&ct=134217728&tn=baidusg,Song: Make New Friends But Keep the Old&si=;;;;0;;0&lm=16777216&sgid=1
 * http://kids.niehs.nih.gov/lyrics/makenew.htm

On top of old smoky
Is On Top of Old Smoky really a nursery rhyme? Ssjhowarthisawesome (talk) 02:19, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

Johnny Johnny Yes Papa's Country of Origin
I don't think that it's creation should be attributed to the US, as it originated in Kenya and was popularized in India. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.95.128.23 (talk) 13:36, 21 January 2021 (UTC)