Itsy Bitsy Spider
Encyclopedia
"Itsy Bitsy Spider" is a popular nursery rhyme
that describes the adventures of a spider
as it ascends, descends and reascends the downspout or "waterspout" of a gutter
system (or, alternatively, the spout of a teapot
). It is usually accompanied by a sequence of gestures that mimic the words of the song. It has a Roud Folk Song Index
number of 11586.
(Some versions have climbed or went instead of crawled.)
The Itsy Bitsy Spider or The Eensy Weensy Spider is sometimes chanted rather than sung. Recitation of the rhyme is often combined with fingerplays representing the words. For the first (and last) line, alternately touch the thumb of one hand to the index finger of the other. For "Down came the rain" hold both hands up and wiggle the fingers as you lower the hands. For "washed the spider out" sweep the hands to the side. For the third line bring both hands up and then to the sides to sweep out a semicircle (the sun). Then wiggle the fingers upwards (to show the rain drying in the sun), and repeat the thumb/index finger movement to indicate the spider climbing up the spout.
An alternative version is:
Cornell University incorporates this stanza (with a slight modification) into a lengthy Ivy League fight song. Some of the lyrics of the whole song (including the stanza) are probably not appropriate to be printed here although they are quite humorous.
Nursery rhyme
The term nursery rhyme is used for "traditional" poems for young children in Britain and many other countries, but usage only dates from the 19th century and in North America the older ‘Mother Goose Rhymes’ is still often used.-Lullabies:...
that describes the adventures of a spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
as it ascends, descends and reascends the downspout or "waterspout" of a gutter
Gutter
panels of a comic strip or comic book page*Gutter , the space between panes of postage stamps that creates configurations of "gutter pairs" or "gutter blocks"*Gutter, in interface design, the blank spaces that separate rows and columns in screen...
system (or, alternatively, the spout of a teapot
Teapot
A teapot is a vessel used for steeping tea leaves or a herbal mix in near-boiling water. Tea may be either in a tea bag or loose, in which case a tea strainer will be needed, either to hold the leaves as they steep or to catch the leaves inside the teapot when the tea is poured...
). It is usually accompanied by a sequence of gestures that mimic the words of the song. It has a Roud Folk Song Index
Roud Folk Song Index
The Roud Folk Song Index is a database of 300,000 references to over 21,600 songs that have been collected from oral tradition in the English language from all over the world...
number of 11586.
Lyrics
There are various versions of the lyrics:- The itsy bitsy spider crawled up the water spout.
- Down came the rain, and washed the spider out.
- Out came the sun, and dried up all the rain,
- and the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again.
(Some versions have climbed or went instead of crawled.)
The Itsy Bitsy Spider or The Eensy Weensy Spider is sometimes chanted rather than sung. Recitation of the rhyme is often combined with fingerplays representing the words. For the first (and last) line, alternately touch the thumb of one hand to the index finger of the other. For "Down came the rain" hold both hands up and wiggle the fingers as you lower the hands. For "washed the spider out" sweep the hands to the side. For the third line bring both hands up and then to the sides to sweep out a semicircle (the sun). Then wiggle the fingers upwards (to show the rain drying in the sun), and repeat the thumb/index finger movement to indicate the spider climbing up the spout.
An alternative version is:
- Incy Wincy spider climbing up the spout.
- Down came the rain, and washed poor Incy out.
- Up came the sun, and dried up all the rain
- And Incy Wincy spider went climbing up again.
Cornell University incorporates this stanza (with a slight modification) into a lengthy Ivy League fight song. Some of the lyrics of the whole song (including the stanza) are probably not appropriate to be printed here although they are quite humorous.
Origins
The song can be found in publications including an alternate version in the book, ‘’Camp and camino in lower California (1910) page 279. It appears to be a more adult version of the song using “blooming, bloody” instead of itsy bitsy. It was later published in its modern version in Western Folklore, by the California Folklore Society (1947), Mike and Peggy, Seeger's, American Folk Songs for Children (1948), and The Growing Family: A Guide for Parents by Maxwell Slutz Stewart (1955).See also
- Itsy Bitsy Spider (film)Itsy Bitsy Spider (film)The Itsy-Bitsy Spider is the title of an animated short released in 1992 with the movie Bebe's Kids. It featured Frank Welker as the title character, and Jim Carrey as the Exterminator...
- Itsy Bitsy Spider (TV Series)Itsy Bitsy Spider (TV Series)The Itsy Bitsy Spider was an animated series based on the short film of the same name. It was broadcast on the USA Network's USA Cartoon Express. The title character's voice was done by Frank Welker.-External links:* at TV.com**...