Zany Mouse - I have seen people claim it as a pagan chant, an american indian song, an irish song, a welsh song and so on. Until I see some real scholorship, I'll not believe any of it.

While searching fore the lyrics, I found a completely unintentionally hilarious article citing this song as one that modern suburban women should sing to their daughters at "red parties" to celebrate their menarche. Mind you, the writer wasn't actually a Wiccan, Pagan, American indian or any such thing - just a suburban mom of judeo-christian background playing at Goddess worship.

Perhaps it's judgemental of me to critcize others for playing around at other people's spirituality and culture. However, I just can't help but find such things ridiculous. When I was working collecting folklore, language references and stories from real American Indians, I got to see up close and personal how painful it is for those born into a hijacked culture to have to sit by and see it adopted haphazardly by those trying on any new thing they come across. It is especially upsetting for those who have had to suffer as a result of their identity to see affluent folks of european descent claim that heritage as their own for a week or a year or so. (Until they come across something else 'cool" that "moves" them)

Most of the men I collected from were High Steel workers and my simply being seen with them in a public in some towns was enough to start a fight. I once hitched a ride on the back of one Mohawk guy's motorcycle to get to a dig a friend of mine was working on and we made the mistake of stopping to get a cold drink in Fort Plain (Central Upstate NY). We never made that mistake again.

End of rant - never mind me. Just getting it off my chest.