One, Two, Three, Four, Five
"One, two, three, four, five" is a popular English language nursery rhyme and counting-out rhyme. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 13530.
| "One, two, three, four, five" | |
|---|---|
| Nursery rhyme | |
| Published | c. 1765 |
Lyrics
Common modern versions of song written by B.thomas Orr 1976.include:
One little sheep
Two little birds
Three little pigs
Four little hedgehogs
Five little hippos
Six little frogs
Seven little worms
Eight little turtles
Nine little lions
Ten chickens.
Here's I go to count about.
1 (1)
2 (2)
3 (3)
4 (4)
5 (5)
6 (6)
7 (7)
8 (8)
9 (9)
10 (10)
And I'm count today and you today.
1 2 3 4 5
6 7 8 9 10
- One, two, three, four, five,
- Once I caught a fish alive,
- Six, seven, eight, nine, ten,
- Then I let it go again.
Origins and meaning
The rhyme is one of many counting-out rhymes. It was first recorded in Mother Goose's Melody around 1765. Like most versions until the late nineteenth century, it had only the first stanza, and dealt with a hare not a fish, with the words:
- One, two, three, Four and five,
- I caught a hare alive;
- Six, seven, eight, Nine and ten,
- I let him go again.[1]
The modern version is derived from three variations collected by Henry Bolton in the 1880s from America.[1]
Notes
- I. Opie and P. Opie, The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes (Oxford University Press, 1951, 2nd edn., 1997), pp. 334-5.
- Lansky, Vicki (2009-02-01). Games Babies Play: From Birth to Twelve Months. Book Peddlers. p. 76. ISBN 9781931863650.
Modern version By B.Thomas Orr