![]() But there is likely no supporting evidence that this kid’s song has anything to do with slavery, per se. In more modern times as race and racism have entered into common conversations-in often very heightened ways-”Baa, Baa, Black Sheep” has taken on new meanings and connotations. Others more recently, however, contend that the rhyme is about (or at least lasted as a result of) the slave trade, particularly that of the southern United States. Black wool, how fun.īut author Katherine Elwes Thomas in The Real Personages of Mother Goose (1930) argues that the rhyme implies resentment at the heavy taxation on wool in earlier centuries, particularly the “Old Custom” wool tax of 1275, which lasted until the 1400s. So, to characterize one as black is, well, silly and memorable. Sheep are often considered to be white, though many are a brown hue. On the face of it, it’s a subversive little ditty. When looking for a meaning to the nursery rhyme, it can be hard to find solid evidence. The modern version, which has a simple rhyme and is easy to learn and recite by children, is sung like this, similar even to “ Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star“: The earliest printing of the English nursery rhyme comes to us from about 1744 and since then the words of “Baa, Baa, Black Sheep” have not changed dramatically at all. Here, we will dive into the meaning, origin, and lyrics of the subversive, even at times-controversial tune. When you’re a little kid singing in nursery school, there is one question that is more important than any other: Have YOU any wool? The idea, of course, comes from the traditional nursery rhyme, “Baa, Baa, Black Sheep,” which is one of the most beloved and fun kids’ songs to sing of the past century. ![]()
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