Origin
The origin of this song is not fully known. Most commonly, the song is thought to be of African American origin. The author Lyn Ellen Lacy is often quoted as the primary source for the theory that suggests the song was "originally sung by an African American slave who could not take care of her baby because she was too busy taking care of her master's child. She would sing this song to her master's child". However, Lacy's book Art and Design in Children's Books is not an authority on the heritage of traditional American folk songs, but rather a commentary on the art and design in children's literature. Still some versions of "All the Pretty Horses" contain lyrics that make this theory seem viable.
One such version is provided in Alan Lomax's book American Ballads and Folksongs, though he makes no claim of this. "Way down yonder, In de medder, There's a po' lil lambie, De bees an' de butterflies, Peckin' out its eyes, De po' lil lambie cried, "Mammy!"" Another version contains the lyrics "Buzzards and flies, Picking out its eyes, Pore little baby crying". The theory would suggest that the lyrics "po' lil lambie cried, "Mammy"" is in reference to the slaves who were often separated from their own families in order to serve their owners. However, this verse is very different from the rest of the lullaby, suggesting that the verse may have been added later or has a different origin than the rest of the song. The verse also appears in the song "Ole Cow" and older versions of the song "Black Sheep, Black Sheep".
While versions exist with these lyrics that show the song's African American roots, the rest of the song still leaves questions as to its origin. The lyrics "you shall have cake" and "you shall have all the pretty little ponies" as well as the lack of African-American diction and language suggest that the song may have originally come from another source. Many people assume the song to be from Irish or English origins upon initially hearing the melody of the lullaby. Suffice it to say that the origins of this song are currently unknown.
Read more about this topic: All The Pretty Horses (lullaby)
Famous quotes containing the word origin:
“Each structure and institution here was so primitive that you could at once refer it to its source; but our buildings commonly suggest neither their origin nor their purpose.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“For, though the origin of most of our words is forgotten, each word was at first a stroke of genius, and obtained currency, because for the moment it symbolized the world to the first speaker and to the hearer. The etymologist finds the deadest word to have been once a brilliant picture.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“In the woods in a winter afternoon one will see as readily the origin of the stained glass window, with which Gothic cathedrals are adorned, in the colors of the western sky seen through the bare and crossing branches of the forest.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)