John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt
Encyclopedia
"John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt" is a traditional children's song
of obscure origin. Its lyrics are close variations of:
The Austrian version is slightly different and goes like this:
"John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt,
That's my name, too!
Whenever he goes out,
People always shout,
John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt!!!!!!"
s; compare the Blinkenlights
faxlore
in which English
words are deformed to form a mock German warning text. The surname
"Schmidt
" and the surname suffix
"-heimer" are of Germanic
origin. Schmidt is one of the most common surnames in German heritage.
Furthermore, the given name of "Johann" was often given to boys with a secondary given name; when this occurred the secondary given name was often the name one was called by. In the song the English "John" is substituted for the traditional German "Johann". Thus, John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt is not an unrealistic German name.
and theatre
acts of the late 19th century and early 20th century popular in immigrant communities. Some vaudeville acts during the era, such as the work of Joe Weber
and Lew Fields
, often gave voice to shared frustrations of German-American immigrants and heavily leaned on malapropism
s and difficulties with the English language as a vehicle for its humor. Further, John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt shares many characteristics with "My Name is Jan Jansen" a song that can trace its origin to Swedish vaudeville in the late 19th century.
The song can conceivably be sung in an infinite loop
, like "The Song That Never Ends
", "My Name is Jan Jansen", "Michael Finnegan
", or "High Hopes
".
Versions of this song also appear in other languages, such as the Spanish
rendition; "Juan Pablo Pedro de la Mar".
, led by Robert Goulet
as Mikey Blumberg (although Jason Davis
provided Mikey's speaking voice).
2. The song is featured as "Shane Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt" in the 2004 film, The Pacifier
, sung by Lulu Plummer (Morgan York
) and her Firefly Scouts.
3. This song also appears in Season 5, Episode 8 of Happy Days, happy-days episode: fonzie and leather tuscadero airing Tuesday November 8, 1977.
4. The song is used in Season 4, Episode 126 of the Andy Griffith Show: Back To Nature. Original air date May 11th, 1964.
5. This song is used in Season 1, Episode 23 of "The Secret Life of the American Teenager
"
6. This song is used in the movie "Strawberry Shortcake Berry Big Journey"
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
of obscure origin. Its lyrics are close variations of:
John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt,
His name is my name, too.
Whenever we go out,
The people always shout,
"There goes John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt!"
A na na na na na na. (Or other non-lexical vocableVocableIn speech, a vocable is an utterance, term, or word that is capable of being spoken and recognized. A non-lexical vocable is used without semantic role or meaning, while structure of vocables is often considered apart from any meaning...
s.)
The Austrian version is slightly different and goes like this:
"John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt,
That's my name, too!
Whenever he goes out,
People always shout,
John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt!!!!!!"
Lyrics
The mock German name celebrated in the song suggests that young English-speaking children still find longer northern-European names to be inherently funny wordInherently funny word
Words may be considered inherently funny, for reasons ranging from onomatopoeia to phonosemantics. Such words have been used by a range of influential comedians, including W. C...
s; compare the Blinkenlights
Blinkenlights
Blinkenlights is a hacker's neologism for diagnostic lights on old mainframe computers and modern network hardware.The Jargon File provides the following etymology:...
faxlore
Faxlore
Faxlore is a sort of folklore: humorous texts, folk poetry, folk art, and urban legends that are circulated, not by word of mouth, but by fax machine...
in which English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
words are deformed to form a mock German warning text. The surname
Surname
A surname is a name added to a given name and is part of a personal name. In many cases, a surname is a family name. Many dictionaries define "surname" as a synonym of "family name"...
"Schmidt
Schmidt
Schmidt may refer to:* Schmidt , including list of people with the surname* Schmidt * Schmidt , a crater on Mars* Schmidt , in Kamchatka...
" and the surname suffix
Affix
An affix is a morpheme that is attached to a word stem to form a new word. Affixes may be derivational, like English -ness and pre-, or inflectional, like English plural -s and past tense -ed. They are bound morphemes by definition; prefixes and suffixes may be separable affixes...
"-heimer" are of Germanic
Germanic peoples
The Germanic peoples are an Indo-European ethno-linguistic group of Northern European origin, identified by their use of the Indo-European Germanic languages which diversified out of Proto-Germanic during the Pre-Roman Iron Age.Originating about 1800 BCE from the Corded Ware Culture on the North...
origin. Schmidt is one of the most common surnames in German heritage.
Furthermore, the given name of "Johann" was often given to boys with a secondary given name; when this occurred the secondary given name was often the name one was called by. In the song the English "John" is substituted for the traditional German "Johann". Thus, John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt is not an unrealistic German name.
Origin
While the origins of the song are most definitely obscure, some evidence places its roots with vaudevilleVaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
and theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
acts of the late 19th century and early 20th century popular in immigrant communities. Some vaudeville acts during the era, such as the work of Joe Weber
Joe Weber (vaudevillian)
Joe Weber born Joseph Morris Weber was a vaudevillian who, along with Lew Fields, formed the comedy team of Weber and Fields....
and Lew Fields
Lew Fields
Lew Fields , born as Moses Schoenfeld, was an American actor, comedian, vaudeville star, theatre manager and producer....
, often gave voice to shared frustrations of German-American immigrants and heavily leaned on malapropism
Malapropism
A malapropism is an act of misusing or the habitual misuse of similar sounding words, especially with humorous results. An example is Yogi Berra's statement: "Texas has a lot of electrical votes," rather than "electoral votes".-Etymology:...
s and difficulties with the English language as a vehicle for its humor. Further, John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt shares many characteristics with "My Name is Jan Jansen" a song that can trace its origin to Swedish vaudeville in the late 19th century.
The song can conceivably be sung in an infinite loop
Infinite loop
An infinite loop is a sequence of instructions in a computer program which loops endlessly, either due to the loop having no terminating condition, having one that can never be met, or one that causes the loop to start over...
, like "The Song That Never Ends
The Song That Never Ends
"The Song That Never Ends" is a self-referential and infinitely iterative children's song. The song is a single verse long, written in an infinite-loop motif in a march style, such that it naturally flows in a cyclical fashion, repeating the same verse over and over. It is very popular with...
", "My Name is Jan Jansen", "Michael Finnegan
Michael Finnegan (song)
Michael Finnegan is an example of an unboundedly long song, which can continue with numerous variations until the singer decides to stop. Like most other unboundedly long songs, this song tends to be sung by schoolchildren. It is a popular song often sung around a campfire or during scouting events...
", or "High Hopes
High Hopes (1959 song)
"High Hopes" is a popular song first popularized by Frank Sinatra, with music written by Jimmy Van Heusen and lyrics by Sammy Cahn. It was introduced in the 1959 film A Hole in the Head, nominated for a Grammy and won an Oscar for Best Original Song at the 32nd Academy Awards.-Description:The song...
".
Versions of this song also appear in other languages, such as the Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
rendition; "Juan Pablo Pedro de la Mar".
Notable appearances
1. The song is featured in the 2001 film, Recess: School's OutRecess: School's Out
Recess: School's Out is a 2001 animated film based on the Disney television series Recess. This film was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and was released theatrically nationwide on February 16, 2001. It was released on video and DVD on August 7, 2001.-Plot:School's out at Third Street School, but...
, led by Robert Goulet
Robert Goulet
Robert Gerard Goulet was a Canadian American entertainer as a singer and actor. He played the role of Lancelot in the Broadway musical Camelot of 1960.-Early life:...
as Mikey Blumberg (although Jason Davis
Jason Davis (actor)
Jason Davis is an actor best known for his voice acting work on the Animated TV series Recess.-Early life:...
provided Mikey's speaking voice).
2. The song is featured as "Shane Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt" in the 2004 film, The Pacifier
The Pacifier
The Pacifier is a 2005 comedy film directed by Adam Shankman and written by Thomas Lennon and Ben Garant. It stars Vin Diesel, Lauren Graham, Faith Ford, Brittany Snow, Max Thieriot, Morgan York, Carol Kane, and Brad Garrett. The film was released in March 2005 by Walt Disney Pictures, and earned...
, sung by Lulu Plummer (Morgan York
Morgan York
Morgan Elizabeth York is an American actress, best known for her role as Kim Baker in Cheaper by the Dozen and Cheaper by the Dozen 2, and also her recent role as Sarah in Hannah Montana.- Career :...
) and her Firefly Scouts.
3. This song also appears in Season 5, Episode 8 of Happy Days, happy-days episode: fonzie and leather tuscadero airing Tuesday November 8, 1977.
4. The song is used in Season 4, Episode 126 of the Andy Griffith Show: Back To Nature. Original air date May 11th, 1964.
5. This song is used in Season 1, Episode 23 of "The Secret Life of the American Teenager
The Secret Life of the American Teenager
The Secret Life of the American Teenager is an American teen drama television series created by Brenda Hampton. It first aired on ABC Family on July 1, 2008. The show was renewed for a second season consisting of 24 episodes on February 9, 2009, which began airing on June 22, 2009...
"
6. This song is used in the movie "Strawberry Shortcake Berry Big Journey"