"Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" is an English

lullaby A lullaby (), or a cradle song, is a soothing song or piece of music that is usually played for (or sung to) children (for adults see music and sleep). The purposes of lullabies vary. In some societies, they are used to pass down cultural knowl ...

. The lyrics are from an early-19th-century English poem written by Jane Taylor, "The Star". The poem, which is in

couplet In poetry, a couplet ( ) or distich ( ) is a pair of successive lines that rhyme and have the same metre. A couplet may be formal (closed) or run-on (open). In a formal (closed) couplet, each of the two lines is end-stopped, implying that there ...

form, was first published in 1806 in '' Rhymes for the Nursery'', a collection of poems by Taylor and her sister

Ann Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie and Ana. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in ...

. It is now sung to the tune of the French melody "

Ah! vous dirai-je, maman "" (, English: Oh! Shall I tell you, Mama) is a popular children's song in France. Since its composition in the 18th century, the melody has been applied to numerous lyrics in multiple languages – the English-language song "Twinkle, Twinkle, Lit ...

", which was first published in 1761 and later arranged by several composers, including

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

with

Twelve Variations on "Ah vous dirai-je, Maman" Twelve Variations on "Ah vous dirai-je, Maman", K. 265/300e, is a piano composition by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, composed when he was around 25 years old (1781 or 1782). This piece consists of twelve variations on the French folk song "Ah! v ...

. The English lyrics have five

stanza In poetry, a stanza (; from Italian ''stanza'', ; ) is a group of lines within a poem, usually set off from others by a blank line or indentation. Stanzas can have regular rhyme and metrical schemes, but they are not required to have either. ...

s, although only the first is widely known. Where Jane Taylor was when she wrote the lyric is contested, with the localities of

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in northeastern Essex, England. It is the second-largest settlement in the county, with a population of 130,245 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census. The demonym is ''Colcestrian''. Colchester occupies the ...

and

Chipping Ongar Chipping Ongar () is a market town and former civil parish, now in the parish of Ongar, in the Epping Forest District of the county of Essex, England. It is located east of Epping, southeast of Harlow and northwest of Brentwood. In 2020 ...

each asserting a claim. However, Ann Taylor writes (in ''The Autobiography and Other Memorials of Mrs. Gilbert'') that the first time Jane ever saw the village of Ongar was in 1810, and the poem had been published in 1806. "In the summer of 1810, Jane, when visiting London, had enjoyed a pic-nic excursion in Epping Forest, and observed on a sign post at one of the turnings, 'To Ongar.' It was the first time she had seen the name."

Lyrics

The English lyrics were written as a poem by Jane Taylor (1783–1824)M. Cryer, ''Love Me Tender: The Stories Behind the World's Best-loved Songs'' (Frances Lincoln, 2009), pp. 83–5. and published with the title "The Star" in ''Rhymes for the Nursery'' by Jane and her sister Ann Taylor (1782–1866) in London in 1806: I. Opie and P. Opie, ''The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes'' (Oxford University Press, 1951, 2nd edn., 1997), pp. 397–8
First publication of 'Twinkle, twinkle, little star'
The lyrics were first published with the tune "Ah! vous dirai-je, maman" in ''The Singing Master: First Class Tune Book'' in 1838. When sung, the first two lines of the entire poem are repeated as a

refrain A refrain (from Vulgar Latin ''refringere'', "to repeat", and later from Old French ''refraindre'') is the Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeated in poetry or in music">poetry.html" ;"title="Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeat ...

after each

Melody

"Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" is sung to the French melody "

". The melody is used in other nursery rhymes, including

the ABC Song "The ABC Song" is the best-known song used to recite the English alphabet in alphabetical order. It is commonly used to teach the alphabet to children in English-speaking countries. "The ABC Song" was first copyrighted in 1835 by Boston music ...

and "

Baa, Baa, Black Sheep "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep" is an English nursery rhyme, the earliest printed version of which dates from around 1744. The words have barely changed in two and a half centuries. It is sung to a variant of the 18th-century French melody "''Ah! vous di ...

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Other versions

Song-stories-for-the-kindergarten 1896 twinkle-twinkle-little-star sheet-music

Additional variations exist such as 1. From the 1840 novel

Poor Jack ''Poor Jack'' is a novel by the English author Frederick Marryat, published in 1840. Plot It tells the story of Thomas Saunders, a sailor's son and neglected street urchin struggling to survive in Greenwich, London in the early 19th century. ...

(chapter 4), by

Frederick Marryat Captain Frederick Marryat (10 July 1792 – 9 August 1848) was a Royal Navy officer and novelist. He is noted today as an early pioneer of nautical fiction, particularly for his semi-autobiographical novel '' Mr Midshipman Easy'' (1836). He is ...

. 2. From 1896 in ''Song Stories for the Kindergarten'' by

Mildred J. Hill Mildred Jane Hill (June 27, 1859 – June 5, 1916) was an American songwriter and musicologist, who composed the melody for "Good Morning to All", later used as the melody for " Happy Birthday to You". Biography Mildred Jane Hill, born in Louis ...

. A

parody A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satire, satirical or irony, ironic imitation. Often its subject is an Originality, original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, e ...

of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" titled "

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Bat "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Bat" is a verse recited by the Mad Hatter in chapter seven of Lewis Carroll's 1865 novel ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''. It is a parody of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Text Context The Hatter is interrupted ...

" is recited by the

Mad Hatter The Hatter (called Hatta in ''Through the Looking-Glass'') is a fictional character in Lewis Carroll's 1865 book ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' and its 1871 sequel ''Through the Looking-Glass''. He is often referred to as The Mad Hatter ...

in chapter seven of

Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet, mathematician, photographer and reluctant Anglicanism, Anglican deacon. His most notable works are ''Alice ...

's ''

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...

''. A version using synonyms from ''

Roget's Thesaurus ''Roget's Thesaurus'' is a widely used English-language thesaurus, created in 1805 by Peter Mark Roget (1779–1869), British physician, natural theologian and lexicographer. History It was released to the public on 29 April 1852. Roget was ...

'' exists. The opening lyrics are also used to begin the traditional murder ballad "

Duncan and Brady "Duncan and Brady" (Roud 4177), also known as "Been on the Job Too Long", "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star", or simply "Brady", is a traditional murder ballad about the shooting of a policeman, Brady, by a bartender, Duncan. The song's lyrics stemm ...

." The song can also be played as a

singing game A singing game is an activity based on a particular verse or rhyme, usually associated with a set of actions and movements. As a collection, they have been studied by folklorists, ethnologists, and psychologists and are seen as important part o ...

References

External links

* * *
Audio segment
from

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

Woman's Hour ''Woman's Hour'' is a radio magazine programme broadcast in the United Kingdom on the BBC Light Programme, BBC Radio 2, and later BBC Radio 4. It has been on the air since 1946. History The first BBC programme for women was the programme cal ...

'' {{Authority control Articles containing video clips English children's songs English folk songs Traditional children's songs Lullabies English nursery rhymes 1806 poems 1838 songs Songs based on poems Fiction about stars

Lyrics

Melody

Other versions

See also

References

External links