Tag Archives: chant

Girly-Girl Chant

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Massachusetts
Performance Date: March 13, 2012
Primary Language: English
Language: French

My informant remembers chanting this with her friends in elementary school. She believes that it was around third grade that girls began singing this to each other in line-up before school began.

Oh, my gosh! I think I need a manicure! (looks at nails)

The sun, I swear, (presses hand to forehead) is greasing up my well-done hair! (touches hair)

Go! Go! Fight! Fight! (bobs head back and forth), Gee I hope I look alright! (points to herself)

Forty-three, fifty four, I don’t know the stupid score! (Makes confused face)

I remember this chant from elementary school. It was used to mock the “girly-girls” by singing it in a high-pitch tone and using dramatic eye-rolls for emphasis. There was no purpose to the chant, other than to show your friends that you knew it. I believe that it is important because it reflects upon the American societal image of a “girly-girl” and the fact that girls themselves recognize how ridiculous it is.

Post Happy Birthday Song

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Massachusetts
Performance Date: March 13, 2012
Primary Language: English
Language: Spanish

My informant chanted to me a song that is sung directly after the commonly known “Happy Birthday” song:

“You sing the happy birthday song, and then right after that you sing:

Are you 1?

Are you 2?

Are you 3?

Are you 4?

Are you 5?

And then it keeps going until you reach the age the person is turning and they yell: Stop!”

My informant told me that this sometimes happens after the birthday song, but not always. She first heard it when she was at a birthday party in second grade. Once people reach an older age, the song becomes annoying, and often if the person is over 20 years old it is not sung because it is too long. Sometimes it begins and then other people cut it off because it is too long and annoying to go through every year until you reach the particular one that the birthday boy or girl is turning.

I remember singing this when I was younger. I am from the northeast, and I have found that it is common in that region. However, here in California most people have never heard of the chant. I personally did not like it, I found it annoying. In my experience once it begins to be chanted half of the people in the room participate and half roll their eyes and impatiently wait until it ends.

Children’s Chinese Restaurant Chant

Nationality: American
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Performance Date: April 25, 2012
Primary Language: English
Language: Hindi, Kutchi, Spanish

Ruchika Tanna

Los Angeles, California

April 25, 2012

Folklore Type: Childhood Chant

Informant Bio: Ruchika is my friend and fellow Archaeology major. Ruchika is a Sophomore at the University of Southern California. She has moved around her whole life. She is Indian.

Context: We were both in Intro to Folklore and decided to meet before Maya Civilization, the other class we have together, and discuss some.

 

Item:

“I went to a Chinese restaurant to buy a loaf of bread, bread, bread,

He asked me what my name was, and this is what I said, said, said,

My name is eli pickleby, pickleby eli,

Wallah wallah whiskers

Chinese, Japanese, Indian chief!”

 

Informant Analysis: I think this is just nonsense that’s fun to say, no particular meaning, as far as I can see. Learned it from my sister when I was in elementary school. She learned it from her friends. We used to sing it all the time, not so much anymore. Only when we go to Chinese restaurants. Like we did last weekend!

Analysis: This is a variation of a hand game chant that I have also heard. It is slightly shorter, and Ruchika never did the hand game part. At first it was probably just funny for her, but now it is a connection specific to her sister and her. What is also interesting is that my version has more ethnicities than these three from Asia. Either one of us could have the adapted version, or both our versions are adaptations. This could childhood chant could be an example of how specific ethnicities change certain things unconsciously to be more relatable to their culture.

Alex Williams

Los Angeles, California

University of Southern California

ANTH 333m   Spring 2012

Folk Song/Chant—Childrens

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Nationality: Salvadoran
Age: 9
Occupation: Student
Residence: San Fernando
Performance Date: Feb 17, 2008
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

“Peace”

(hold up forefinger and middle finger, palm facing out)

“Number One”

(hold up only forefinger)

“Save the Hippies”

“The world is a round.”

(using forefinger of each hand, draw a square in the air. Two fingers start at the middle top of the square, and the square is drawn symmetrically.)

Kimberly told me that her friend at school taught her this short chant. Her friend learned this from her older brother in 5th grade. They all go to school together on Harding Street, El Selmar. She chants this with her friend during recess or PE classes. They do this especially during PE, because that is when kids from other classes will see it—Kimberly and her friend hope to get this chant to spread in their school.

When asked what this chant means, she just shrugged and said “I don’t know, it’s just for fun.” But then she said it is “a little bit about charity,”—just saying they’d like peace and people should help the hippies. When I asked her what hippies are, she told me that they are “people on the streets” who are homeless and poor.

I chuckled at this answer, and thought immediately that this children’s chant reflects our changed attitudes towards hippies. Hippies were never mainstream, but at one time they were politically cutting edge, they had radical messages of peace and love, and they were some of the first conservationists. Today, however, I notice that the word ‘hippies’ paints a picture of a very different people—and they need to be ‘saved.’ Modern stereotypes of hippies have very little to do with liberal politics, instead hippies are now associated with drug use, unreasonable new age beliefs, and poor tastes in attire. It is no wonder that 4th grader Kimberly thought that “the hippies” were “people on the streets” who need to be “saved.”

Yet interestingly enough, despite Kimberly’s interpretations, I still feel like this chant retains some of the original ideas of hippies—particularly in regards to pacifism and environmentalism. “Peace, number one,” it goes—it sounds like peace should be our number one priority. Then “Save the Hippies” echoes many conservationist mottos, such as “Save the whales,” “save the trees,” or “save our planet.” I think it could be either an urge to save the hippies by supporting their cause to save the earth—or a parody that makes fun of ‘the hippies,’ suggesting that although they try to save the earth, ‘the hippies’ need to be saved themselves. Lastly, the enigmatic last line: “The world is a round,” while the fingers draw a square. Perhaps this is a reminder that everything in our world is connected—like a circle? Perhaps this is saying that in our world, what goes around comes around? Perhaps it means that our world must be round, but something is terribly wrong with it, because the hand movements suggest that it is not at all round? I’ve not a sure guess exactly what this last line means, or if it even has a meaningful implication, being a child’s chant, after all—but my gut feeling says that there is a concern with the environment somewhere in there. This would make sense, because even the kids must have caught on that the present society have recently become obsessed with “being green.”