Jan 8, 2017
It's been some time since the rhyme Counting Crows was posted here. Since then, other variants have come to light and are added here. By the way, some of these rhymes came to the United States from England where their version is called a Magpie.
I have no idea where it started, but there are many variations on the 'counting crows' rhyme. I first learned it as:
One for sorrow,
Two for joy
Three for a girl,
Four for a boy
Five for silver,
Six for gold
Seven for a secret never to be told.
That is the version used in the song "A Murder of One" by Counting Crows, and undoubtedly where they got their name.
Many other versions exist, from various regions. These below come from user Kerrie posted on surlalunefairytales.com:
Counting Rhyme (from The Folklore of Birds, by Laura C. Martin, 1993)
One for sorrow,
Two for mirth,
Three for a wedding,
Four for a birth,
Five for silver,
Six for gold,
Seven for a secret not to be told.
Eight for heaven,
Nine for hell,
And ten for the devil's own sel'.
Counting Crows (e-mailed to me by a friend)
One for sorrow,
two for joy,
three for a girl,
four for a boy,
five for silver,
six for gold,
seven for a secret,
never to be told,
eight for a wish,
nine for a kiss,
ten for a time
of joyous bliss.
Magpie in flight - clipartkid.com
Magpie Rhyme (from Bird Brains, by Candace Savage, 1997. The Rhyme she
quotes is from The Dictionary of Superstitions published by Oxford University Press in 1992)
One for sorrow,
two for mirth,
three for a wedding,
four for birth,
five for rich,
six for poor,
Seven for a witch,
I can tell you no more.
Counting Rhyme (another from an email)
One crow sorrow,
Two crows mirth,
three, a wedding,
four, a birth,
five brings silver,
six takes wealth,
seven crows a secret,
More I can nae tell.
Counting Crows (again, from an email)
One for sadness,
Two for mirth;
Three for marriage,
Four for birth;
Five for laughing,
Six for crying:
Seven for sickness,
Eight for dying;
Nine for silver,
Ten for gold;
Eleven a secret that will never be told.
A third found in Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable is:
One's sorrow,
Two's mirth,
Three's a wedding,
Four's a birth,
Five's a christening,
Six a dearth,
Seven's heaven,
Eight is hell,
And nine's the devil his old self.
And there is this page within the oldwivestales group on Yahoo:
The practice of Augury has been around for centuries. It is about predicting the future by counting the number of crows present at significant times, Sometimes the direction of their flight is significant, or the time of day at which they are seen. Complex rules have been drawn up by some augurist, while simple rhymes are used by others.
The basic rhyme, which goes something like "One for Sorrow, Two for Joy.." has been a popular children's chant off and on through the years. It has recently been made popular again by the band Counting Crows, which has put the rhyme to music.
Crow augury may have started off as Magpie augury. The oldest ryhmes, including at least one dating to the 1600's, deal with counting magpies rather than crows
.
The magpie rhyme seems to have been left on European shores, though. In North America, most people who know the rhyme use it in reference to crows.
Various version of the rhyme exist,but the basics are as follows:
- One: Sorrow. An unhappy event. A change for the worse. Maybe loss or a death.
- Two: Joy. A surprise. A change for the better. Sometimes the finding of something.
- Three: Marriage. A celebration. Sometimes the birth of a female child. Other times some significant event around a daughter.
- Four: Birth. Usually the birth of a male child. Sometimes a significant event surrounding a son.
- Five: Silver. Sometimes costly. Usually a positive transaction.
- Six: Gold. Wealth. Sometimes money. Maybe greed. Occasionally a negative transaction.
- Seven: Something of spiritual significance. Often a secret. In some cases witchcraft, or the performing of sacred rites.
- Eight: Something profound. Death, dying, or a glimpse of Heaven. A life-altering journey or experience.
- Nine: Something sensual. Passion, or forbidden delight. In some versions this is corruption, in others it is closer to temptation.
- Ten: Something extreme. An overwhelming sensation. Something paid in full.
- Eleven: Uncertainty. Waiting. Wanting. May be in relation to a spiritual matter.
- Twelve: Fulfillment. Riches (though not always of a material sort). A fruitful labor. Something completed. An end to a problem,or the answer to a question.
Image: Crow on a limb - clipartpanda.com
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