Green Gravel facts for kids

Green Gravel is a fun and old English singing game and folk song. It's a type of game where kids sing and act out the words, often in a circle. This song is so well-known that it has a special number in the Roud Folk Song Index, which is like a big library of traditional songs.

Playing Green Gravel: The Game

This game is played by a group of children, usually outdoors. It's a simple and enjoyable way to connect with friends while singing.

How to Play

To play Green Gravel, everyone holds hands and forms a circle. As you sing the song, the whole group walks around in a ring.

The song goes like this:

Green gravel, green gravel, the grass is so green
The fairest young damsel that was ever seen
O Mary, O Mary, your true love is dead
He sent you a letter to turn around your head...

When the song finishes, a specific person's name is called out (like "Mary" in the example). That person then stays in the circle but turns to face outwards, away from the center. The game then starts again, and the group sings the song once more. A different person is named at the end of the next round, and they also turn to face outwards. This continues until everyone in the circle is facing outwards.

The Song's Meaning

Green Gravel is more than just a game; it's a very old tradition. In 1893, two researchers named Lucy Broadwood and J. A. Fuller Maitland wrote about it in their book English County Songs. They explained that Green Gravel was a way for people to act out feelings of mourning. Mourning means feeling very sad after someone has passed away. The game helps to show these feelings in a gentle, traditional way.

This song was first written down in Manchester around 1835, but it was likely played and sung for many years before that. It's a great example of how songs and games can carry stories and feelings through generations.