# Does Anyone Else Have to Sing the Alphabet? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 3, 2002, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235 "2002-12-03T16:21:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/61 "2002-12-04T04:22:05Z")
I live in Chicago, so I’m the authority on how it’s pronounced. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![IGJoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/igjoe/32/5420_2.png) [@IGJoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IGJoe)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/62 "2002-12-04T04:33:05Z")
Count me in with the folks who have a hard time with H - L. I don’t have to _sing_ it, nececarily, but I _do_ have to start at H and recite my way to the letter I’m looking for. It’s funny that so many people have problems with this one section… ---
**Author:** ![chique](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@chique](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chique)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/63 "2002-12-04T04:53:39Z")
Mmm. Today I was looking for an “H” file and couldn’t find it. I had filed it behind the "I"s. Next time I shall sing. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/64 "2002-12-04T06:19:20Z")
I spent so many years as a secretary and file clerk that I stopped having to sing the alphabet song as I filed. I learned to hum it to myself instead. _Let’s not even start talking about multiplication tables, okay?_ ---
**Author:** ![Truth\_Seeker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5fc32e/32.png) [@Truth\_Seeker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Truth_Seeker)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/65 "2002-12-04T08:53:12Z")
A few years ago, a friend of mine was pulled over in the U.S. late at night on suspicion of driving under the influence. (He wasn’t - he was just tired.) As part of the field sobriety test, the cop asked him to say the alphabet. He started out OK, but by the time he got to “e” he had started to sing. Much embarrassed, he got a hold of himself, only to drift back into the infamous “alphabet song” a few letters later. The cop, meanwhile, was fighting a valiant, though losing, battle to maintain his professional demeanor. According to my friend, the officer was trying so hard not to laugh at the spectacle of my friend trying not to sing the alphabet that he looked as if he were having some sort of seizure. By the time he had struggled through to “z,” it was all the cop could do to waive off my friend and stagger back to his patrol car. ---
**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/66 "2002-12-04T13:21:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by JeffB \* > \*\* > I’m still trying to figure out why you have to recite the Preamble in order to know how many days a month has. 😉 \*\* Well, you know those Founding Fathers had a lot to do with whether a month as 31 days. It’s in Amendment 522. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Gazelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Gazelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gazelle)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/67 "2002-12-04T14:07:33Z")
WashAdJeMadMonAdJackVanHarrTyPoTay FillPierceBuLincJohnGrantHayes GarArtCleveHarrCleveMacRoo TaftWilHardCoolHoovRooTru IkeKenJohnNixFordCarRea BushClintBush Not a song, but a memory aide. ---
**Author:** ![Gazelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Gazelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gazelle)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/68 "2002-12-04T14:11:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mnemosyne \* > \*\*One two three four FIVE > Six seven eight nine TEN > eleven TWELVE! \*\* DooDooDooDooDoo DooDooDooDooDooDoo DooDooDooDoo SEVEN! Gotta love it. ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/69 "2002-12-04T14:14:40Z")
I don’t have to sing the alphabet, but this reminds me of a story. A friend of mine from India who I guess had learned English not as a young child had a more elaborate song, that went something like “A for apple, B for boy…” Out of curiosity I asked him what X was for, and he gleefully replied, “Xmas tree!” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![JeffB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeffb/32/188_2.png) [@JeffB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JeffB)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/70 "2002-12-04T15:16:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Achernar \* > \*\*I don’t have to sing the alphabet, but this reminds me of a story. A friend of mine from India who I guess had learned English not as a young child had a more elaborate song, that went something like “A for apple, B for boy…” Out of curiosity I asked him what X was for, and he gleefully replied, “Xmas tree!” 🙂 \*\* As soon as I see/hear “A is for apple” I immediately go straight to J: > [@](#): > > A is for Apple > J is for Jacks > Cinnamon, toasty Apple Jacks! ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/71 "2002-12-04T18:30:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Gazelle from Hell \* > \*\*WashAdJeMadMonAdJackVanHarrTyPoTay > FillPierceBuLincJohnGrantHayes > GarArtCleveHarrCleveMacRoo > TaftWilHardCoolHoovRooTru > IkeKenJohnNixFordCarRea > BushClintBush > > Not a song, but a memory aide. \*\* I don’t know about you, but you could get into a heap of trouble with that last line if anyone only half-hears you. ---
**Author:** ![Politzania](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3ab097/32.png) [@Politzania](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Politzania)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/72 "2002-12-04T19:06:35Z")
Another singer here… tho I can start somewhere in the middle (Q R S, T U V) if I am alphabetizing something near the end. If I’m counting by fives, I use the rhythm from the Schoolhouse Rock video … Somewhere I have an Animaniacs CD where Wakko recites [the states & capitals of the USA](http://members.cruzio.com/~keeper/03.html#4)to the tune of “Turkey in the Straw” and Yakko does [the nations of the world](http://members.cruzio.com/~keeper/00.html#4) to the tune of the “Mexican Hat Dance”. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/73 "2002-12-04T22:53:03Z")
Vietnamese has an alphabet and is also a tonal language. Does reciting the alphabet with the tones constitute singing it? ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2002, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235/74 "2002-12-04T23:53:14Z")
How many people have memorized Tom Lehrer’s “Elements” song? (It’s the periodic table sung to “Modern Major General.” Pretty cool.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-else-have-to-sing-the-alphabet/140235.md?page=3)