![someone saying eenie meenie miney mo someone saying eenie meenie miney mo](https://pics.me.me/thumb_eenie-meenie-miney-mo-i-wonder-where-my-hand-will-14919930.png)
Counting off has always been a way to group and identify things. It’s not hard to see why children would use a playful variation of (essentially) “one, two, three” to count down their options. Northern England, southern Scotland: yan, tan, tethera, methera, pimp In the 1700s up to the early 1900s, variations of the Score were used in the UK and the US by fishermen needing to take stock of the day’s catch, shepherds and farmers accounting for their animals, and women keeping track of rows in knitting. In the 1950s, a Dutch language historian proposed that the first line “eeny, meeny, miney, moe” comes from “anne manne miene mukke,” the first line of an ancient heathen priest song in which the chanter supplicates the high priestess for a divine sign about who should live or die.Ĭhildren on playgrounds today may very well be our best evidence of these theories: One need only glance at their panicked facial expressions to know that choosing who’s “it” is a life-or-death situation.Īncient British: Less fatalistic is the theory that “eeny, meeny, miney, moe” traces back to an old British counting system with a name that sounds like the results of an ancient soccer match: the Anglo-Cymric Score.
![someone saying eenie meenie miney mo someone saying eenie meenie miney mo](https://img.youtube.com/vi/pTY0I3AVofE/0.jpg)
Interestingly, Dutch scholars had the same idea. But, some folklorists propose it goes back much further, suggesting that counting-out rhymes like Eeny, Meeny originate from Ancient Celtic rituals of sorting out who would be chosen to die as a punishment or, perhaps, a sacrifice. so many origin theories it’s like woahĭivine pagan rituals: Versions of the rhyme have existed since before 1820. But, there are a few far-flung and fascinating stories that, when put together, form an interesting picture. So, do we have at least a rough idea of where this rhyme comes from? Not really. These counting-out rhymes are evidence of pre-internet virality: If enough kids like the nonsense, they’ll start repeating and remixing it! They inserted different nonsense words and sounds that were easier to pronounce in their different languages. What evidently happened is that a smorgasbord of both English-speaking and multilingual kids on playgrounds around the world independently picked up variations of Eeny, Meeny and made their own versions. But, it gets a little complicated because parts of the rhyme probably come from different places and times. Is it originally American? British? Dutch? Some theories outlined below take a stab at the American chant’s birthplace. There isn’t a clearcut explanation as to how these global variations came about and to provide one would require knowing definitively where Eeny, Meeny comes from (which is, alas, impossible). Germany: Ene, tene, mone, mei,Pastor, lone, bone, strei, (one version of several they also chant the US variation above):įrance: Une, mine, mane, mo,Une, fine, fane, foĭenmark: Ene, mene, ming, mang,Kling klang,
![someone saying eenie meenie miney mo someone saying eenie meenie miney mo](https://i.quotev.com/img/q/u/20/2/18/sf65tzcc3i.jpg)
Check it out:Įngland: Eeny, meeeny, mony, my,Barcelona, stony, sty, Despite language differences, the first lines of each version are remarkably alike. And, this particular rhyme isn’t only found in the US kids in England, France, Denmark, Germany, and Zimbabwe all make decisions using similar-sounding rhymes. the chanter finally gets right down to “it.” Eeny, Meeny around the worldĬounting-out rhymes, like this one, were popular decision-making tools for children years ago and are still used today. The group of prospective chasers and fetchers dwindles with each repetition of the incantation until. My mama told me to pick this one (right over here) and you are not itīright, anxious eyes watch the finger point to each kid in rhythm with the words and syllables of the chant. Or, to keep everyone in heart-pounding suspense:
![someone saying eenie meenie miney mo someone saying eenie meenie miney mo](https://64.media.tumblr.com/e31d332d3ee863a50fd664d4b2f36f5b/tumblr_onztq9jynf1tdhimpo1_400.gif)
The kid chanting and finger-pointing-probably the most popular rascal in the group-might decide to add something like: It goes something like this:Įeny, meeny, miney, moe,Catch a tiger by the toe, The children don’t suddenly slip into chaos trying to figure “it” out-they possess a rhythmic selection-procedure, parts of which have probably been around in some form for centuries. In both scenarios, who is it? Which of the rosy-faced children will be designated the chaser in Tag, or the (gulp) fetcher of the kickball from haunted Hunchguts’ thorn bush? Or, maybe they’re in the middle of a kickball game and the ball’s flown over into nasty Mr. A group of kids get together to play a game of Tag.