"The Bonny Hind" is

Child ballad The Child Ballads are 305 traditional ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants, anthologized by Francis James Child during the second half of the 19th century. Their lyrics and Child's studies of them were published as '' ...

number 50 (

Roud 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 ...

205).

Synopsis

A squire persuades a maiden to lie with him. Afterward, she asks his name, and he reveals that he is a lord's son. She calls him a liar: she is that lord's daughter. The horror-struck son reveals that he was long at sea. She stabs herself to death, and he buries her. He goes home and grieves for a "bonny hind" whatever his father can do to distract him.

Variants

Other ballads on this theme include "

Sheath and Knife "Sheath and Knife" (Roud 3960, Child 16) is a folk ballad. Synopsis A woman is pregnant with her brother's child. He takes her to the greenwood to have her child, but she dies (or he kills her at her request). He buries her and laments her deat ...

", "

The King's Dochter Lady Jean "The King's Dochter Lady Jean" is Child ballad No. 52. Synopsis The King's youngest Daughter, Jane, is sitting in her bower one day when she is overcome with the urge to gather nuts from the King's forest. She goes to the forest to do so when a fo ...

", and "

Lizie Wan "Lizie Wan" is Child ballad 51 and a murder ballad. It is also known as "Fair Lizzie". Synopsis The heroine (called variously Lizie, Rosie or Lucy) is pregnant with her brother's child. Her brother murders her. He tries to pass off the blood as ...

".Francis James Child, ''The English and Scottish Popular Ballads'', v 1, p 185, Dover Publications, New York 1965

References

Child Ballads Year of song unknown {{Folk-song-stub

Synopsis

Variants

See also

References