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Wee Willie Winkie
runs through the town,
Upstairs and downstairs
in his nightgown,
Tapping at the window
and crying through the lock,
Are all the children in their beds,
it's past eight o'clock?
The
origins of the nursery rhyme
The origins of the words and lyrics to this nursery rhyme were to allow children to
associate every day tasks with their own lives. Before the days of
radio, TV and indeed the Internet and also due to levels of
illiteracy within the population great reliance was made on the
Town Crier who was paid to walk the streets crying out the latest
news and information. 'Wee willie winkie' was a child's
version of
the Town Crier! The author of the nursery was William Miller (1810
- 1872) and the first publication date of the lyrics was in 1841. |
