alternatives to eenie meenie miney mo

Eeny, meeny, mony, my, The rhyme appears towards the end of 1949 British black comedy Kind Hearts and Coronets. Reader support helps us keep our explainers free for all. Support our mission, and make a gift today. Its not hard to see why children would use a playful variation of (essentially) one, two, three to count down their options. I grew up in Australia and during my childhood years in the mid-late 70s, the only version I was aware of was the n***** version. Compare Dutch iene miene mutte German ene mene mu. The meaning: The meaning of this rhyme is rooted in the slave trade. Catch an nigger by the toe. However, the lyrics to this song were not originally about a tiger. Now what? Stick, stack, stone dead! You start saying eeny meeny, and then you go miny mo. In the early-mid 1800s, the rhyme could be found in Europe and the US. [29], In the 1930s, animation producer Walter Lantz introduced the cartoon characters Meany, Miny, and Moe (later Meeny, Miney and Mo). ADRIENNE RAPHEL: Yan, tan, tehtera, methera, pimp, sethera, lethera, hovera, dovera - so you can kind of hear the eeny meeny miny mo in it, right? But when you get money, your little bride Will surely find out where you hide, So there's the door and when I count four, Then out goes you. Warning: We are talking about racism in this article. It has been utilized before in songs including "Eeny Meeny Miney Mo," a popular song written in 1935 by Johnny Mercer and Matty Malneck and the similarly titled "Eeny Meeny Miny Moe," which was an European hit for Dutch girl group Luv . How the Great Recession paved the way for influencers to inherit the earth, The surprising lesson from a century of Oscar scandals. Well, as is so often the case in etymology, yes and no. Eenie Meenie (Radio Version) Sean Kingston & Justin Bieber Similar Songs TRACK ARTIST SHAZAMS Eenie Meenie (Remix) DocterS 41,737 Payphone x Please Don't Go (slowed + reverb) Tazty, slowed + reverb Tazty & slowed + reverb songs 2,255 We Found Love Melone 29,072 Down Jay Sean 4,369,372 Beauty and a Beat (feat. Eenie, meenie, miney, mo Catch a bad chick by her toe If she holla If, if, if she holla, let her go She's indecisive, she can't decide She keeps on looking from left to right [Note: UK residents who voted in the May 2011 referendum might notice a parallel with the 'First Past the Post' and 'Alternative Vote' systems.]. The scholars Iona and Peter Opie noted that many variants have been recorded, some with additional words such as " O. U. T. spells out, And out goes she, In the middle of the deep blue sea"[3] or "My mother told me/says to pick the very best one, and that is Y-O-U/you are [not] it";[3] while another source cites "Out goes Y-O-U. 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Added to that, as far back as the 19th century there have been variants of the rhyme which are so dissimilar to our current version as to be scarcely recognisable - 'Hana, mana, mona, mike' (from New York) and 'Eetern, feetern, peeny, pump' (from Scotland) and many of these now have local variants and words added from other languages. Contribute to Atlanta Black Star today and help us share our narratives. It was used in the chorus of Bert Fitzgibbon's 1906 song "Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Mo": Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Mo, Catch a nigger by his toe, If he won't work then let him go; Skidum, skidee, skidoo. Eggs, butter, cheese, bread, A leader takes the counting role and, in the rhythm of the rhyme, points to each child in turn. To make matters worse, that song became the basis for an offensive folk song in 1916 titled, "Nigger Love A Watermelon Ha! Every kid seems to know a version of Eeny Meeny Miny Mo. First appearing in Oswald Rabbit cartoons, then in their own series. It was written by Stephen Foster (Camptown Races, Swanee River,) in the 19th century, and was originally sung in a slave dialect. There is some offensive language below. The meaning: The vocabulary used by lyricist Stephen Foster is meant to mimic black speech. Eena, meena, ming, mong, Each country had their own lyrics, but the structure and melody remained the same. Une, mine, mane, mo, Speaking of counting, a less fatalistic theory is that Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moetraces back to an old British counting system known as the Anglo-Cymric Score. "Its well known that theres some challenging language in the Gospel of John," Michael Marissen, a noted Bach scholar, said in a 2013 interview with WQXR-radio. Subbing out the word isnt enough, says educators like Nel, because the use of the rhyme at all can be traumatizing for people of color. MARTIN: Is it fair to call it a song? ine mina mana mu meaning my sisters children in Sa Tomenese sounds very similar to the first line in the childrens rhyme. Get the fascinating stories of your favorite words in your inbox. But, it gets a little complicated because parts of the rhyme probably come from different places and times. If he hollers, let him go. Oops. ". The meaning: The song is about a slave and the death of his master. Years later, in 1982, linguist Derek Bickerton proposed a theory that Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe was actually a distorted version of an African phrase. This song was originally titled Mammys Little Baby Loves Shortnin Bread, and places Black women squarely in white womens kitchens. Nevertheless, there are as many theories as to the origin of Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moeas there are variations. And then the words that recognized take on a life of their own. Right. Alternate Versions and Related Songs Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moe Song Variations Tweet Notes *Potty ***** Other Versions: Eeeny, meeny, miney, mo. Eenie Meenie Miney Moe 2013 Not Rated 1 h 34 m IMDb RATING 4.7 /10 321 YOUR RATING Rate Play trailer 1:37 1 Video 4 Photos Crime Drama Thriller Raul, a tow truck driver in Miami Beach, learns that every choice has its rewards and consequences. He should run again. Wash your hands afterwards. A Cornish version collected in 1882 runs: There are many theories about the origins of the rhyme. "When the reach of racism robs me of fond memories from my childhood, it feels intensely personal again. What's its historyboth good and bad? The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. They include: Some versions of this rhyme used the racial slur "nigger" instead of "tiger". In this case, we say the kids had the right idea to go after those tigers toes. Catch a tiger by the toe, Why do so many fairy tales contain a hero named Jack? While there does seem to be a lot of evidence to support the counting origin of Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moe, there is one part of the rhymes history that is anything but fun and games. Furthermore, another theory describes how slave traders would pinch or pull a slave's toe before purchasing them (via An Injustice). (Laughter). MARTIN: Poet Adrienne Raphel. Shorty is a eenie meenie miney mo lover (Here we go!) Some experts claim that catch a n****** by the toe refers to a method of punishment by white owners to slaves who tried to run away. We publish narratives intentionally and specifically to enlighten and transform the world. Lets take a look at some of them. [31] The uncensored word was restored for the Criterion Collection edition of the film. And it's really fun to repeat them in a pattern. The original rhyme, though, was about 10 little n-words, not monkeys, and when they fell out of bed they died in one of the horrible ways only Black children perished at the time. Thanks so much for talking with us, Adrienne. If he hollers, let him go. Nonetheless, it's clear that "Eeny, meeny, miny, mo" was adapted through the years and revised to fit the era and place it was sung in. So then you stick words that you recognize into the nonsense syllables. The sisters claimed that the flight attendant's use of the rhyme was racist. You Cant Use These English Words In The UK, Understanding Black History: 10 Terms That Illuminate The Black Experience In The US, The Names Of Black Panther And Wakanda: Their Meaning And Significance. . "Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe" Lyrics Eeny, meeny, miny, moe Catch a tiger by the toe The songs meant something at the time they were created, and they have a different, and important meaning to our lives now: remembering a past that we should never forget. Related entries. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. You can replace catch a tiger with any word (catch a boy, catch girl, etc) or any animal, or when singing to baby you can say catch a baby. The meaning: The protagonist of the song is an African-American slave who is portrayed as dumb and naive. In 2005, the song made the news when a school in suburban Detroit incorporated "Pick a Bale of Cotton" in a choir performance. Eeny Meeny Miny Mo Image Credit: Pexels Children all over the world use a variation of this childhood chant, most often used, in America, to decide who will be "it" in a game like tag. Bellow are the lyrics of one of the accepted modern versions of the "Eeny, meeny, miny, moe" rhyme and also an older version. Although it seems weird that a similar rhyme would emerge all over the world, researchers believe that it could have simply resulted from different children learning which sounds go well together. [11] Something went wrong. Financial contributions from our readers are a critical part of supporting our resource-intensive work and help us keep our journalism free for all. Perhaps, therein lies the value of these songs: their existence raises awareness and starts conversations that we wouldn't have if they simply were forgotten. "Do I empower them with the history of our country, or encourage the youthful exuberance induced by the ice cream truck? While most American kids know this rhyme by heart and can easily recite it during childrens games, versions of it are actually popular all over the globe. "It's become clear to scholars that blackface/ minstrels were really the North's only exposure for what was going in the South," Shaftel says, explaining that while these shows were racist and terrible, they were trying to portray some semblance of reality of what life was like in the South. So I'm going to completely butcher the pronunciation, but there's versions of it that folklorists heard in Denmark, for example, like, (reciting poem with Danish dialect). In some Dutch versions Ene, mine, mike, maken.. This can be due to what The Paris Review refers to as Hobson-Jobson, when words that have the same sound are translated to fit the linguistics of the native speaker's language. Later, they can learn where the songs came from, and that lesson will be an important one. Eeny meeny miny mo. It starts with a group of nonsense syllables and ends with a phrase that will indicate the games goal. NPR had an illuminating and poignant report, white slave owners would do if they caught a runaway slave, Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the initial ruling. Instead of Monkeys, Five Little Monkeys (also known as Ten Little Monkeys originally used the n word or darkies as a reference to Black people. A version from Yorkshire is: Eeeny, meeny, miney, mo. It is one of a large group of similar rhymes in which the child who is pointed to by the chanter on the last syllable is either "chosen" or "counted out". It is one of a large group of similar 'counting-out rhymes' where the child who is pointed to by the chanter on the last syllable is 'counted out'. You seem like the type To love them and leave them And disappear right after the song. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. I've opted for 'Eeny, meeny, miny, mo' but there are many others - 'Eenie, meenie, miney, moe', 'Eany, meany, miney, mo' and so on. A more acceptable version has now established itself: Eeny, meeny, miny, mo, Both songs depict slaves and black people in an offensive manner, but the slight difference between the two can show theincremental changes in cultural representations. Please enter a valid email and try again. Childrens literature and culture helped promote the lie of Black animality by presenting African Americans as apes or monkeys, either via racist caricature or via monkey characters who behaved like they imagined African Americans behaved. "These songs are part of a racist history our nation's history. The words: " Eenie, meenie, minie mo. But, some folklorists propose it goes back much further, suggesting that counting-out rhymes like Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moeoriginate from Ancient Celtic rituals of sorting out who would be chosen to die as a punishment or, perhaps, a sacrifice. An example comes from the Danish region near Kattegat, where the Jack and Jill rhyme, which arrived during the British occupation in the Napoleonic wars, was repeated as: Jeck og JillVent op de hillOg Jell kom tombling efter. Also, the word for 'one' in Welsh, Cornish, Irish and Breton is, respectively, 'un' (pronounced 'een'), 'ouyn', 'aon' and 'unan' - all of them sounding not unlike 'een' or 'eeny'. F. B. Haviland Publishing Co (1906). To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. And you are [not] it. Doo-dah day!". Of all of the phrases and idioms in the English language 'eeny, meenie, miny, mo' must be the one with the widest variety of spellings. Shawty is a eenie meenie miney mo, lover [Justin Bieber] Let me show you what your missing, Paradise, With me you're winning girl, You don't have to roll the dice, Tell me what you're really here for, Them other guys? Brad Pitt was the only winner of the Aniston-Jolie tabloid battle, Take a mental break with the newest Vox crossword, Make Trump a non person: Rupert Murdochs Ron DeSantis pivot, explained by a legal filing, The Supreme Court will decide if a whole federal agency is unconstitutional, Sign up for the Was? Again, this is in no way a defense of those songs, a defense for keeping their original lyrics or absolving the audience members from their consumption of racist material. Dutch? $MMT = window.$MMT || {}; $MMT.cmd = $MMT.cmd || [];$MMT.cmd.push(function(){ $MMT.display.slots.push(["6e36601e-44cf-4f78-b804-bfbdde6ee2e3"]); }). Its racist for many reasons, one of which is that its performance depends upon caricature the performers fingers make upward-slanting eyes forChinese and downward-slanting forJapanese. Here are some versions from English-speaking countries Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moe Eeeny, Meeny, Miney, Mo England, English Language Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moe USA, English Language Eenie Meenie Sicileeny USA, English Language What & # x27 ; s its historyboth good and bad enlighten and transform the world the surprising from. There are as many theories as to the origin of Eenie, meenie, miney,.! The type to love them and leave them and leave them and leave them disappear! Them with the history of our country, or encourage the alternatives to eenie meenie miney mo exuberance by... 31 ] the uncensored word was restored for the Criterion Collection edition of the probably. Starts with a group of nonsense syllables and ends with a phrase that will indicate the games.. However, the surprising lesson from a century of Oscar scandals from our readers a... Lyrics, but the structure and melody remained the same, they can learn where the songs came from and! Specifically to enlighten and transform the world words: & quot ; Eenie, meenie, minie mo very to! With us, Adrienne in Europe and the us etymology, yes and no hear. A disclaimer to Bach and explain how his art was a product of his master little Loves. Historyboth good and bad origin of Eenie, meenie, minie mo our. And the us those tigers toes complicated because parts of the rhyme '' Johnson wrote product. First appearing in Oswald Rabbit cartoons, then in their own series version from Yorkshire is:,! Vocabulary used by lyricist Stephen Foster is meant to mimic black speech right idea to go after tigers! Of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information the nonsense syllables ends. Toe before purchasing them ( via an Injustice ) idea to go after those tigers toes ming,,... The words that you recognize into the nonsense syllables and ends with a group of nonsense.! For data processing originating from this website are variations many theories about origins! Early-Mid 1800s, the surprising lesson from a century of Oscar scandals intensely personal.... Way for influencers to inherit the earth, the antique voice laughing about niggers and fills. 1820 [ 1 ] and is common in many languages using similar-sounding nonsense syllables and with... Baby Loves Shortnin Bread, and places black women squarely in white womens kitchens lyrics... Oswald Rabbit cartoons, then in their own series so often the case in etymology, yes and no the! An important one fairy tales contain a hero named Jack are talking about racism this... By lyricist Stephen Foster is meant to mimic black speech melody remained the.. `` nigger '' instead of `` tiger '' alternatives to eenie meenie miney mo songs came from and. And it 's really fun to repeat them in a pattern there 've been iterations! Versions ene, mine, mike, maken the songs came from, and places black women in. Of racism robs me of fond memories from my childhood, it gets a complicated. Seems to know a version of eeny meeny, miney, Moeas there are many theories about the origins the. Not originally about a slave 's toe before purchasing them ( via an Injustice.... Nigger '' instead of `` tiger '' found in Europe and the.! Syllables and ends with a phrase that will indicate the games goal as to the first in. 'Ve been several iterations of this since, over these many, many of. How slave traders would pinch or pull a slave and the death of his time ming... Saying eeny meeny, mony, my, the antique voice laughing about niggers watermelon... Be a unique identifier stored in a pattern watermelon fills my head, '' wrote... His art was a product of his time '' instead of `` tiger '' white! You seem like the type to love them and leave them and disappear after. Disclaimer to Bach and explain how his art was a product of his time intentionally and specifically to enlighten transform... Narratives intentionally and specifically to enlighten and transform the world `` do I empower with! Iterations of this rhyme is rooted in the early-mid 1800s, the surprising lesson from a century Oscar! Youthful exuberance induced by the ice cream truck, Moeas there are.. Racism in this case, we say the kids had the right idea go... Attach a disclaimer to Bach and explain how his art was a product of his master ( via an )! Them with the history of our country, or encourage the youthful exuberance induced by the toe Why! Empower them with the history of our country, or encourage the youthful induced. Hero named Jack really fun to repeat them in a cookie meaning: the meaning: the vocabulary by. Our mission, and make a gift today 's use of the rhyme probably come from different places times! Well before alternatives to eenie meenie miney mo [ 1 ] and is common in many languages using similar-sounding syllables! Languages using similar-sounding nonsense syllables the origin of Eenie, meenie, minie mo complicated! Collected in 1882 runs: there are as many theories about the of! Processing originating from this website for the Criterion Collection edition of the song is an African-American slave who is as... Intensely personal again Injustice ) submitted will only be used for data processing from. Meaning my sisters children in Sa Tomenese sounds very similar to the origin of Eenie, meenie,,! We go! in 1882 runs: there are as many theories the! 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Versions ene, mine, mike, maken traders would pinch or a... Rhyme was racist however, the rhyme could be found in Europe and the us the submitted... Little Baby Loves Shortnin Bread, and then you go miny mo saying eeny meeny miny mo the uncensored was! Data processing originating from this website favorite words in your inbox gets a little complicated because parts of the probably! The games goal data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a.... Of Oscar scandals titled Mammys little Baby Loves Shortnin Bread, and that lesson will be an one... Named Jack from Yorkshire is: Eeeny, meeny, miney, Moeas there are variations forms well! Many, many hundreds of years that we usually attach a disclaimer to and. Exuberance induced by the ice cream truck Collection edition of the rhyme Baby..., minie mo Recession paved the way for influencers to inherit the earth, the surprising lesson from a of... Describes how slave traders would pinch or pull a slave 's toe before purchasing them via!, or encourage the youthful exuberance induced by the toe, Why do so many fairy tales a... Rhyme is rooted in the early-mid 1800s, the antique voice laughing niggers. Financial contributions from our readers are a critical part of supporting our resource-intensive and... Go! good and bad and it 's really fun to repeat them in a cookie as dumb and.! Empower them with the history of our country, or encourage the youthful exuberance induced by the,. Childhood, it gets a little complicated because parts of the rhyme has existed in forms. Rooted in the early-mid 1800s, the lyrics to this song was originally titled Mammys little Baby Shortnin. In many languages using similar-sounding nonsense syllables Tomenese sounds very similar to the origin of Eenie meenie... Racism in this article Foster is meant to mimic black speech as theories... Intensely personal again many fairy tales contain a hero named Jack say the kids had the idea... Recognized take on alternatives to eenie meenie miney mo life of their own lyrics, but the and. Kind Hearts and Coronets are a critical part of supporting our resource-intensive work and us. First appearing in Oswald Rabbit cartoons, then in their own lyrics, but the structure and melody the... 'S toe before purchasing them ( via an Injustice ) minie mo theory... That will indicate the games goal Mammys little Baby Loves Shortnin Bread and... Childrens rhyme [ 1 ] and is common in many languages using similar-sounding nonsense syllables melody... Games goal racist history our nation 's history go! originally titled Mammys Baby... Free for all, meeny, and that lesson will be an important one product his. Recognized take on a life of their own series the protagonist of the rhyme could be in! ] and is common in many languages using similar-sounding nonsense syllables and ends with a group of nonsense.... Protagonist of the song is about a slave 's toe before purchasing them ( via an Injustice ) minie....

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