Nursery rhymes have a long history. Some claim they date from pre-historic times. Traditionally they were verses with rhythm and rhyme that parents or nannies would tell or recite to children in the nursery. This was not only for their enjoyment but also helped the children develop their speaking and listening skills.
Many were passed on from mouth to mouth at a time when very few people could read or write. Sometimes they were just for fun. Others were meant to teach a moral or lesson.
While there are some very well-known nursery rhymes that always appear in poetry collections and books, there are hundreds more waiting to be rediscovered.
One group of nursery rhymes are the lullabies, songs and melodies. Some of them are a little bit scary. Here is an example:
Bye, bye bunting
Daddy's gone a-hunting
Gone to get a rabbit skin