# Origin of the "nanny nanny nanny!" taunting melody? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 12, 2010, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874 "2010-06-12T01:56:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/1 "2010-06-12T01:56:40Z")
Most of us are probably familiar with the childhood taunting melody used by unpleasant children everywhere for delivering such messages as “nanny nanny nanny!” or “Kevin’s i-in _trou_-ble!” or the like. Two notes, then a third down, then a fourth up, then down to the original note (most strongly emphasized), then a third down again. Has there been any research into the geographical/social extent of this melody’s use for taunting purposes and where it might have originally come from? ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/2 "2010-06-12T02:03:21Z")
Isn’t it the first 2 bars of “Ring around the rosies, pocket full of posies”? Nanny nanny boo boo, stick your face in doo doo. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/3 "2010-06-12T02:10:34Z")
> [@Beware\_of\_Doug](#): > > Isn’t it the first 2 bars of “Ring around the rosies, pocket full of posies”? Yes, I suppose it is. :smack: Oddly, though, when I look at the Wikipedia article about Ring Around the Rosie, the 1898 score they display has four variants, none of which are the Ring around the Rosie/taunting song I’m familiar with. So I suppose that variant must have emerged at some point. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/4 "2010-06-12T02:49:40Z")
Didn’t it start out as a series of “nyahs” rather than “nannys”? ---
**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/5 "2010-06-12T03:05:16Z")
In my family it was more like, “neener neener neener” ---
**Author:** ![TheChileanBlob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thechileanblob/32/435_2.png) [@TheChileanBlob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheChileanBlob)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/6 "2010-06-12T04:25:30Z")
Baby, baby, Stick your head in gravy Wash it off with bubblegum and send it to the Navy! ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/7 "2010-06-12T10:19:44Z")
> [@matt\_mcl](#): > > Oddly, though, when I look at the Wikipedia article about Ring Around the Rosie, the 1898 score they display has four variants, none of which are the Ring around the Rosie/taunting song I’m familiar with. So I suppose that variant must have emerged at some point. Wikipedia has more details under [Taunting](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taunting#The_universal_taunting_melody). ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/8 "2010-06-12T13:56:55Z")
Brit here, I was brought up with the version Nah Ni Nahny NAA Naa. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/9 "2010-06-13T01:55:41Z")
Mine was Nanny nanny boo boo. And it’s really fun to play on trumpet with each trumpet playing it a half step off. Or better yet, a off by a tritone (which I just played on my keyboard.) ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/10 "2010-06-13T06:38:20Z")
For me, “neener neener neener” and “nanny, nanny, boo boo” are distinctly different ‘chants’ (for lack of a better term) though similar sounding. ---
**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/11 "2010-06-15T02:58:36Z")
Definitely different, Opal. In retrospect, I’ve heard both in my childhood. I don’t think I’ve every heard it like **Chefguy’s** , though. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/12 "2010-06-15T03:02:04Z")
When I was a kid it was: _Nanny, nanny, nanny-goat! Cannot catch a billy-goat!_ I’ll venture to say that a billy-goat was seen as stronger/more powerful than a nanny-goat, so tha ‘Nanny, nanny, nanny!’ is calling someone a weakling. ---
**Author:** ![drpepper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@drpepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drpepper)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2010, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/13 "2010-06-16T21:40:16Z")
My brilliant musical husband has pointed out that the minor third interval found in this chant is very common in children’s music / chant; it seems to resonate with the wee brains. There are several songs that use it: ‘Ring Around the Rosie’, as mentioned; there’s a play-song call-and-response that includes the line “Wolf, are you there?” that some may be familiar with; ‘This Old Man’; I’m sure there are more. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2010, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/14 "2010-06-16T21:49:22Z")
We always said “Nayh, nayh, nayh, nayh, nayh” ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/15 "2010-06-17T14:54:24Z")
> [@drpepper](#): > > my brilliant musical husband has pointed out that the minor third interval found in this chant is very common in children’s music / chant AIRBALL! Same interval. I think it’s significant that it’s descending as well. ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/16 "2010-06-17T15:48:27Z")
Another vote for “Nya nya” with the /ah/ sounding like in “ant”. It weirds me out to hear people say it with an r. It’s irritating because they’re saying it wrong! ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/17 "2010-06-17T20:11:22Z")
It’s like there’s a whole hidden world out there. Other than “neener neener” (and never with a third neener or any differentiation in the how the two are pronounced) I’ve never heard any of the things mentioned in this thread. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/18 "2010-06-18T03:02:32Z")
Do other people recognize the verse following “nanny nanny boo-boo” as being “stick your head in doo-doo”? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/19 "2010-06-18T15:03:35Z")
**Opal Cat** , that’s exactly what I was about to post. Nanny-nanny boo-boo Stick your face in doo-doo ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874/20 "2010-06-18T18:39:45Z")
I remember that Leonard Bernstein dealt with this question in one of his lectures on music. Unfortunately, it’s been a good 30 years since I saw that lecture, so my grasp of the detail of his explanation is somewhat spotty. But what I do recall seems to follow **drpepper** ’s brilliant musical husband’s idea, that minor descending thirds is so basic in some way that it is appealing to small children. Roddy [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/origin-of-the-nanny-nanny-nanny-taunting-melody/542874.md?page=2)