Difference between revisions of "Ten Little Indians"

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'''Ten Little Indians''' is a children's counting rhyme. The term "Indians" in this sense is referring to American Indians.
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[[File:Ten little nigers.jpg|thumb|Ten Little Niggers Minestral Poster Image]]
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'''Ten Little Indians''' is a children's counting rhyme. The term "Indians" is actually referring to American Indians. Around the year of 1868, American songwriter Septimus Winner adapted the verse for a song, naming it “Ten Little Injuns.”<ref name=medium>[https://medium.com/writing-for-your-life/revisiting-the-horrific-racism-that-inspired-the-worlds-bestselling-crime-novel-7c7fca5647b7 Revisiting the Racism That Inspired One of the World’s Bestselling Crime Novels]. ''medium.com''. Oct 22, 2020. Retrieved Jan 13, 2021</ref> It was in 1869, the song was adapted by Frank J. Green as ''Ten Little Niggers'' and became a standard of the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackface blackface] minstrel shows in England and America. As time goes, the usage of N-word became controversial. Therefore it was changed back to Indians, then to soldiers, then teddy bears, then bunnies, and lately as bunnies dressed as Indians. <ref name=indiancountrytoday>[https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/ten-little-indians-a-genocidal-nursery-rhyme-zdEJZ1XzDE-uez7zs42LEQ Ten Little Indians: A Genocidal Nursery Rhyme]. ''indiancountrytoday.com''. Sep 12, 2017. Retrieved Jan 13, 2021</ref>
  
== Lyrics ==
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== Modern Lyrics ==
The modern lyrics for the children's rhyme are:<blockquote>''One little, two little, three little Indians''
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Taken from [https://allnurseryrhymes.com/ten-little-indians/ allnurseryrhymes.com], the modern lyrics for the children's rhyme are:
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<blockquote>''"One little, two little, three little Indians"''
  
''Four little, five little, six little Indians''
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''"Four little, five little, six little Indians"''
  
''Seven little, eight little, nine little Indians''
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''"Seven little, eight little, nine little Indians"''
  
''Ten little Indian boys.''
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''"Ten little Indian boys."''
  
''Ten little, nine little, eight little Indians''
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''"Ten little, nine little, eight little Indians"''
  
''Seven little, six little, five little Indians''
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''"Seven little, six little, five little Indians"''
  
''Four little, three little, two little Indians''
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''"Four little, three little, two little Indians"''
  
''One little Indian boy.''</blockquote>
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''"One little Indian boy."''<ref>https://allnurseryrhymes.com/ten-little-indians/</ref></blockquote>
  
 
== Original version ==
 
== Original version ==
The rhyme was first adapted as a song (then called "Ten Little Injuns") for a minstrel show in 1868 by songwriter Septimus Winner:<blockquote>''Ten little Indians standin' in a line,''
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[[File:Ten little indians.jpg|450px|thumb]]
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Taken from [https://allnurseryrhymes.com/ten-little-indians/ allnurseryrhymes.com], the original lyrics for the rhymes are:
 +
<blockquote>''"Ten little Indians standin' in a line,"''
  
''One toddled home and then there were nine;''
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''"One toddled home and then there were nine;"''
  
''Nine little Indians swingin' on a gate,''
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''"Nine little Indians swingin' on a gate,"''
  
''One tumbled off and then there were eight.''
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''"One tumbled off and then there were eight."''
  
''Eight little Indians gayest under heav'n.''
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''"Eight little Indians gayest under heav'n."''
  
''One went to sleep and then there were seven;''
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''"One went to sleep and then there were seven;"''
  
''Seven little Indians cuttin' up their tricks,''
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''"Seven little Indians cuttin' up their tricks,"''
  
''One broke his neck and then there were six.''
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''"One broke his neck and then there were six."''
  
''Six little Indians all alive,''
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''"Six little Indians all alive,"''
  
''One kicked the bucket and then there were five;''
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''"One kicked the bucket and then there were five;"''
  
''Five little Indians on a cellar door,''
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''"Five little Indians on a cellar door,"''
  
''One tumbled in and then there were four.''
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''"One tumbled in and then there were four."''
  
''Four little Indians up on a spree,''
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''"Four little Indians up on a spree,"''
  
''One got fuddled and then there were three;''
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''"One got fuddled and then there were three;"''
  
''Three little Indians out on a canoe,''
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''"Three little Indians out on a canoe,"''
  
''One tumbled overboard and then there were two''
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''"One tumbled overboard and then there were two"''
  
''Two little Indians foolin' with a gun,''
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''"Two little Indians foolin' with a gun,"''
  
''One shot t'other and then there was one;''
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''"One shot t'other and then there was one;"''
  
''One little Indian livin' all alone,''
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''"One little Indian livin' all alone,"''
  
''He got married and then there were none.''</blockquote>
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''"He got married and then there were none."''</blockquote>
  
== Derivative works of art and controversy ==
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== Controversy ==
It is generally thought that this song was adapted, possibly by Frank J. Green in 1869, as "Ten Little Niggers", though it is possible that the influence was the other way around, with "Ten Little Niggers" being a close reflection of the text that became "Ten Little Indians". Either way, "Ten Little Niggers" became a standard of the blackface minstrel shows. It was sung by Christy's Minstrels and became widely known in Europe, where it was used by Agatha Christie in her novel of the same name, about ten killings on a remote island. The novel was later retitled ''And Then There Were None'' (1939), and remains one of her most famous works. The Spanish, German and Russian titles of Christie's novel today are still "Diez negritos", "Zehn Kleine Negerlein" and «Десять негритят», respectively.
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Though the historical record is inconsistent and unnoted, it is believed that British songwriter Frank Green adapted Winner’s song in 1869 with new lyrics of his own. Now entitled “Ten Little Niggers,” the lyrics to the new verse was as follows:<ref name=medium />:
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<blockquote>
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''"Ten little nigger boys went out to dine"''
  
Variants of this song have been published widely as children's books; what the variants have in common is 'that they are about dark-skinned boys who are always children, never learning from experience'. For example, it had been published in the Netherlands by 1913; in Denmark by 1922 (in ''Börnenes billedbog''); in Iceland in 1922 (as ''Negrastrákarnir''); and in Finland in the 1940s (in ''Kotoa ja kaukaa: valikoima runosatuja lapsille'' and ''Hupaisa laskukirja''). The Bengali poem ''Haradhon er Dosti Chhele'' (Haradhon's Ten Sons) is also inspired by ''Ten Little Indians''.
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''"One choked his little self, and then there were nine."''
  
=== Criticism of racist language ===
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''"Nine little nigger boys sat up very late"''
Because of the use of the racist words, modern versions for children often use "soldier boys" or "teddy bears" as the objects of the rhyme. The unaltered republication of the 1922 Icelandic version in 2007 of ''Ten Little Negroes'' by the Icelandic publisher Skrudda caused considerable debate in Iceland, with a strong division between those who saw the book as racist and those who saw it as "a part of funny and silly stories created in the past". In Kristín Loftsdóttir's assessment of the debate,
 
  
Some of the discussions focusing on the republishing of the ''Ten Little Negroes'' can be seen as colonial nostalgia in the sense that they bring images of more "simple" times when such images were not objected to. As such, these public discourses seek to separate Icelandic identity from past issues of racism and prejudice. Contextualising the publication of the nursery rhyme in 1922 within European and North American contexts shows, however, that the book fitted very well with European discourses of race, and the images show similarity to caricatures of black people in the United States.
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''"One overslept himself, and then there were eight."''
  
The republishing of the book in Iceland triggered a number of parodies or rewritings: and ''Tíu litlír kenjakrakkar'' ("Ten little prankster-children") by Sigrún Eldjárn and Þórarinn Eldjárn; ''10 litlir sveitastrákar'' ("Ten little country-boys") by Katrín J. Óskarsdóttir and Guðrún Jónína Magnúsdóttir; and ''Tíu litlir bankastrákar'' ("Ten little banker-boys") by Óttar M. Njorðfjörð.
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''"Eight little nigger boys traveling in Devon"''
  
=== 1945 version ===
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''"One said he’d stay there, and then there were seven."''
The following version of the song was included in the first film version of ''And Then There Were None'' (1945), which largely took Green's lyrics and replaced the already sensitive word "nigger" with "Indian" (in some versions "soldiers"):<blockquote>''Ten little Indian boys went out to dine;''
 
  
''One choked his little self and then there were nine.''
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''"Seven little nigger boys chopping up sticks"''
  
''Nine little Indian boys sat up very late;''
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''"One chopped himself in half, and then there were six."''
  
''One overslept himself and then there were eight.''
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''"Six little nigger boys playing with a hive"''
  
''Eight little Indian boys travelling in Devon;''
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''"A bumble-bee stung one, and then there were five."''
  
''One said he'd stay there and then there were seven.''
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''"Five little nigger boys going in for law"''
  
''Seven little Indian boys chopping up sticks;''
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''"One got in chancery, and then there were four."''
  
''One chopped himself in halves and then there were six.''
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''"Four little nigger boys going out to sea"''
  
''Six little Indian boys playing with a hive;''
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''"A red herring swallowed one, and then there were three."''
  
''A bumblebee stung one of them and then there were five.''
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''"Three little nigger boys walking in the zoo"''
  
''Five little Indian boys going in for law;''
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''"A big bear hugged one, and then there were two."''
  
''One got in Chancery and then there were four.''
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''"Two little nigger boys sitting in the sun"''
  
''Four little Indian boys going out to sea;''
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''"One got frizzled up, and then there was one."''
  
''A red herring swallowed one and then there were three.''
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''"One little nigger boy living all alone"''
  
''Three little Indian boys walking in the zoo;''
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''"He went and hanged himself and then there were none."''(Ten Little Niggers by M' Loughlin Bro's)<ref>Bro's, M. Loughlin. [https://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00026617/00001/1j Ten Little Niggers]. New York Publishers.</ref></blockquote>
  
''A big bear hugged one and then there were two.''
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Due to the racist words used in the song, in the modern versions, the term is changed to "soldier boys" or "teddy bears".<ref> R. Riley, P. McAllister, J. Symonsm B. Cassiday., The Bedside, Bathtub & Armchair Companion to Agatha Christie (Continuum, 2001), pp. 144–45.</ref> In 2007, Ten Little Negroes was republished by the Icelanding publisher, Skrudda. They republished the original version with that contains the N-word. This caused a considerable debate of people who saw the book as racist and those who saw it as "a part of funny and silly stories created in the past".<ref>ristín Loftsdóttir. 2011. "Racist Caricatures in Iceland in the 19th and the 20th Century". ''In Iceland and Images of the North'', edited by S.R. Ísleifsson. Québec: Prologue Inc, 187–204 (pp. 198—200, quoting p. 199).</ref>
  
''Two little Indian boys sitting in the sun;''
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Moreover, the song also stands for murder, death, and genocide of black boys. Inspired by this song, Agatha Christie published a book in 1939 entitled ''Ten Little Niggers'' in England, followed by American reprints and adaptations where the book was retitled into [[And Then There Were None]], using the last words of the nursery rhyme.<ref name=indiancountrytoday />
  
''One got all frizzled up and then there was one.''
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== References ==
 
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[[Category:Black-Targeted Racism in Nursery Rhymes]]
''One little Indian boy left all alone;''
 
 
 
''He went and hanged himself and then there were none.''</blockquote>
 
[[Category:Black Racism in Nursery Rhymes]]
 

Latest revision as of 09:24, 15 March 2021

Ten Little Niggers Minestral Poster Image

Ten Little Indians is a children's counting rhyme. The term "Indians" is actually referring to American Indians. Around the year of 1868, American songwriter Septimus Winner adapted the verse for a song, naming it “Ten Little Injuns.”[1] It was in 1869, the song was adapted by Frank J. Green as Ten Little Niggers and became a standard of the blackface minstrel shows in England and America. As time goes, the usage of N-word became controversial. Therefore it was changed back to Indians, then to soldiers, then teddy bears, then bunnies, and lately as bunnies dressed as Indians. [2]

Modern Lyrics

Taken from allnurseryrhymes.com, the modern lyrics for the children's rhyme are:

"One little, two little, three little Indians"

"Four little, five little, six little Indians"

"Seven little, eight little, nine little Indians"

"Ten little Indian boys."

"Ten little, nine little, eight little Indians"

"Seven little, six little, five little Indians"

"Four little, three little, two little Indians"

"One little Indian boy."[3]

Original version

Ten little indians.jpg

Taken from allnurseryrhymes.com, the original lyrics for the rhymes are:

"Ten little Indians standin' in a line,"

"One toddled home and then there were nine;"

"Nine little Indians swingin' on a gate,"

"One tumbled off and then there were eight."

"Eight little Indians gayest under heav'n."

"One went to sleep and then there were seven;"

"Seven little Indians cuttin' up their tricks,"

"One broke his neck and then there were six."

"Six little Indians all alive,"

"One kicked the bucket and then there were five;"

"Five little Indians on a cellar door,"

"One tumbled in and then there were four."

"Four little Indians up on a spree,"

"One got fuddled and then there were three;"

"Three little Indians out on a canoe,"

"One tumbled overboard and then there were two"

"Two little Indians foolin' with a gun,"

"One shot t'other and then there was one;"

"One little Indian livin' all alone,"

"He got married and then there were none."

Controversy

Though the historical record is inconsistent and unnoted, it is believed that British songwriter Frank Green adapted Winner’s song in 1869 with new lyrics of his own. Now entitled “Ten Little Niggers,” the lyrics to the new verse was as follows:[1]:

"Ten little nigger boys went out to dine"

"One choked his little self, and then there were nine."

"Nine little nigger boys sat up very late"

"One overslept himself, and then there were eight."

"Eight little nigger boys traveling in Devon"

"One said he’d stay there, and then there were seven."

"Seven little nigger boys chopping up sticks"

"One chopped himself in half, and then there were six."

"Six little nigger boys playing with a hive"

"A bumble-bee stung one, and then there were five."

"Five little nigger boys going in for law"

"One got in chancery, and then there were four."

"Four little nigger boys going out to sea"

"A red herring swallowed one, and then there were three."

"Three little nigger boys walking in the zoo"

"A big bear hugged one, and then there were two."

"Two little nigger boys sitting in the sun"

"One got frizzled up, and then there was one."

"One little nigger boy living all alone"

"He went and hanged himself and then there were none."(Ten Little Niggers by M' Loughlin Bro's)[4]

Due to the racist words used in the song, in the modern versions, the term is changed to "soldier boys" or "teddy bears".[5] In 2007, Ten Little Negroes was republished by the Icelanding publisher, Skrudda. They republished the original version with that contains the N-word. This caused a considerable debate of people who saw the book as racist and those who saw it as "a part of funny and silly stories created in the past".[6]

Moreover, the song also stands for murder, death, and genocide of black boys. Inspired by this song, Agatha Christie published a book in 1939 entitled Ten Little Niggers in England, followed by American reprints and adaptations where the book was retitled into And Then There Were None, using the last words of the nursery rhyme.[2]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Revisiting the Racism That Inspired One of the World’s Bestselling Crime Novels. medium.com. Oct 22, 2020. Retrieved Jan 13, 2021
  2. 2.0 2.1 Ten Little Indians: A Genocidal Nursery Rhyme. indiancountrytoday.com. Sep 12, 2017. Retrieved Jan 13, 2021
  3. https://allnurseryrhymes.com/ten-little-indians/
  4. Bro's, M. Loughlin. Ten Little Niggers. New York Publishers.
  5. R. Riley, P. McAllister, J. Symonsm B. Cassiday., The Bedside, Bathtub & Armchair Companion to Agatha Christie (Continuum, 2001), pp. 144–45.
  6. ristín Loftsdóttir. 2011. "Racist Caricatures in Iceland in the 19th and the 20th Century". In Iceland and Images of the North, edited by S.R. Ísleifsson. Québec: Prologue Inc, 187–204 (pp. 198—200, quoting p. 199).