Chorus
 Bonnie wee thing, canie wee thing,
  Lovely wee thing, [was]1 thou mine;
 I wad wear thee in my bosom,
  Least my Jewel I should tine. -

Wishfully I look and languish
  In that bonie face o' thine;
And my heart it stounds wi' anguish,
  Least my wee thing be na mine. -
Bonnie wee thing, canie wee thing...

Wit, and Grace, and Love, and Beauty,
  In ae constellation shine;
To adore thee is my duty,
  Goddess o' this soul o' mine!

About the headline (FAQ)

View original text (without footnotes)
Note: in some editions, "bonnie" is spelled "bonie"
¹ in some editions, "wert"

Text Authorship:

• by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), title 1: "Bonnie wee thing", title 2: "Bonie wee thing" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

• by (Franz) Joseph Haydn (1732 - 1809), "The bonnie wee thing", JHW. XXXII/5 no. 392, Hob. XXXIa no. 102bis [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Humphrey Procter-Gregg (1895 - 1980), "Bonny wee thing" [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

• CZE Czech (Čeština) (Josef Václav Sládek) , "Malé hezké stvořeníčko"
• FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Jolie petite chose", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 14
Word count: 79