"Jack Sprat" (or "Jack Spratt") is an
English language
English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...
nursery rhyme
A nursery rhyme is a traditional poem or song for children in Britain and many other countries, but usage of the term dates only from the late 18th/early 19th century. The term Mother Goose rhymes is interchangeable with nursery rhymes.
From t ...
. It has a
Roud Folk Song Index
The Roud Folk Song Index is a database of around 250,000 references to nearly 25,000 songs collected from oral tradition in the English language from all over the world. It is compiled by Steve Roud (born 1949), a former librarian in the London ...
number of 19479.
Rhyme
The most common modern version of the rhyme is:
Origins
The name "Jack Sprat" was used of people of small stature in the 16th century.
[ This rhyme was an English ]proverb
A proverb (from la, proverbium) is a simple and insightful, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are often metaphorical and use formulaic speech, formulaic language. A proverbial phra ...
from at least the mid-17th century.[ It appeared in John Clarke's collection of sayings in 1639 in the form:][
As with many nursery rhymes, "Jack Sprat" may have originated as a satire on a public figure: history writer Linda Alchin suggests that Jack was King Charles I, who was left "lean" when parliament denied him taxation, but with his queen ]Henrietta Maria
Henrietta Maria (french: link=no, Henriette Marie; 25 November 1609 – 10 September 1669) was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland from her marriage to King Charles I on 13 June 1625 until Charles was executed on 30 January 1649. She wa ...
he was free to "lick the platter clean" after he dissolved parliament—Charles was a notably short man. An alternative explanation comes from the popular Robin Hood
Robin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is depic ...
legend, applying it to the disliked King John and his greedy queen Isabella
Isabella may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Isabella (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Isabella (surname), including a list of people
Places
United States
* Isabella, Alabama, an unincorpor ...
.
The saying entered the canon of English nursery rhymes when it was printed in ''Mother Goose's Melody
The figure of Mother Goose is the imaginary author of a collection of French fairy tales and later of English nursery rhymes. As a character, she appeared in a song, the first stanza of which often functions now as a nursery rhyme. This, howeve ...
'' around 1765, but it may have been adopted for use with children much earlier.[
]
Notes
{{reflist
Jack tales
English folk songs
English children's songs
Traditional children's songs
Songs about fictional male characters
English nursery rhymes