Buz and Hum Lyrics
Two insects, two different sounds, and a second verse of pure nonsense that works best as a tickle game, buzzing near a child's ear and nose.
Buz and Hum
Buz, quoth the blue fly,
Hum, quoth the bee,
Buz and hum they cry,
And so do we.
In his ear, in his nose,
Thus, do you see?
He ate the dormouse,
Else it was he.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/buz-and-hum/
- Type
- Animal Rhymes
- Tune
- Spoken with buzzing sounds
- Best for ages
- 1 to 5 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Buz, quoth the blue fly | Wiggle your fingers high in the air and buzz. |
| Hum, quoth the bee | Drop to a low hum and circle one finger. |
| And so do we | Buzz and hum together and spin once on the spot. |
| In his ear, in his nose | Buzz softly near a child's ear, then give the nose a feather-light tap. |
What Does Buz and Hum Mean?
Quoth is an old word for said, and buz is an old spelling of buzz. The blue fly is most likely a bluebottle, a shiny blue-green fly that bangs against windows. The bee hums lower and softer, so the rhyme works as a tiny lesson in sounds: a high buzz, a low hum, and then everybody together. The second verse is nonsense: it never says who "he" is, but the ear and the nose are a good excuse for a tickle.
History and Origin
Walter Jerrold included the rhyme in The Big Book of Nursery Rhymes (1903). James Orchard Halliwell had printed it earlier in The Nursery Rhymes of England (first published in 1842), with a note that this catch is found in Ben Jonson's Masque of Oberon and was a very common nursery song in his day. A catch is a short song for voices that take it up in turn. Insects have a long run in the nursery: you can meet a ladybird in Burnie Bee, a swarm in A Swarm of Bees in May, and a whole parade of them in The Butterfly's Ball.
Learning Activities
- Buzz or hum? Call out a bee, a fridge, a fan or a mosquito and let the child decide which sound it makes.
- Window watch: look for flies and bees on a sunny window or flower bed and listen for the difference.
- Tickle game: circle a buzzing finger around the child's head, land it softly near an ear and then the nose for the second verse, and finish with a light tickle.