Hey, My Kitten, My Kitten Lyrics
Here the kitten is the baby. This is a knee-bouncing rhyme for the youngest children: the first verse is a cuddle, and the second takes the baby up, down, backwards, forwards and round.
Hey, My Kitten, My Kitten
Hey, my kitten, my kitten,
And hey, my kitten, my deary!
Such a sweet pet as this
Was neither far nor neary.
Here we go up, up, up,
And here we go down, down, downy;
And here we go backwards and forwards,
And here we go round, round, roundy.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/hey-my-kitten-my-kitten/
- Type
- Lullabies
- Tune
- Spoken rhyme
- Best for ages
- 0 to 3 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Hey, my kitten, my kitten | Hold your baby on your lap and rock side to side. |
| Here we go up, up, up | Lift your baby gently upward. |
| And here we go down, down, downy | Lower them slowly back to your lap. |
| And here we go backwards and forwards | Rock back and then forward. |
| And here we go round, round, roundy | Turn in a slow circle together. |
What Does Hey, My Kitten, My Kitten Mean?
Kitten and deary are pet names for a baby. "Such a sweet pet as this was neither far nor neary" means there is no sweeter child anywhere, far or near. Neary is a made-up form of near, bent to rhyme with deary, just as downy and roundy are playful versions of down and round.
History and Origin
James Orchard Halliwell printed the rhyme in The Nursery Rhymes of England in the 1840s, among his lullabies and nursery songs for babies. Words like deary and neary suggest it came from the north of England or Scotland, where endings like these were common in songs for small children.
Learning Activities
- Lap ride: use the second verse as a lap game, going as gently or as boldly as your baby enjoys.
- Standing version: hold a toddler's hands and do the movements together on your feet.