# Greensleeves/What Child is This? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 14, 2007, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960 "2007-06-14T04:47:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Noone\_Special](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/noone_special/32/2863_2.png) [@Noone\_Special](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noone_Special)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/21 "2007-06-14T11:00:43Z")
Greensleeves. Never heard of What Child is This. ---
**Author:** ![Who\_me\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/958977/32.png) [@Who\_me\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Who_me_1)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/22 "2007-06-14T11:05:17Z")
[QUOTE=Noone Special] Greensleeves. Never heard of What Child is This. [/QUOTE] Ditto. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/23 "2007-06-14T11:08:09Z")
I don’t know this carol, and it’s “Greensleeves” to me. Apocryphally penned by Henry VIII! ---
**Author:** ![Caprese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9a28c/32.png) [@Caprese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caprese)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/24 "2007-06-14T11:59:32Z")
[QUOTE=MrDibble] . Apocryphally penned by Henry VIII! [/QUOTE] I heard this too. I grew up Episcopal, but to me the song was always Greensleeves;I learned of What Child Is This later in life. Upon hearing it, I tend to think What Child Is This around December, and Greensleeves the rest of the year, but even then at its heart, for me, it is Greensleeves. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/25 "2007-06-14T12:09:36Z")
Greensleeves, but I still think of it as one of those “winter” songs you hear around Christmas. Now that I think about it, the first version I knew as a child was the “the old year now away has fled” lyrics, but still with the title “Greensleeves.” I’m positive about this because I remember wondering why the song in my Baby’s First Christmas Songs book (not the actual title but something along those lines) would be called “Greensleeves” when green sleeves had nothing to do with the words. My mom helpfully offered the (mis)information that is was called “Greensleeves” when it was played as an instrumental. Was there some sort of mint candy that was called Greensleeves? I think this could also have contributed to my childhood confusion over the whole issue. ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/26 "2007-06-14T12:33:08Z")
If I hear it sung, I’d think of it by the words I heard being sung. If I hear it played, it pops up in my brain as What Child Is This/Greensleeves. Honestly. I always think of the tune as a unit, not as two seperate entities. And I’ve heard it performed in both Dorian and minor, and I like both. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/27 "2007-06-14T12:44:17Z")
I learned it as the theme to “Lassie” long before I knew of either “Greensleeves” or “What Child Is This”! But to answer the OP in a roundabout way… if it were July and I were in a restaurant or elevator and I heard a Muzak version of “Joy to the World” or “Silent Night,” I’d immediately think, “WTF? Christmas songs in July???” But if I heard a Muzak version of “Greensleeves”/“What Child” in July, it wouldn’t register. It wouldn’t seem out of place. I’d assume it was “Greensleeves.” But if I heard it in December, I’d assume it was “What Child.” To use an analogy, “God Save the Queen” and “America (My Country Tis of Thee”) have the same melody. So, if I heard a marching band playing that tune, how would I identify it? By geography. If I hear it played in the USA (or in an AMerican movie or TV show), I assume it’s “America.” If I hear it in the UK (or in a British movie or show), I assume it’s “God Save the Queen.” Context determines how I Name That Tune. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/28 "2007-06-14T12:53:43Z")
I knew it first as _What Child Is This_ - but now I associate it with either, depending on the setting. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/29 "2007-06-14T12:57:36Z")
I first heard this tune at summer camp as “Away With Me.” It’s from the show “How the West was Won.” Away away come away with me Where the grass grows wild and the wind blows free. Away away come away with me And I’ll build you a home in the meadow. ---
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/30 "2007-06-14T13:01:52Z")
[QUOTE=Caprese] …I grew up Episcopal, but to me the song was always Greensleeves;I learned of What Child Is This later in life. Upon hearing it, I tend to think What Child Is This around December, and Greensleeves the rest of the year, but even then at its heart, for me, it is Greensleeves. [/QUOTE] As did I. In fact, when you look for “What Child is This?” in the Episcopal hymnal, you see at the bottom of the page that the tune is called “Greensleeves.” Interestingly, when one says “Greensleeves,” my first thought is always the beautiful version of the tune performed by Jeff Beck on his album “Truth.” You can listen to a bit of it [here.](http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=ADFEAEE4781CDF49A97620C8852D1599E620D210DF4BF58150234558C0B73844810473FD0ABAD8C9AEF875B47EE3F724A15805D7C2FE2781&sql=33:jxfwxqrdldde) ---
**Author:** ![Septima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@Septima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Septima)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/31 "2007-06-14T13:07:23Z")
Never heard of the christmas version ---
**Author:** ![Jayn\_Newell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jayn\_Newell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayn_Newell)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/32 "2007-06-14T13:09:04Z")
I’ve only encountered Greensleves once or twice in my life, and don’t really know it. So it would register as What Child is This for me. (One of my favorite carols BTW) ---
**Author:** ![SkeptiJess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@SkeptiJess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkeptiJess)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/33 "2007-06-14T13:12:36Z")
Greensleeves. And, if you’re counting, my dad also ‘hears’ Greensleeves when he hears this tune. He and my mom came over the other night to watch _The Tudors_ and Henry was playing the song. Dad said, “Shit, that little bugger wrote ‘Greensleeves’?” ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/34 "2007-06-14T13:17:37Z")
[QUOTE=Noone Special] Greensleeves. Never heard of What Child is This. [/QUOTE] Ditto. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/35 "2007-06-14T13:36:25Z")
[QUOTE=Noone Special] Greensleeves. Never heard of What Child is This. [/QUOTE] Me, too. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/36 "2007-06-14T13:43:49Z")
Born and raised Roman Caholic. Altar boy. Twelve years of Catholic Schooling, plus four years of a Christian University. Catholic Church was 30 paces from my home, the Rectory was across the street. Married a Catholic girl who lived ‘around the corner’. Two kids, 5 and 7 y/o, both go to Catholic School. And to me and my wife: What Child is This. Christmas. And this thread is the first ‘Greensleeve’ reference I’ve ever encountered. ---
**Author:** ![melvin\_coznowski](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b487fb/32.png) [@melvin\_coznowski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/melvin_coznowski)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/37 "2007-06-14T14:02:31Z")
I first knew this song as “Sir Greenbaum’s Madrigal” by Alan Sherman. Imagine my surprise when I found out it was Greensleeves/What Child is This… I’ve since heard it played from ice cream trucks, and have thought “What a depressing song to play!” To me, it’s like playing “Ode to Billy Joe” at a 6-year old’s birthday party… :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/38 "2007-06-14T14:15:19Z")
My first thought would be “Greensleeves.” Although I love the Christmas Carol, too. ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/39 "2007-06-14T14:40:32Z")
Since I know the words to What Child Is This, and I don’t know the words to Greensleeves, the Christmas carol always runs through my head when I hear the tune, although I recognize it by either name. On a slightly related hijack, when you hear the melody only for a certain tune popular with chidren, do you immediately think of[ul] [li]Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star[/li][li]The Alphabet Song[/li][li]Baa, Baa Black Sheep[/li][/ul] Or did you even realize that they were all the same tune? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2007, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960/40 "2007-06-14T14:45:19Z")
I think of it (complete with punctuation) as: Greensleeves (_What Child is This_) because that’s how it was listed in the songbook for my [Magical Musical Thing](http://www.miniorgan.com/lib/view.php?miniorgan=12&srch=&srch_type=&sortby=&output=) as a kid. I had no idea that it was a Christmas Carol until just now. Did you know that 90% of songs printed in books will fit to the tune of Greensleeves? Try it! You might have to Alanis a few of the words to fit, but it makes those boring “poems” a lot more interesting when you read them aloud to your kids: **Song of Nimrodel** (by JRR Tolkien) An Elven-maid there was of old, A shining star by day: Her mantle white was hemmed with gold, Her shoes of silver-grey. A star was bound upon her brows, A light was on her hair As sun upon the golden boughs In Lórien the fair. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/greensleeves-what-child-is-this/407960.md?page=3)