Do Your Ears Hang Low?

"Do Your Ears Hang Low?" (Roud 15472) is a children's song that is often sung in schools, at camps and at birthday parties. The melody of this song is usually a shorter version of "Turkey in the Straw", but it can also be sung to the "Sailor's Hornpipe". Various theories exist concerning the origin of the lyrics, but no conclusive evidence seems to exist. A common belief is that the lyrics refer to the ears of a hound dog. It is most likely that this was a crude wartime soldiers' song that, in sanitized form, has made its way into other circles.

The origins of the song are obscure. Variant versions with obscene lyrics exist, notably "Do Your Balls Hang Low?" and "Do Your Boobs Hang Low?". These have sometimes been regarded as parody versions of the campfire song, but it is more likely that the obscene versions came first, and that "Do Your Ears Hang Low?" is a sanitized version.

Certainly "Do Your Balls Hang Low?" is known to have been sung by British soldiers on the Western Front during the First World War.Lyn MacDonald reports that, on one occasion in 1916, General Douglas Haig heard the song being sung by a column of soldiers as they marched past on their way to the Somme. He immediately called for his horse and rode to the head of the column to remonstrate with the battalion commander, only to find the Colonel singing as heartily as his men. Haig congratulated him on his fine voice, but added: "I like the tune, but you must know that in any circumstances those words are inexcusable!"

The following lyrics are from one particular variant of the song:

Do your ears hang low?
Do they wobble to and fro?
Can you tie 'em in a knot?
Can you tie 'em in a bow?
Can you throw 'em o'er your shoulder
Like a continental soldier?
Do your ears hang low?

Do your ears stand high?
Do they reach up to the sky?
Do they droop when they are wet?
Do they stiffen when they're dry?
Can you wave them at your neighbor
With an element of flavor?
Do your ears stand high?

Do your ears flip-flop?
Can you use them as a mop?
Are they stringy at the bottom?
Are they curly at the top?
Can you use them for a swatter?
Can you use them for a blotter?
Do your ears flip-flop?

Do your ears stick out?
Can you waggle them about?
Can you flap them up and down
As you fly around the town?
Can you shut them up for sure
When you hear an awful bore?
Do your ears stick out?

Do your ears give snacks?
Are they all filled up with wax?
Do you eat it in the morning
Do you eat it in the bath?
Do you eat it with a scone
Or do you eat it on its own?
Do your ears give snacks?

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Wikipedia