Children’s games are fun to play, but when you dig deep into some of their origins, you may change your mind about their appropriateness for kids. It may surprise you to learn that some of the most entertaining children’s games have questionable—even creepy—backstories.
Let’s dive deep into the sinister lore around some of the most popular children’s games worldwide.
Ring Around the Rosie Is About the Bubonic Plague
“Ring around the Rosie, A pocket full of posies,
A-tissue! A-tissue! We all fall down.”
The lyrics to the Ring Around the Rosie don’t make much sense, but children have enjoyed playing this singing game for centuries. One child, who is assigned the “Rosie,” stands at the center of the circle. The other players hold hands and sing the song while skipping in a circular direction.
At the end of the song, as the lyrics say, everybody falls down. The slowest player to fall down becomes the next Rosie.
The true origins of the song remain a mystery, but a popular theory is that it was written about the bubonic plague in Europe and Asia. Often referred to as the Black Death, this epidemic killed millions of people in Europe between 1347 and 1352.
Based on some interpretations, the ring around the Rosie refers to the red rash that portents the disease. The following line describes the flowers placed around the infected person for protection.
Another symptom of the Black Death was the sniffles, which would explain the tissue. And the final line, “We all fall down,” is an apt description of all the lives lost during the plague.
Blind Man’s Buff is Pretext for Copping a Feel
This game is played within a large room or even outdoors. The person who is “it,” or the so-called “blind man,” is blindfolded and tasked with catching another player and trying to identify them.
If the “caught” person is correctly identified, they become the blind man in the next round.
Identifying another person while blindfolded typically requires touching their face and body. When malicious players join, the game can be a thin pretext to be inappropriate with others.
Goosey Goosey Gander Is About Sex Workers
Goose and Gander is a game of chase, where players form a line of “geese” and hold on to the hips of the person in front of them. The game’s “it,” or the “gander,” is tasked with capturing the goose at the end of the line.
The mother goose, or the player at the very front, should guide the rest of the line and run side to side to block the gander’s advances. When the gander tags the final goose, the mother goose becomes the next “it.”
The game’s origin is said to be a nursery rhyme with the following lyrics:
“Goosey goosey gander,
Whither shall I wander?
Upstairs and downstairs
And in my lady’s chamber.
There, I met an old man
Who wouldn’t say his prayers,
So I took him by his left leg
And threw him down the stairs.”
It is said to be about prostitutes, as “goose” was slang for sex workers in the 18th century. Other historians say the song was sung by children of prostitutes to entertain customers in brothels.
Hot Cockles Is Simply Violent
Hot Cockles was a popular Christmas game in Regency era. A blindfolded player (the “it”) kneels and places their head on a seated player’s lap.
The “it” holds their hands on their lower back, with their palms facing upward. The other players take turns slapping the blindfolded player’s hands, who will guess who hit them. The player guessed correctly becomes the next “it.”
In more violent versions of the game, the players take turns slapping, kicking, or paddling the kneeling player’s bottom.
Girls Tried to Predict Their Future Husbands
In the Victorian Era, a popular pastime for girls was to try to predict their future husband’s looks or professions in various ways.
- Melted Lead – Girls would pour melted lead into a bowl of water and analyze the shape to predict their future husband’s job.
- Three Luggies – This involves three bowls: one filled with water, one with milk, and the last empty. Girls were blindfolded and put their hands in one of the bowls. If they get water, they would marry a bachelor. Milk signified a widower. And putting their hand in an empty bowl meant they were bound for spinsterhood.
- Apple By Candlelight – Girls eat apples by candlelight while looking into the mirror in a bid to see the face of their future husband.
Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board Was Also About a Plague
This is a common slumber party game where children try to raise a child’s body into the air using only their fingers.
In the earliest versions of this game, children took turns stating the following:
“She is looking ill.”
“She is looking worse.”
“She is dying.”
“She is dead.”
By the time the child is purportedly “dead,” the players then begin chanting, “Light as a feather, stiff as a board,” as they prepare to “levitate” the dead body.
This game reportedly originated in the 17th century during the great plague in London. Despite the deaths all around them, children still found ways to have fun.
Hoop Rolling Reflects Greek Training Exercises
This popular game is played with two or more children racing one another while rolling a hoop with a stick. The game is fun and can be quite competitive. However, its backstory is a bit more serious.
Historians say that the ancient Greeks used hoop rolling, locally known as trochus, to train those who were not very strong.
Romans also used trochus for entertainment and military development. In other words, hoop rolling was a very serious activity for adults thousands of years ago.
Finding Fun in Serious Situations
It is evident from this list that some children’s games were derived from dire situations. Plagues, deaths, military training—the games were coping mechanisms to make the most out of difficulties.
