The Rainbow Lyrics
A four-line weather saying: a rainbow in the morning is a warning, and a rainbow at night is a good sign.
The Rainbow
Rainbow i' th' morning
Shipper's warning;
Rainbow at night
Shipper's delight.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/the-rainbow/
- Type
- Mother Goose
- Tune
- Chanted, with a lift on the two last words
- Best for ages
- 4 to 8 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Rainbow i' th' morning | Trace a big arc in the air with one arm. |
| Rainbow at night | Trace the arc again, lower, as the sun goes down. |
What Does The Rainbow Mean?
The saying is a piece of weather lore. A rainbow only appears when the sun shines on falling rain, so one in the morning means the rain is still around and a day of showers may be ahead. A rainbow at night means the rain has passed and the weather is clearing.
Shipper is an old word for a sailor or the master of a ship, someone who had to watch the sky before setting out. The better-known red sky saying uses the same pattern with a shepherd or a sailor. Weather rhymes were easy to remember, so they were handed down by word of mouth long before forecasts.
History and Origin
James Orchard Halliwell gives it in Popular Rhymes and Nursery Tales (1849) and says that this is a most common weather proverb in one form or another. The version he gives was heard in Essex.
Halliwell also gives a second rainbow saying: if there is a rainbow in the evening, it will rain and then leave; if there is one in the morning, it will neither lend nor borrow.
Learning Activities
- Rainbow watch: after a shower, look for a rainbow and note whether it is morning or evening.
- Make a rainbow: stand a glass of water in a sunny window and look for coloured light on the wall.
- Weather diary: draw the sky each morning and each evening for a week.