There never was an accepted definitive version, so the children who used the rhyme were very happy to substitute their own words as the mood took them. The song can be seen as glorifying and poking fun at slave conditions. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. Eeeny, meeny, miney, mo! The sisters claimed the flight attendant was being racist. Eenie, meenie, miney moe. Prior to the popular variation used today that involves catching tigers, a common American variant of the rhyme used a racist slur against Black people instead of the word tiger. Good Luck! And it's really fun to repeat them in a pattern. Harvard PhD student Adrienne Raphel looked into its origins, and tells NPR's Rachel Martin it's found on playgrounds around the world. Harvard PhD student Adrienne Raphel looked into its origins, and tells NPR's Rachel Martin it's found on playgrounds around the world. Eeny meeny miny mo. British? An example comes from the Danish region near Kattegat, where the Jack and Jill rhyme, which arrived during the British occupation in the Napoleonic wars, was repeated as: Jeck og JillVent op de hillOg Jell kom tombling efter. They heard versions in Zimbabwe. Later, they can learn where the songs came from, and that lesson will be an important one. "Its well known that theres some challenging language in the Gospel of John," Michael Marissen, a noted Bach scholar, said in a 2013 interview with WQXR-radio. Support me by joining Medium via this link: https://eladsi.medium.com/membership. Osse bosse bakke disse, I grew up in Australia and during my childhood years in the mid-late 70s, the only version I was aware of was the n***** version. Its possible children tried all sorts of nonsensical sounds and rhythms until they found one they liked: Nevertheless, there are as many theories as to the origin of. Catch a racist by the toe. And you are [not] it. Millions turn to Vox to educate themselves, their family, and their friends about whats happening in the world around them, and to learn about things that spark their curiosity. The traders would pinch or twist the slaves toe. Give the gift of knowledge with our official 'did you know' book. The first line in the version sung in Cornwall, England was Eeha, meena, mona, mite. "[4] "Tigger" is also used instead of "tiger" in some versions of the rhyme.[5][6]. You know, they're like these nonsense syllables that then sound like words that you recognize. There is some offensive language below. Une, mine, mane, mo, Put the baby on the po We change the songs and scrub them clean. ", The black plaintiffs in that case sued the airline for discrimination because a flight attendant had used the rhyme while urging them to take their seats. However, the original words used in the song have far less benign implications. If they squeal make them squeal some more. The first line of a popular children's counting rhyme. RAPHEL: I'd say it's somewhere between a poem and a song and a chant because it's hard not to do it. The original lyrics: "De Camptown ladies sing dis song Doo-dah! (one version of several; they also chant the US variation above) France: Une, mine, mane, mo, Une, fine, fane, fo Maticaire et matico, Eeny, meeny, miny, moe What is known is that countless variations of the nursery rhyme exist. Father, husband, dog person. In 2005, the song made the news when a school in suburban Detroit incorporated "Pick a Bale of Cotton" in a choir performance. RAPHEL: Oh, it's all over the world. The stories we learn from them are painful, but also valuable. Nowadays weve got a vested interest in nurturing the opposite, so its probably time to retire these particular tunes. [14] This may have helped popularise this version in the United Kingdom where it seems to have replaced all earlier versions until the late twentieth century. In more important choices - selecting who has to ask that grumpy man down the road for their ball back - the one pointed to last drops out and the formula is repeated several times until only one is left. Eenie, meenie, minie mo." An alternate version: "Catch a negro by his toe/ If he hollers. ine mina mana mu meaning my sisters children in Sa Tomenese sounds very similar to the first line in the childrens rhyme. Whenever I hear the music now, the antique voice laughing about niggers and watermelon fills my head," Johnson wrote. Its not a coincidencetheres actually a pretty interesting explanation! Oops. A version from Yorkshire is: Eeeny, meeny, miney, mo. In other musical instances, this is not the case. Also, the word for 'one' in Welsh, Cornish, Irish and Breton is, respectively, 'un' (pronounced 'een'), 'ouyn', 'aon' and 'unan' - all of them sounding not unlike 'een' or 'eeny'. Raphel wrote about eeny meeny miny mo for The Paris Review. Eenie, meenie, minie mo." The words: "Ol' massa's gone and I'll let him rest/They say all things are for the best/ But I'll never forget 'til the day I die". Please enter a valid email and try again. Shaftel explains that we usually attach a disclaimer to Bach and explain how his art was a product of his time. Then shop him to the FBI. Definition of eenie meanie, miny, moe in the Idioms Dictionary. Some of these are obvious, others not so much! Many people conveniently forget parts of American history like the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and the Japanese internment camps that dotted the American West during WWII, but the truth is, Asian Americans have never had it easy in the States. The songs meant something at the time they were created, and they have a different, and important meaning to our lives now: remembering a past that we should never forget. A leader takes the counting role and, in the rhythm of the rhyme, points to each child in turn. Right. 144 Likes, 0 Comments - VW Barstool (@barstool_vw) on Instagram: "eenie meenie miney mo, your season is over, time to go home @barstool_elida" A Cornish version collected in 1882 runs: There are many theories about the origins of the rhyme. The meaning: The meaning of this rhyme is rooted in the slave trade. In comparison, "Oh! The scholars Iona and Peter Opie noted that many variants have been recorded, some with additional words such as " O. U. T. spells out, And out goes she, In the middle of the deep blue sea"[3] or "My mother told me/says to pick the very best one, and that is Y-O-U/you are [not] it";[3] while another source cites "Out goes Y-O-U. Furthermore, another theory describes how slave traders would pinch or pull a slave's toe before purchasing them (via An Injustice). Thanks so much for talking with us, Adrienne. I can see right through you. Catch an nigger by the toe. Its racist origin, however, still haunts the popular rhyme. Eenie meenie miney mo Catch a bad chick by her toe If she holla, if, if, if she holla let her go. Catch a tiger by the - it has rhythm built into it. I contacted Matthew Shaftel, a professor of Music Theory and Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies at Florida State for an expert opinion. Catch an nigger by the toe. [31] The uncensored word was restored for the Criterion Collection edition of the film. (one version of several; they also chant the US variation above), France: Versions of the rhyme have existed since before 1820. before turning into the melody that beckons ice cream seekers today. Is it my responsibility to foul the sweet taste of ice cream with their first taste of racism?". Lets take a look at some of them. [29], In the 1930s, animation producer Walter Lantz introduced the cartoon characters Meany, Miny, and Moe (later Meeny, Miney and Mo). As late as the 1980s, though, children werent catching a tiger by the toe, but a n-word.. Gotta jump down, turn around, Oh, Lordie, pick a bale a day." MARTIN: So how did it morph? 98 Likes, 9 Comments - Hannah Arbogast (@hannaharbogast) on Instagram: "eenie meenie miney mo" Eenie, meenie, minie mo. Both songs depict slaves and black people in an offensive manner, but the slight difference between the two can show theincremental changes in cultural representations. In the US, Bolton found no less than 8 different versions using the word n***** in the second line. . The Itis Ooza, vooza, voka, tooza, Something went wrong. While vaguely remembering a controversy surrounding the song, its sinister past left me at a loss of words when facing my children who were waiting for answers. And she says you can trace the rhyme's origin way back to when shepherds used it to count hundreds of years ago. Its possible children tried all sorts of nonsensical sounds and rhythms until they found one they liked: Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moeand its variants just happened to win out most of the time because it was pleasant to hear and say, like most nursery rhymes. T he American version became so prominent that it spread all over the world, and was still sung years later. Whenever I hear the music now, the antique voice laughing about niggers and watermelon fills my head," Johnson wrote. Related Chasing Games. Continue with Recommended Cookies. J.S. The sisters claim was rejected both in court and in an appeal. I mean, there've been several iterations of this since, over these many, many hundreds of years. This popular rhyme proves that, especially once you know children typically accompanied their singing by pressing the corners of their eyes up or down, then grabbing their knees. The song's melody, it turns out, was popularized in antebellum minstrel shows where the lyrics "parodied a free black man attempting to conform to white high society by dressing in fine clothes and using big words." There is a similarity between the words of the phrase and some of the numerals in pre-English Celtic and Cumbrian languages; for example, the oral tradition of the English coastal town of Yarmouth voices 'one, two, three, four' as 'ina, mina, tethera, methera'. Bach's St. John Passion, for instance, is set to anti-semitic text. These were, Bolton adds, the most favorite versions with American children and found in almost every state. Alternate Versions and Related Songs Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moe Song Variations Tweet Notes *Potty ***** Other Versions: Eeeny, meeny, miney, mo. "Never Stop The Music!"Thank you for watching!Hope you enjoyed it! Check it out: England: Eeny, meeny, mony, my, Barcelona, stony, sty, Eggs, butter, cheese, bread, Stick, stack, stone dead! This can be due to what The Paris Review refers to as Hobson-Jobson, when words that have the same sound are translated to fit the linguistics of the native speaker's language. The Dark Origins Of The Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Mo Nursery Rhyme. Bellow are the lyrics of one of the accepted modern versions of the "Eeny, meeny, miny, moe" rhyme and also an older version. which makes as little sense in Danish as it does in English but, despite it being entirely meaningless to them, the children in the area continued to sing it for centuries. There's a deliberate choice here to make the singer sound unsophisticated. Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moe is a rhyme for choosing who's "It" in a game or to choose who goes first. "Eeny, meeny, miny, mo" (sometimes written as "moe") has been chanted and beloved by children on playgrounds for centuries. And so, a simple game of tag turned into a research assignment with unsettling outcomes. (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Parental Alienation (PA) is the outcome of one parent (the alienating parent) using Parental Alienating Behaviours (PABs) to damage the relationship between their child and the child's other parent (the targeted parent). Why do so many fairy tales contain a hero named Jack? I love writing about what I love. Director Jokes Yanes Writers J. Bishop Jokes Yanes Stars Andres Dominguez Belkys Galvez David Scott Lago Ban them? There's a point where the slave (who is singing the song) laments for his master,but some scholars argue that there is a subtext of the slave rejoicing. When the reach of racism robs me of fond memories from my childhood, it feels intensely personal again. Doo-dah day!". Counting off has always been a way to group and identify things. It was written by Stephen Foster (Camptown Races, Swanee River,) in the 19th century, and was originally sung in a slave dialect. "Do I empower them with the history of our country, or encourage the youthful exuberance induced by the ice cream truck? The song portrays a slave who shows emotion and perhaps longing in the wake of his master's death. A new intersectional publication, geared towards voices, values, and identities! You know them by heart, but you can do these little, like, switches and flips and variations in them. In some German versions Eena, tena, mona, mi. Eenie, meenie, miney, mo Catch a bad chick by her toe If she holla If, if, if she holla, let her go She's indecisive, she can't decide She keeps on looking from left to right The real lyrics, according to The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes, are as follows: Eenie, meenie, miney moe Doo-dah!/ I go back home wid a pocket full of tin -- Oh! Our skimmable newsletter is delivered to your inbox each week, giving you 5 things you need to read and get smarter. Barcelona, stony, sty, There are considerable variations in the lyrics of the rhyme, including from the early twentieth century in the United States of America: During the Second World War, an AP dispatch from Atlanta, Georgia reported: "Atlanta children were heard reciting this wartime rhyme: A distinct version of the rhyme in the United Kingdom, collected in the 1950s & 1960s, is: There are many scenes in books, films, plays, cartoons and video games in which a variant of "Eeny meeny " is used by a character who is making a choice, either for serious or comic effect. Youthful exuberance induced by the - it has rhythm built into it mo Put... Personal again fairy tales contain a hero named Jack at Florida State for an expert opinion England Eeha... Mina mana mu meaning my sisters alternatives to eenie meenie miney mo in Sa Tomenese sounds very similar to the first line in rhythm... Sisters claimed the flight attendant was being racist is delivered to your inbox week. 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