Here We Go Gathering Nuts in May Lyrics
Two lines of children face each other, sing, choose a player from the other side and then settle it with a tug of war. Nuts in May is one of the oldest playground games in Britain, and it still works on any patch of grass.
Here We Go Gathering Nuts in May
Here we come gathering nuts in May,
Nuts in May, nuts in May,
Here we come gathering nuts in May,
On a fine summer morning.
Whom will you have for nuts in May,
Nuts in May, nuts in May?
Whom will you have for nuts in May,
On a fine summer morning?
We'll have (name) for nuts in May,
Nuts in May, nuts in May,
We'll have (name) for nuts in May,
On a fine summer morning.
Who will you send to fetch her away,
To fetch her away, to fetch her away?
Who will you send to fetch her away,
On a fine summer morning?
We'll send (name) to fetch her away,
Fetch her away, fetch her away,
We'll send (name) to fetch her away,
On a fine summer morning.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/here-we-go-gathering-nuts-in-may/
- Type
- Action Songs
- Tune
- Traditional (the Mulberry Bush tune)
- Best for ages
- 5 to 11 years
What Does Here We Go Gathering Nuts in May Mean?
The two teams take turns singing. One side advances singing the first verse, and the other asks whom they will have. The first side names a player from the opposite team, then names someone from their own side to "fetch her away". Those two players have a tug of war across a line on the ground, and the loser joins the winner's team. The game ends when one side has everyone.
History and Origin
Alice Bertha Gomme collected many versions for The Traditional Games of England, Scotland, and Ireland (1894), including this one from Liphook and Winterton in Hampshire. She noted that every version had the same pattern: one player chosen from the other team, then a contest of strength to win her over. Nobody gathers nuts in May, because hazelnuts ripen in autumn. A popular explanation is that the words were once "knots of may", bunches of hawthorn blossom picked on May Day.
Learning Activities
- Play it outdoors: draw a line with chalk or lay down a rope between the two teams.
- Gentle version: for younger children, replace the tug of war with a race to the line.
- Change the season: sing "on a cold and frosty morning", as some old versions do, when playing in winter.