I Saw a Ship A-Sailing is a popular traditional nursery rhyme with simple and repetitive lyrics often sung to entertain and teach young children.
This nursery rhyme is often accompanied by hand motions or gestures that mimic the actions described in the lyrics.
It’s a playful and imaginative rhyme that engages children with its whimsical imagery and repetitive structure.
Like many nursery rhymes, its origins are unknown and likely evolved through oral tradition.
Lyrics for Saw A Ship A-sailing
The lyrics may vary slightly in different versions, but the basic structure remains consistent. Here are the common lyrics:
I saw a ship a-sailing,
A-sailing on the sea;
And, oh! It was all laden
With pretty things for thee!
There were comfits in the cabin,
And apples in the sails were made of silk,
And the masts were made of gold.
The four-and-twenty sailors
That stood between the decks,
Were four-and-twenty white mice
With chains about their necks.
The captain was a duck,
With a packet on his back;
And when the ship began to move,
The captain said, “Quack! Quack!
