Here is a representative modern version of the lyrics:
What are little boys made of? What are little boys made of? Snips, snails And puppy-dogs' tails That's what little boys are made of
What are little girls made of? What are little girls made of? Sugar and spice And everything nice [or "all things nice"] That's what little girls are made of[1]
The rhyme appears in many variant forms. For example, other versions may describe boys as being made of "snaps", "frogs",[2][3] "snakes",[4] or "slugs",[5] rather than "snips" as above.
Originsedit
In the earliest known versions, the first ingredient for boys is either "snips" or "snigs",[6] the latter being a Cumbrian dialect word for a small eel.
The rhyme sometimes appears as part of a larger work called What Folks Are Made Of or What All the World Is Made Of. Other stanzas describe what babies, young men, young women, sailors, soldiers, nurses, fathers, mothers, old men, old women, and all folks are made of. According to Iona and Peter Opie, this first appears in a manuscript by the English poet Robert Southey (1774–1843), who added the stanzas other than the two below.[1] Though it is not mentioned elsewhere in his works or papers, it is generally agreed to be by him.[7]
The relevant section in the version attributed to Southey was:
What are little boys made of What are little boys made of Snips & snails & puppy dogs tails And such are little boys made of.
What are little girls made of What are little girls made of Sugar & spice & all things nice[1] And such are little girls made of.
^ abcOpie, P.; Opie, I. (1997). The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes (2nd ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 100–101.
^"Frankenstein's Chemistry". Punch. 61: 41. 29 July 1871. Retrieved 27 March 2010.
^Daubeny, Giles A. (November 1901). "A Snail Hunter; Cockchafers". Nature Notes: The Selborne Society's Magazine. 12: 215. Retrieved 27 March 2010.
^Wintemberg, W. J.; Wintemberg, Katherine H. (January–March 1918). "Folk-Lore from Grey County, Ontario". Journal of American Folk-Lore. 31 (119): 83–124. doi:10.2307/534520. JSTOR 534520. Retrieved 27 March 2010.
^Griffin, Gerald (1827). Suil Dhuv, the Coiner. Saunders and Otley. p. 449 of the 1842 edition.
^Dance, Charles (1837). The Bengal Tiger: A Farce.
^Delamar, Gloria T. (2000). Mother Goose: From Nursery to Literature. IUniverse. pp. 175–7. ISBN0-595-18577-0.
what, little, boys, made, nursery, rhyme, dating, from, early, 19th, century, roud, folk, song, index, number, natural, historynursery, rhymepublishedc, 1820songwriter, robert, southeytune, piano, source, source, source, filehelp, author, rhyme, uncertain, eng. What Are Little Boys Made Of is a nursery rhyme dating from the early 19th century It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 821 What Are Little Boys Made Of Natural HistoryNursery rhymePublishedc 1820Songwriter s Robert SoutheyTune on piano source source source filehelp The author of the rhyme is uncertain but may be English poet Robert Southey 1774 1843 Contents 1 Lyrics 2 Origins 3 See also 4 ReferencesLyrics editHere is a representative modern version of the lyrics What are little boys made of What are little boys made of Snips snails And puppy dogs tails That s what little boys are made of What are little girls made of What are little girls made of Sugar and spice And everything nice or all things nice That s what little girls are made of 1 The rhyme appears in many variant forms For example other versions may describe boys as being made of snaps frogs 2 3 snakes 4 or slugs 5 rather than snips as above Origins editIn the earliest known versions the first ingredient for boys is either snips or snigs 6 the latter being a Cumbrian dialect word for a small eel The rhyme sometimes appears as part of a larger work called What Folks Are Made Of or What All the World Is Made Of Other stanzas describe what babies young men young women sailors soldiers nurses fathers mothers old men old women and all folks are made of According to Iona and Peter Opie this first appears in a manuscript by the English poet Robert Southey 1774 1843 who added the stanzas other than the two below 1 Though it is not mentioned elsewhere in his works or papers it is generally agreed to be by him 7 The relevant section in the version attributed to Southey was What are little boys made of What are little boys made of Snips amp snails amp puppy dogs tails And such are little boys made of What are little girls made of What are little girls made of Sugar amp spice amp all things nice 1 And such are little girls made of See also editList of folk songs by Roud number The Powerpuff Girls PeanutsReferences edit a b c Opie P Opie I 1997 The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes 2nd ed Oxford Oxford University Press pp 100 101 Frankenstein s Chemistry Punch 61 41 29 July 1871 Retrieved 27 March 2010 Daubeny Giles A November 1901 A Snail Hunter Cockchafers Nature Notes The Selborne Society s Magazine 12 215 Retrieved 27 March 2010 Wintemberg W J Wintemberg Katherine H January March 1918 Folk Lore from Grey County Ontario Journal of American Folk Lore 31 119 83 124 doi 10 2307 534520 JSTOR 534520 Retrieved 27 March 2010 Griffin Gerald 1827 Suil Dhuv the Coiner Saunders and Otley p 449 of the 1842 edition Dance Charles 1837 The Bengal Tiger A Farce Delamar Gloria T 2000 Mother Goose From Nursery to Literature IUniverse pp 175 7 ISBN 0 595 18577 0 Portal nbsp Children s literature Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title What Are Little Boys Made Of 3F amp oldid 1216774244, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
