Yon Yonson facts for kids
"Yon Yonson" is a fun poem, nursery rhyme, or song that seems to go on forever! It's very well-known because it appeared in the famous novel Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut. However, Kurt Vonnegut didn't actually create the song himself.
Where Did "Yon Yonson" Come From?
The song is often sung with a special accent, like someone from Scandinavia (countries like Sweden or Norway). For example, the "j" sound is often said like a "y," and the "w" sound like a "v." This is why the name "Yon Yonson" sounds like "John Johnson" in American English. This accent suggests the song might have started soon after Swedish people arrived in the United States.
One idea for the song's beginning is a play from 1890 called Yon Yonson. It was a comedy about people speaking in a special accent, written by Gus Heege and W. D. Coxey. The play was set in a Minnesota lumber camp, which is a place where trees are cut down. But there's no clear proof that the song was actually sung in the play.
What Are the Lyrics?
Many different versions of the "Yon Yonson" song exist. But they all sound quite similar and have a repeating part. Here is one common way the song goes:
- My name is Yon Yonson,
- I live in Wisconsin.
- I work in a lumber yard there.
- The people I meet as
- I walk down the street,
- They say "Hello!"
- I say "Hello!"
- They say "What's your name."
- I say: My name is Yon Yonson... (and then it starts all over again!)
Where Else Has the Song Appeared?
"Yon Yonson" has popped up in many different places, from books to video games!
- In the novel Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut, the "Yon Yonson" song is used over and over. It helps show how the book's story also repeats and jumps through time.
- The song is mentioned in Chapter 11 of the novel Dodsworth by Sinclair Lewis.
- Carl Sandburg included the song in his collection of folk songs called Flat Rock Ballads, which came out in 1972.
- The Canadian band The Dave Howard Singers made an industrial/punk rock version of "Yon Yonson" in 1987.
- The Children's Band Ralph's World released their own version of this song on their 2003 album Peggy's Pie Parlor. They changed the words a little bit.
- The phrase "Yon Yonson" was also used in a TV advertisement for Calvin Klein perfume.
- In the video game Psychonauts, a character named Sasha Nein might start saying the song if he gets hurt enough during a fight.
- The computer game "Baldur's Gate II" has a gnome character named Jan Jansen. He often tells very long and never-ending stories about himself, much like the song.
- The song also appears in the novel Coverup by Jay Bennett.
