by Anonymous / Unidentified Author
I have twelve oxen that be fair and...
Language: English
I have twelve oxen that be fair and brown, And they go a-grazing down by the town. With hey! with how! with hey! Sawest not you mine oxen, you little pretty boy? I have twelve oxen, they be fair and white, And they go a-grazing down by the dyke. With hey! with how! with hey! Sawest not you mine oxen, you little pretty boy? I have twelve oxen, and they be fair and black, And they go a-grazing down by the lake. With hey! with how! with hey! Sawest not you mine oxen, you little pretty boy? I have twelve oxen, and they be fair and red, And they go a-grazing down by the mead. With hey! with how! with hey! Sawest not you mine oxen, you little pretty boy?
About the headline (FAQ)
View text with all available footnotesText Authorship:
- by Anonymous / Unidentified Author ( early 16th century )  [author's text not yet checked 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 John (Nicholson) Ireland (1879 - 1962), "I have twelve oxen", 1918, published 1919 [ voice and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Peter Warlock (1894 - 1930), "Twelve Oxen", 1924, published 1924 [ chorus and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Ted Perry
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 132