Melodies and Motifs: Children's Songs Quiz

Answer: Frère Jacques

"Frère Jacques" is a French nursery rhyme about someone who overslept and needs to wake up to ring the church bells. The origins are unknown, but it is at least 300 years old.

Answer: Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

People sometimes say Mozart wrote "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," but the tune was published in 1761 France as "Ah! vous dirai-je, maman" ("Oh! I Will tell You, Mama"). Mozart, along with many other composers, made variations of the song (the old way of "remixing" or "covering" a song).

The song has had many lyrics applied to it, including "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" and the "Alphabet" song.

Answer: Mary Had a Little Lamb

"Mary Had a Little Lamb" is an American nursery rhyme first published in Boston in 1830. It is apparently based on a real event.

Answer: This Old Man

"This Old Man" is a nursery rhyme with an unknown place or time of origin, but it is at least 100 years old. Most official lyrics only go up to ten verses, but that doesn't stop people from coming up with more.

Answer: Old MacDonald Had a Farm

"Old MacDonald Had A Farm" is the song about what sounds the different farm animals make. The tune was first published in 1706 as the song "In the Fields in Frost and Snow" from an opera by Thomas d'Urfey, but this was probably not its origin.

Answer: She'll Be Coming Round the Mountain

This tune started as the Christian spiritual "When the Chariot Comes." Spirituals were songs created by African Americans, influenced by their experiences as slaves. The modern lyrics were created by railway workers in the later 1800s.

Answer: I'm a Little Teapot

"I'm a Little Teapot" is one of the newer songs in this quiz, being written in 1939 by George Harry Sanders and Clarence Kelley in the United States. It has a well-known dance that has the singer imitating a teapot.

Answer: London Bridge (Is Falling Down)

Written publications of "London Bridge" go back hundreds of years, with variations in both lyrics and tunes, though generally they have the same subject matter.

Answer: Hokey Pokey

This song is also known as the "Hokey Cokey," depending on where you live. Like many old songs, it has many regional lyrical variations, and has an associated dance routine.

Answer: Happy Birthday

"Happy Birthday" is well-known across the world and in many different languages, but it did not appear in media and was not sung by restaurant staff for the longest time because Warner Chappell Music claimed its copyright. This is why movies and restaurants often had similar, but unique birthday songs.

In 2015 the copyright was declared invalid, with Warner Chappell paying back millions of dollars. Now the song is definitely in the public domain and anyone can use it wherever and whenever they want.