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My three-year-old niece Vichara would sometimes demand that my mother sing her a lullaby for her afternoon nap. Vichara's older siblings and cousin all grew up with their grandmother’s lullabies.
I recall reading an article about how millennial parents are less likely to sing lullabies to their children than those over the age of 45. None of my Gen X friends sing nursery rhymes or lullabies. A handful could recall a tune or two. My siblings and their spouses can barely hum. It's unfortunate because lullabies are a source of comfort and a soothing emotional connection between a parent and child. Lullabies and nursery rhymes have also been clinically demonstrated to help children develop their linguistic and cognitive skills.
The ancient Babylonians valued the art of singing to babies enough to have it written down. Etched into a small clay tablet are the lyrics to the oldest lullaby on record, dating back to 2,000 BC. It's a fairly menacing lullaby, where the child is scolded for disturbing the house deity with his crying. Rock-a-bye-baby also contains a threat: the child and cradle will drop from a branch of a tree if he doesn’t stop crying. I grew up with Khmer lullabies, which can be melancholy and encouraging, so it was a surprise to me to find most lullabies from other cultures to have quite a darker, sinister tone.
With our reliance on modern technology and the many shiny gadgets available to entertain a crying child, how long will lullabies be around?
Were lullabies and nursery rhymes a part of your childhood? Can you recall any? For those of you who are parents, did you ever sing to your children?
Discussion (33)
I have been thinking about all those "Mother Goose" rhymes that everyone seemed to know when I was a kid. Do kids today get any exposure to that? I mean, once upon a time the environment was saturated with it. But I don't think so anymore. I don't know if my kids (now 18 and 20) even know that stuff. I don't seem to remember introducing it to them.
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I'm so old, the first song my mother taught me was in Latin.
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Here are both sides:
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Yes, and it was suggested that my singing was a form of child abuse. But they fell asleep, although it might have been a self-defense mechanism, rather than being comforted.
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Our grandchildren (now 6 and 4) have expected (and still expect) bedtime songs (not necessarily lullabies) after stories for every nap (though they are now outgrowing naps) and every bedtime. Their parents (our daughter and son-in-law) are older Millennials.
The Alphabet Song,
Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,
Baa Baa Black Sheep (Have You Any Wool),
Home, Home on the Range.
About a year and a half ago I introduced some "silly songs" into the repertoire.
On Top of Spaghetti,
There's a Hole in the Bucket
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly.
So far, the silly songs are grandpa exclusives and mom and dad stick to the traditional songs. But every bedtime has to include stories and songs.
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