The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #89290   Message #1684920
Posted By: Azizi
04-Mar-06 - 07:18 AM
Thread Name: Folklore: Origin of skipping rhyme - K-I-S-S-I-N-G
Subject: RE: Folklore: Origin of skipping rhyme - K-I-S-S-I-N-G
Mo the caller, if I understand the first part of your guess, you are suggesting that maybe the name of a 3rd child is called, and that child "in a baby carriage" represents the offspring of the first two children.

Hmmm. From the examples that I've seen thus far-on Mudcat and elsewhere-there's no indication that 3 different children's names are called.

Also I don't think that your guess that "[when the 3rd child jumps in the rope]the first child steps out and 2nd & 3rd are KISSING" is likely given the fact that these jump rope rhymes are most often performed by girls only. Besides, for the most part girls of jump rope age {5-12 years or so} wouldn't dare kiss a boy in public {or in private?}..Not to mention that the two childrenyou have in your guess who are kissing are not the "mother and father" but the parent and baby...which seems to go against the mild naughtiness-if not mild taunting//teasing nature of the rhyme.

But as an esteemed person reminded me {us?} upthread, these rhymes don't have to make sense, so, in some corners of the world, there may be children who chant this rhyme and perform it just as you guessed.

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There are a number of other examples of K-I-S-S-I-N-G on Mudcat threads that have the last line "with a baby carriage"-not that this is "the right" last line for this rhyme, but it's not an uncommon line....

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BTW, Joe Offer, or Joe Clones-would you please post a listing of other Mudcat children's rhyme threads below this thread's title?

Thanks.