Edited by Azizi Powell
This is Part II of a two part series that provides an alphabetized list of text (word only) examples of Douuble Dutch rhymes ot Double Dutch rhymes that have been chanted in the United States. I'm referring to this compilation as the pancocojams (Azizi Powell) compilation of Double Dutch rhymes)
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2022/04/pancocojams-compilation-of-double-dutch.html for Part I (Numbers- H) of this pancoocjams series.
The content of this post is presented for folkloric purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
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PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S NOTE
This is a partial listing of the English language recreational Double Dutch rhymes that have been chanted and/or still are chanted in the United States. "Recreational Double Dutch" is sometimes referred to as "street Double Dutch".
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"Double Dutch" is a sub-category of children's jump rope recreational play. 1973 (New York City) marks the beginning of Double Dutch as a recreational sport. One of the key differences between recreational Double Dutch and the sport of Double Dutch is that chantng rhymes/singing songs while jumping isn't a part of the Double Dutch sport.
Many of the rhymes (also known as "songs" or "ditties") that are chanted for single rope jumping are also chanted for Double Dutch (and vice versa). Since at least the 1970s, many jump rope rhymes have been chanted as hand clap rhymes. For that reason, the words for a number of Double Dutch rhymes are the same as or very similar to rhymes that are most often performed while playing hand clap games.
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In Atlantic City, New Jersey in the 1950s I tried to, but never learned how to jump Double Dutch or turn the ropes for Double Dutch.During that time, I remember that girls playing Double Dutch sung or chanted rhymes just as I and other girls jplaying single jump rope as individuals or in a group chanted or sung rhymes. However, I can't remember any of those Double Dutch rhymes. I recognize the words of a few examples given below, but that is because I know those examples as either single jump rope rhymes or hand clapping rhymes or both.
In contrast to the pancocojams compilations of foot stomping cheers, I haven't directly collected any Double Dutch rhymes. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2016/09/foot-stomping-cheers-alphabetical-list.html for the first post in a five part series on pancocojams' compilation of foot stomping cheers. The links to the other posts in that series are found in each post.
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A number of examples in this pancocojams compilation of Double Dutch rhymes are from Recess Battles: Playing, Fighting, and Storytelling edited by Anna R. Beresin or from a chapter that Anna R. Beresin wrote that is included in a book on children's recreational play. At few other examples are from other books. All of the other examples of Double Dutch rhymes in this compilation are from various YouTube discussion threads and other internet websites.
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It's likely that most of these commenters are African American women (since the books that are quoted focus on the recreational play of African American girls, and the commenters in the internet discussion threads that are most often quoted are from discussion threads whose participants are all African American women (i.e. the Greekchat.com discussion threads = members of historically Black Greek letter sororities).
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Click the Double Dutch rhyme tag below for additional pancocojams posts about Double Dutch. Those posts may include more information about playing Double Dutch and more information about one or more of the rhymes that are included in this compilation.
These examples are presented in alphabetical order based on the first number or the first letter of the first letter of the first word. The source (i.e. book, direct collection, or website) is given below the example along with demographic information and/or comments.
Comments or a brief excerpt from the cited source may be given with some of these examples. A brief editorial comment from me may also follow a specific example.
I, J
ICE CREAM CHERRY ON TOP (Example #1)
"Ice cream, ice cream cherry on top, how many boyfriends do you got?"
-Sweetpea43, Aug, 12, 2020, https://www.lipstickalley.com/threads/double-dutch-jump-rope-rhymes.3807765/ Double Dutch rhymes?
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ICE CREAM CHERRY ON TOP
“Ice cream, ice cream / Cherry on top / How many boyfriends does (NAME) got / 1, 2, 3, 4…"
-Shireal Carrol, October 29, 2020, https://www.essence.com/news/flashback-fridays-double-dutch/ Flashback Fridays: Double Dutch
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J I GYPSY
"When we were jumping rope we used to go through all the numbers first 2-4-6-8-10, 1-0 2-0 3-0 etc. and then bust out this rhyme:
J-I gypsy
where she been
she been around the world and back home again
she's a lover undercover
get down with ya mama
so spell your name on 1 foot (then she did it)
now spell your name on 2 feet (then she did it)
or
J-I gypsy
Muhammad Ali
Where on earth could her lover be?
I don't think anybody got further than that or either I forget the rest.
- Symphony08 (Location: Illinois), 03-26-2003,
http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/showthread.php?t=31403&page=3, "Old School Chants"
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JACK BE NIMBLE
Jack be nimble
Jack be quick
Jack hoofed up over the candlestick
Foot, hop, around the side
Un huh, that girl from
North Philly
She don’t take no stuff
From nobody
She’s up
She’s down
She’s all around
-African American girls playing Double Dutch, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in Recess Battles: Playing, Fighting, and Storytelling, edited by Anna R. Beresin, page 96 , collected in 1992
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K, L
KITTY KAT BAR
kitty Kat Bar
Gonna be on time
Cause the school bell rings
At a quarter to nine
Don’t be late
At a quarter to eight
1, 2, 3 oh 9
Late, late, late, late
1, 2, 3, oh 9
(Repeats until a jumper enters the rope)
-African American girls playing Double Dutch, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in Recess Battles: Playing, Fighting, and Storytelling edited by Anna R. Beresin, page 95, collected in 1992
M, N
MINI SKIRT
Look at that girl with the mini skirt
You mess with her
Get your feelings hurt
She knows karate
From the front to the back
Foot, she’s all that
Hop, she’s all that
Bounce, she’s all that
--African American girls playing Double Dutch, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in Recess Battles: Playing, Fighting, and Storytelling edited by Anna R. Beresin, page 93, collected in 1999
MY MOTHER AND YOUR MOTHER (were hanging the clothes)
"My mother and your mother where hanging the clothes. My mother punched your mother right in the nose" What color was the Blood Red, R E D another color then spell....I Don't know the rest...
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NIKE
Nike Nike
Who can do the Nike?
Foot to the N-I-K-E
Hop to the N-I-K-E
Walk to the N-I-K-E
Bounce to the N-I-K-E
Turn to the N-I-K-E
Criss to the N-I-K-E
-African American girls playing Double Dutch, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in Recess Battles: Playing, Fighting, and Storytelling edited by Anna R. Beresin, page 66, collected in 1992, 2004)
-snip-
NIKE is pronounced NI (rhymes with "why") + key
-snip-
"Nike" is a popular brand of athlete shoes.
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O, P
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Q, R
REEBOK
R-E-E
B-O-K
Do your footsies the Reebok way
R-E-E
B-O-K
Do your hopsies the Reebok way
R-E-E
B-O-K
Do your footsies the Reebok way
R-E-E
B-O-K
Do your walksies the Reebok way
R-E-E
B-O-K
Do your bouncies the Reebok way
R-E-E
B-O-K
Do your turnsies the Reebok way
R-E-E
B-O-K
Do your crisses the Reebok way
-African American girls playing Double Dutch, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in Recess Battles: Playing, Fighting, and Storytelling edited by Anna R. Beresin, page 66, collected in 1992, 2004)
-snip-
"Reebok" is a popular brand of athlete shoes. It was (is?) a national sponsor of double dutch competitions
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S, T
TRAVEL
"I still remember the words to theTravel ditty. The way it worked was you had to run clear through the turning rope without jumping or touching the rope. As you run through, your rope turners (and everyone else playing) would sing Tra-vel.; Once everyone traveled, the lyrics became: Travel in and out. This meant that you jumped in, skipped rope for one or two beats and then you exited on the next beat (without letting the rope trip you up on the way out.) On the jumper’s next go, the song continues, with a new command for the jumpers each try (Travel in/Cross your legs/Turn around/And out). [end of quote] www.debbierigaud.com Travel In and Out"
-snip-
This paragraph was quoted by Zapatos, August 12, 2011 in quoted in https://www.lipstickalley.com/threads/dbl-dutch.323634/ Dbl Duth.
I haven't found the "Travel In And Out" post, but in her website, Debbie Rigaud describes herself as a Black woman of Haitian descent who grew up in New Jersey.Zapatos, Aug 12, 2011
SOUL TRAIN COMES ON CHANNEL FIVE
..."Kids these days just don't know the fun we had playing outside when we were younger.
Did we have TVs...Yes. Game consoles...Sure! However, although a different world, Mario Bros and Sonic The Hedgehog were entertaining, there was nothing like the competition of seeing who could last the longest doing dance steps, whil singing "Soul Train Comes On Channel Five" between two clothes lines that doubled as disciplinary tools (If you know, you know.)
[...]
After the song was chosen, and my favorite was "Big Mack" (again, if you know you know), then it was time to get the party started"...
-Dr. Ebony White, April 26, 2020, https://www.drebonywhite.com/blog/2016/9/12/lorem-ipsum-dolor-sit-amet-3-xgt35Double Dutch, April 26, 2020
-snip-
It was time to get the party started" means that it was time to actually begin jumping Double Dutch.
I haven't found the words to (or any other reference for) the song/rhyme "Soul Train Comes On Channel Five".
The word “Mack” in “Big Mack” is probably a folk processed form of the word “Mac”(if not a misspelling of that word”). Read examples of "Big Mac" in Part I of this compilation.
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U, V
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W, X
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Y, Z
ZEROOOOOO------ ZEROOOOO----- ZIG ZIG god no higher!!!!!!
Game rules:
3 Jumps/turn per person
1 do over
you have to turn for your jumps
-Mellie York, Aug, 12, 2020, https://www.lipstickalley.com/threads/double-dutch-jump-rope-rhymes.3807765/ Double Dutch Jump Rope Rhymes
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This concludes Part II of this two part pancocojams series.
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.