Childlore

Syrian children playing in a New York City street

Childlore is a folklore or folk culture that is learned and passed on by children to other children (typically between the ages of 6 and 15). It excludes the stories and tales told and spread by adults. Childlore can include games, riddles, rhymes, oral stories, codes, fantasies, jokes, and superstitions created by children. In Western culture, most folklorists are concerned with children after they join their peers in primary school or kindergarten. The traditions of childlore generally stop after children leave elementary school or primary school, which coincides with puberty and adolescence, and the end of early childhood.

The record and study of childlore began taking shape in the 19th century. The study began with recording nursery rhymes and child games with some of the first known to be Popular Rhymes of Scotland and Mother Goose's Melodies. These records were created through observation, capture and documentation of childhood activities and games. However, most of the traditional games and rhymes have survived orally, as children pass them through the generations themselves. In the last 40 years, childlore has been changing significantly due to factors such as higher supervision by parents and the introduction of technology. With a shift to more solo activities and technological communication, childlore has seen an engagement change.

Alice Gomme and Iona and Peter Opie are some of the most well-known contributors to the collection of childlore in the U.K. While Gomme focused mostly on broad folklore, the Opies are considered to be the ones who shaped childlore into a serious study. Similar studies have also been done by earlier researchers, such as Dorothy Howard, however it was not popularized until the Opies' research. Since their contributions, the research on childlore and its changes has continued. Studies have been done to look into the effect of technology on traditional childlore as well as major event effects. The Play Observatory is an example of a group that looked into the effect the COVID-19 pandemic had on children, specifically their play and socialization.

See also

• Children's street culture
• Cool S
• Cooties
• Dong, Dong, Dongdaemun
• Latin American childlore
• "The circle" game
• Summer camp

References

• Grider, Sylvia Ann. The Study of Children's Folklore. Western Folklore 39.3, Children's Folklore (1980): 159–69.
• Mendoza, Vicente T. Lirica Infantil De Mexico. Letras Mexicanas. 2a ed. Mexico: Fondo de Cultura Economica, 1980
• Opie, Iona Archibald, and Peter Opie. The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren. Trans. Peter Opie. Oxford Paperbacks. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987.
• Sutton-Smith, Brian. Psychology of Childlore: The Triviality Barrier. Western Folklore 29.1 (1970): 1–8.
• Burling, Robbins. "The Metrics of Children's Verse: A Cross-Linguistic Study". The Metrics of Children's Verse: A Cross-Linguistic Study1, University of Michigan, anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1525/aa.1966.68.6.02a00040.

Further reading

• Bronner, Simon J. (1988). American Children's Folklore. Little Rock, AR: August House. ISBN 0-87483-068-0. OCLC 18322123.
• Sutton-Smith, Brian; Mechling, Jay; Johnson, Thomas W.; McMahon, Felicia R., eds. (1999). Children's folklore : a source book. Logan, UT: Utah State University Press. ISBN 0-87421-280-4. OCLC 916979751.
• Opie, Iona (1993). The people in the playground. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-811265-3. OCLC 803457772.
• Tucker, Elizabeth (2008). Children's Folklore : A handbook. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-34189-2. OCLC 226357704.