Yankee Doodle
Who wrote “Yankee Doodle”?
How did “Yankee Doodle” become associated with American patriotism?
What does the term macaroni in the song mean?
Yankee Doodle, patriotic American song that was popularized during the American Revolution. Ironically, the song was a favorite of British soldiers in the mid-18th century because it originally featured comical lyrics that insulted American colonists. Over time the song’s lyrics became more celebratory of American patriots, and “Yankee Doodle” was embraced as an unofficial national anthem of the United States.
History
The origin of the tune is uncertain. Some historians think that the melody began as a 16th-century Dutch harvest song with the nonsense words “Yanker dudel doodle down.” In 17th-century Britain during the English Civil Wars, the Cavalier army turned the tune into a derisive jingle about Oliver Cromwell, leader of the parliamentarian forces, and his followers. That song began, “Nankey Doodle came to town.” According to English dictionaries from that time, doodle meant a “sorry, trifling fellow.” Some sources suggest that nankey comes from the Shakespearean term nunky, meaning “uncle,” or from nankeen, a durable yellowish cotton fabric used for work clothes. Together, “nankey doodle” signified someone who was decidedly “nondescript,” in the words of one historian.
The lyrics of the earliest version of “Yankee Doodle” are traditionally attributed to a British surgeon named Richard Schuckburg (also spelled as Schackburg or Shuckburgh), who is believed to have written them between 1755 and 1758. According to legend the doctor wrote the song to mock the ragtag American soldiers he encountered while stationed with the British army outside Albany, New York, during the French and Indian War.
Several of the verses were scatological, the main point being that the American militia was cowardly and disorganized compared with the British troops.
The term dandy can refer to a foppish man who is overly concerned with his dress and appearance or to something that is first-rate.
The song soon became popular among British soldiers stationed in the American colonies. Different verses sprang up, including some that satirized the Americans’ lack of familiarity with the latest European dances:
Yankee Doodle, keep it up,
Yankee Doodle, dandy,
Mind the music and the step,
And with the girls be handy.
By the time British soldiers marched toward Lexington and Concord in 1775 at the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, one variant went:
Yankee Doodle’s come to town
For to buy a firelock,
We will tar and feather him
And so will we John Hancock.
The etymology of Yankee, meaning a native of the United States or, more narrowly, someone from New England, is unknown. One suggestion is that the term derives from the Dutch nickname Janke, or “Little Jan,” which was used by Dutch settlers in the region. Another theory is that it comes from Indigenous people’s pronunciation of the word English as “Yengees.”
“Yankee Doodle” was also well known to the colonists, who soon claimed it for their own purposes. American soldiers are said to have sung it to British redcoats to mock them after patriot victories. It is also said that when the British surrendered after the decisive Battles of Saratoga and the Siege of Yorktown, the Continental (national) Army’s musicians played “Yankee Doodle” as the British retreated. One story claims that after the humiliation of several defeats, British Gen. Thomas Gage exclaimed, “I hope that I shall never hear that tune again!”
Many variations of “Yankee Doodle” were written during the Revolutionary War. These include a verse about George Washington after he took command of the Continental Army.
And there was Captain Washington
And gentle folks about him;
They say he’s grown so tarnal proud
He will not ride without them.
The song’s best-known stanza, however, was adapted from the lyrics of the 17th-century English song that had mocked Cromwell:
Yankee Doodle went to town
Riding on a pony
Stuck a feather in his cap,
And called it macaroni.
In the 18th century macaroni was a term for dress or fashion that was especially ostentatious. Thus, the verses suggest an unsophisticated bumpkin with a limited idea of style or a man who believed he could pass himself off as a dandy by merely sticking a feather in his cap.
Legacy
Despite its beginnings as a song to lampoon Americans, “Yankee Doodle” was passed down through the generations as a rousing tune that conveys the American spirit. Composer John Philip Sousa used the tune as a countermelody in his march “America First” (1916). In 1904 George M. Cohan incorporated some of its lyrics into his own patriotic song, “I’m a Yankee Doodle Dandy,” for his Broadway musical Little Johnny Jones. In 1942 the movie Yankee Doodle Dandy, about Cohan and starring James Cagney, was released, further popularizing the song. In 1978 “Yankee Doodle” was named the official state song of Connecticut.
Lyrics
There are many variants of “Yankee Doodle,” some quite long. A shorter version often taught to children features the following lyrics:
Yankee Doodle went to town
Riding on a pony,
Stuck a feather in his cap
And called it macaroni.
(Chorus) Yankee Doodle keep it up,
Yankee Doodle dandy.
Mind the music and the step,
and with the girls be handy.
Father and I went down to camp,
Along with Captain Gooding;
There we saw the men and boys,
As thick as hasty pudding.
There was Captain Washington,
Upon a slapping stallion,
Giving orders to his men—
I guess there was a million.
Then the feathers on his hat,
They looked so very fine, oh!
I wanted desperately to get
To give my Jemima.