This little piggy story

What Is the Story Behind This Little Piggy?

(Last Updated On: September 13, 2022)

You may remember a nursery rhyme by the name of This Little Piggy from your childhood. Like many similar stories told to young children, this one also incorporated farm animals. This Little Piggy is originally an English nursery rhyme, but has been told in different languages around the world.

The beginning of what we know today as This Little Piggy was originally incorporated in a 1728 melody called “The Nurse’s Song.” However, it was not until 1760 that the full version of This Little Piggy was published in “The Famous Tommy Thumb’s Little Story-Book”. Though the original author of the rhyme is unknown, it is usually attributed to fictional story-teller Mother Goose.

As is the case with any old nursery rhyme, there are bound to be alterations and different versions as time progresses. But this one has interestingly remained pretty much the same throughout its history, with typically only a word or two being changed.

The most common version of This Little Piggy goes like this:

This little piggy went to market,
This little piggy stayed home,
This little piggy had roast beef,
This little piggy had none,
And this little piggy cried “wee, wee, wee” all the way home.

Fingerplay and This Little Piggy

With the progression of time, one of the most popular activities to do when singing this nursery rhyme was incorporating each toe on a baby’s foot into the rhyme. This is a great example of fingerplay (toeplay?). The most common actions associated with each line of the story is as follows.

This little piggy went to market – Wiggle the child’s big toe.
This little piggy stayed at home – Wiggle the child’s second toe.
This little piggy had roast beef – Wiggle the child’s middle toe.
This little piggy had none – Wiggle the child’s fourth toe.
And this little piggy went “wee, wee, wee” all the way home – This is the part of the rhyme when you tickle the bottom of the child’s foot.

The early years of development for young babies are crucial to their understanding of coordination and dexterity. A very common way of increasing a child’s ability to memorize and form coherent story-telling skills is through the act of fingerplays. This is when actions are added to a rhyme or poem to help a child further learn the words. Fingerplays have been used to teach reading, colors, and counting. The most common example is using the hand to count to ten.

Interested in learning about other nursery rhymes? Check out this quiz.

An Unexpected Interpretation?

One of the things parents tend to leave out when telling nursery rhymes to their children is the potentially dark and dreary backstories behind them. In the case of This Little Piggy, it isn’t too hard to spot the darker interpretation.

Think about a “piggy going to the market”. Some have interpreted this to mean that the pig is going to market for slaughter. Working off this then, the “little piggy staying home” refers to a pig not yet ready to eat, and that must stay home to mature. The “little piggy having roast beef” is about fattening a pig up, while the fourth “piggy that gets none” is too small to go to the market. And perhaps most dark, that final little piggy is not singing “wee, wee, wee”, but crying it in fright.

What an incredibly dark scene to play out on a child’s toes!

So, the question remains: is This Little Piggy an innocent rhyme to teach children about their extremities, or an ominous poem about pigs to slaughter? Considering some of the most famous nursery rhymes have a “darker interpretation”, the answer is most likely both.

Curious about where other nursery rhymes came from? Check out these articles.

What Is the Story Behind Hickory Dickory Dock?
What Is the Story Behind Hey Diddle Diddle?

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Behind the Meaning of the Children's Song “This Little Piggy” -

“This Little Piggy” may very well be the first song we hear and learn as children.

Whether using your fingers or your toes, the cute little song is sung to us early on as cooing parents bond with their newborns. Your pinky becomes a protagonist. Your index and ring fingers become players in the performance.

It’s enough to put a loving smile on the face of any infant.

And here we’ll dive into the meaning of teaching different roles in the song and its origins. So, without further ado, let’s do just that.

Origin Meaning

“This Little Piggy” is an English-language nursery rhyme that is both sung and played with a child’s fingers or toes.

In 1728, the first line of the rhyme appeared in a medley song called “The Nurses Song.” And the first known full version was recorded in The Famous Tommy Thumb’s Little Story-Book, which arrived first in London in 1760.

In that version, the rhyme goes:

This pig went to market,
That pig stayed home;
This pig had roast meat,
That pig had none;
This pig went to the barn’s door,
And cried week, week for more.

[RELATED: Behind the Meaning of the Classic Nursery Rhyme “Jack and Jill”]

Evolution of the Piggies

The ditty began to appear more and in evolved ways over the years. In 1922, the rhyme was included in Beatrix Potter’s illustrated book Cecily Parsley’s Nursery Rhymes.

Slight variations began to pop up in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. But it wasn’t until the mid-20th century that “little pigs” became “little piggies,” making the rhyme even more cutesy.

Today the most commonly known version goes:

This little piggy went to market,
This little piggy stayed home,
This little piggy had roast beef,
This little piggy had none,
This little piggy cried “Wee! Wee! Wee!” all the way home.

Play with Fingers and Toes

Using the above version of the song, parents often perform the rhyme using finger or toe play, each line corresponding to a different digit on the hand or foot, with a foot tickle done at the very end.

For example:

This little piggy went to market, (Wiggle the “big” toe)
This little piggy stayed home, (Wiggle the “long” toe)
This little piggy had roast beef, (Wiggle the “middle” toe)
This little piggy had none, (Wiggle the “ring” toe)
This little piggy cried “Wee! Wee! Wee!” all the way home. (Wiggle the “little” toe and tickle the bottom of the foot)

[RELATED: Behind the Meaning and History of the Nursery Rhyme “Three Blind Mice”]

Final Thoughts

The nursery rhyme achieves several things at once.

First, it’s a fun, interactive rhyme that can bond parents and children. Second, the rhyme teaches very rudimentary counting and the understanding of individual fingers and toes. Third, the rhyme, which was the 8th most popular nursery rhyme in 2009, according to a survey done in the U.K., teaches about different roles. One piggy goes to the market. One piggy eats. One doesn’t. One goes home. These are all separate, individual actions, reinforcing the idea of individuality to young children.

Photo by H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock/Getty Images

Chapter 12 - Otherworldly Evil Monarch

Today, Jun Xie had nothing to do but chat with Little Ke. Over the past month, the significant changes that had taken place in Jun Xie had made Little Ke less afraid of him.

But in spite of this, she walked along with him without much desire, at least not showing much disgust, listening to the stories of his “adventures”. All the time for the past hour, this little girl carried the pot of incense in her arms and listened intently to his story. Without missing a single sentence, she sat in front of Jun Xie.

She watched the grief and happiness of the characters in the story, their laughter and crying... And when the handsome prince appeared, she began to jump uncontrollably for joy!

Jun Xie once told a story about a little mermaid: she made Baby Ke cry so hard that it was like rivers flowed from her eyes. From that day on, Jun Xie swore to himself never to tell tragic stories to girls.

Oh, those tears... they could drown someone to death!

- Young Master, Young Master Tang has arrived.

Jun Xie was just telling the story of the monkey named Sun, who was caught in the Eight Diagram Furnace, and little Lolita stood again with the incense pot in her hands and listened to his story. From the excess of feelings, her eyes blinked non-stop when the guard suddenly entered with a report.

- Young Master Tang? Jun Xie raised his head, feeling confused. Then he remembered everything he knew about this person. - Invite him.

From a far corner of the courtyard, like a ball of meat, a man "rolled" and shouted: - Third Young Master, Brother Mose, Save me! This is a terrible problem!

Jun Xie opened his eyes wide, his mouth opened by itself in surprise at the sight of this screaming meatball. It's just unimaginable how this meatball could talk! It wasn't until she rolled closer that he realized it was a human!

He definitely didn't have a neck, or he just couldn't see it. His shoulders were broad, his arms small and plump, and his head was spinning, towering over it all. Both of his legs were small and fat! When he moved, his wavy sides were mesmerizing, like the waves on the Yangtze River. In general, it could be described as anything, but not a "reed". Somehow, he didn't look like a normal person...

Entering the door of the courtyard, walking a couple of steps, he began to suffocate, sweating and, apparently, very tired. This person was none other than the Young Master of the Tang Family, whose position and fame is on par with the Jun Family: Tang Yuan!

“Yes, he is the same as Moses remembers him, but he seems to be even bigger than usual. ” Jun Xie thought.

- Ugh… Young Master Tang, what happened? What could happen that would make you scream for help? What blind fool provoked you this time? Jun Xie asked Jun Moxie's best friend, barely able to contain his laughter.

- Dirty bastards! Who else but those idiots from the Li family and the Meng family! - Young Master Tang was furious, he was so angry that it seemed that his eyeballs were about to fly out of their sockets, and he himself would have a stroke. “Brother, a few days ago I was inside the Thousand Golden House, and I lost one hundred and fifty thousand silver dean there!” Third Young Master, you must help me! Otherwise... when I get home, my old man will beat me to death! (P.P.: Lien is a local form of currency).

- One hundred and fifty thousand silver dean?! Jun Xie was shocked. - How could you spend so much money? No, wait, where did you even get such a sum of money?!

Tang Yuan sighed loudly, “At first, I actually won. I won, in general, fifty thousand ...

- If they didn't let you win, why did you keep betting? What exactly were you playing that you could lose so much? Yes, you have balls of steel! Jun Xie almost yelled at him.

Tang Yuan did not dare to answer this, and mumbled, “Last month, didn’t you lose one hundred thousand silver lien?” My amount is not that far from yours, and yet you...

- And what good is it for me to say that? And besides, a hundred and fifty thousand lan, it's not something your family can't handle. Was there such a need to come here and beg for help? Jun Xie suddenly realized that such people cannot be judged using common sense. These young gentlemen can be called spenders!

- Even if it's your old man, he won't kill you for a hundred and fifty thousand lien. Not that you haven't lost so much before...

- But, after I lost all the money, I said that I would go home to get some more. It was then that Li Bo said that everyone was already tired and would have already left if it wasn’t for me… I got angry, and…” Tang Yuan looked at Jun Xie with a pitiful expression, his face showed regret.

- So what? Jun Xie had a bad premonition.

- You can lose someone, but you can't lose yourself... I got angry, and... put my favorite sword and jade scabbard on the line, bet for three hundred thousand silver lan... I thought I could win back, win quickly and I will return it, but… I didn’t think… I didn’t know… I lost everything,” Tang Yuan’s face became more and more sad as he spoke.

- You dare to put down that sword?! I still remember how your father spent a fortune to buy you that famous Snowstorm Sword! This terrifyingly beautiful sword that could cut through iron like butter! And this sheath for the sword, they were made by the Jade Worm himself! Yes, these two treasures together were worth at least one million silver lien, weren't they? And despite that, you put them on the line for a measly three hundred thousand? Yes, even on sale, these sword and scabbard would not have left for such a small price! Jun Xie was speechless. Yes, this man ... He is the very embodiment of extravagance!

- Hey, I'm actually not a person without any restrictions! It's just. .. My mind suddenly went blank! I don’t even know how to explain it, my mind has turned into a mess of confusion…” Tang Yuan muttered again.

- But, even if you still lost these two priceless treasures, you had a saving thread. You could buy them back, right? Considering how much your grandfather loves you, he would scold you hard, but he certainly wouldn't kill you. And besides, what else does your family have, if not money? Approximately one million, is that a big problem for someone like you? Jun Xie said while sighing.

- Nonsense, those two treasures were absolute! How could I not want to win them back? Tang Yuan said proudly. “It’s like you don’t know my grandfather… Last time you saw what I suffered thanks to him… Such a spanking can easily scratch the skin!”

- And you continued to play? What was at stake this time? I know you have a lot of valuable junk, but I'm sure that none of these things will be worth one million lien.” Jun Xie was a person who learned from experience, especially in such a matter as the psychology of gambling. This fat guy wouldn't be so upset if he didn't play something that is absolutely not worth playing.

- Y-yes, I didn't have anything of that value with me back then. In the end... In the end... I-I-I... I put my wife on the line... - Tang Yuan's face was desperate, it was the face of a man who wanted to commit suicide. “I still had to marry her.

- Huh? “Baby Ke was the one who made that sound. Her eyes looked straight at Tang Yuan.

She was deeply shocked, even disgusted inside her. She thought to herself: [It was not easy for my Master to become good, and here comes this bad friend!]

- What? Have you put your wife on the line? Did you really drag her into this? Jun Xie almost fell off his chair. It was too shocking! Simply unthinkable!

Tang Yuan's fiancée was not just his future wife, she was the daughter of Song Cheng He, Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Justice! A beauty from a prestigious family, and sent to the House of a Thousand Gold! If news of this gets out, then the flow of ridicule and jokes will be immeasurable.

The son of the Minister of the State Treasury went to play at the gambling house, and lost to the daughter of the Deputy Minister of Justice... If this became known, Grandpa Tang would have drained all the fat from his grandson and used it as fuel for paper Sky Lanterns!

“I… I didn’t drag her there…” Tang Yuan said, almost sobbing. “But I wrote a receipt, and wrote it down as a pledge worth a million silver lanes… It was written in white and black, here and there… With my signature…”

- PIG! What a pig you are! She is the daughter of the Deputy Minister of Justice, and the other is the son of the Minister of State Treasury. Connections like this affect the future and reputation of two prestigious families! And yet, he put her on the line for one million silver lien! Jun Xie finished yelling at the meatball and rolled on the floor laughing. - Yes, you really subscribed here ... And what happened to a million dean?

- Lost... as always... - Tang Yuan fell to his knees, causing the ground to shake, and began to whine and howl. “They said that if I don’t bring a million and five hundred thousand silver lanes within three hours, then they won’t need my money, and my wife too, they will tell everyone about the receipt ...

- Wow! Jun Xie was speechless again. - How did one million turn into a million and five hundred thousand?

“This… this is the price of waiting three hours…” Tang Yuan muttered to himself. “Young Master, you must save me!” I... I have nowhere else to go!

- Do you want me to save you? How do you suggest I do this? What made you think that I have such a huge sum? Jun Xie categorically refused.

[Are you laughing? This guy doesn't have that desire to kill guys like that... and he asks me for money like I'm a piggy bank with silver coins inside? And forgetting the fact that I don’t have that amount, I wouldn’t lend that pig even if I was bathed in luxury!]

- You don't have to lend me money! Tang Yuan's spirit rose, his little piggy eyes blinked. “Li Feng and Meng Haizou made a condition that if I bring Third Young Master Jun and he plays with them a couple of times, they will give me the receipt for nothing!”

- Am I really that famous? Jun Xie shook his head as he took into account what had just happened. His fame in the gambling world is probably so-so ... but in a past life, his evil name was afraid to pronounce in all casinos!

Chapter 12 Young Master Tang. / Otherworldly Evil Monarch

Today, Jun Xie had nothing to do but chat with Little Ke. Over the past month, the significant changes that had taken place in Jun Xie had made Little Ke less afraid of him.

She watched the grief and happiness of the characters in the story, their laughter and crying... And when the handsome prince appeared, she began to jump uncontrollably for joy!

Oh, those tears... they could drown someone to death!

- Young Master, Young Master Tang has arrived.

- Young Master Tang? Jun Xie raised his head, feeling confused. Then he remembered everything he knew about this person. - Invite him.

From a far corner of the courtyard, like a ball of meat, a man “rolled in” and shouted: “Third Young Master, Brother Mose, save me!” This is a terrible problem!

Jun Xie widened his eyes, his mouth dropped open in surprise at the sight of that screaming meatball. It's just unimaginable how this meatball could talk! It wasn't until she rolled closer that he realized it was a human!

Yes, he is the same as Mose remembers him, but he seems to be even bigger than usual. thought Jun Xie.

“Ugh… Young Master Tang, what happened?” What could happen that would make you scream for help? What blind fool provoked you this time? Jun Xie asked Jun Moxie's best friend, barely able to contain his laughter.

- Dirty bastards! Who else but those idiots from the Li family and the Meng family! Young Master Tang was furious, he was so angry that it seemed that his eyeballs were about to fly out of their sockets, and he himself would have a stroke. “Brother, a few days ago I was inside the Thousand Golden House, and I lost one hundred and fifty thousand silver dean there!” Third Young Master, you must help me! Otherwise... when I get home, my old man will beat me to death! (P.P.: Lien is a local form of currency).

— One hundred and fifty thousand silver doe!? Jun Xie was shocked. How could you spend so much money? No, wait, where did you even get such a sum of money?!

Tang Yuan sighed loudly, “At first, I actually won. I won, in general, fifty thousand ...

- If they didn't let you win, why did you keep betting? What exactly were you playing that you could lose so much? Yes, you have balls of steel! Jun Xie almost yelled at him.

Tang Yuan did not dare to answer this, and mumbled, “Last month, didn’t you lose one hundred thousand silver lien?” My amount is not that far from yours, and yet you...

— What's the point of me saying that? And besides, a hundred and fifty thousand lan, it's not something your family can't handle. Was there such a need to come here and beg for help? Jun Xie suddenly realized that such people cannot be judged using common sense. These young gentlemen can be called spenders!

— Even if it is your old man, he would never kill you for one hundred and fifty thousand lan. Not that you haven't lost so much before...

— But, after I lost all the money, I said that I would go home to get some more. It was then that Li Bo said that everyone was already tired and would have already left if it wasn’t for me… I got angry, and…” Tang Yuan looked at Jun Xie with a pitiful expression, his face showed regret.

Read the light novel Otherworldly Evil Monarch at Ranobelib. ru

— So what? Jun Xie had a bad premonition.

— You can lose someone, but you can’t lose yourself… I got angry, and… I bet my favorite sword and jade scabbard, I bet it for three hundred thousand silver lan… I thought I could win back, win quickly and get it back, but … I didn’t think… I didn’t know… I lost everything,” Tang Yuan’s face became more and more sad as he spoke.

— You dare to put down that sword?! I still remember how your father spent a fortune to buy you that famous Snowstorm Sword! This terrifyingly beautiful sword that could cut through iron like butter! And this sheath for the sword, they were made by the Jade Worm himself! Yes, these two treasures together were worth at least one million silver lien, weren't they? And despite that, you put them on the line for a measly three hundred thousand? Yes, even on sale, these sword and scabbard would not have left for such a small price! Jun Xie was speechless. Yes, this man ... He is the very embodiment of extravagance!

— Hey, I'm not really a person without any restrictions! It's just... My mind suddenly went blank! I don’t even know how to explain it, my mind has turned into a mess of confusion…” Tang Yuan muttered again.

— But, even if you still lost these two priceless treasures, you had a saving thread. You could buy them back, right? Considering how much your grandfather loves you, he would scold you hard, but he certainly wouldn't kill you. And besides, what else does your family have, if not money? Approximately one million, is that a big problem for someone like you? Jun Xie said with a sigh.

— Nonsense, those two treasures were absolute! How could I not want to win them back? Tang Yuan said proudly. “It’s as if you don’t know my grandfather… Last time you saw what I suffered thanks to him… Such a spanking can easily scratch the skin!”

— And you continued to play? What was at stake this time? I know you have a lot of valuable junk, but I am sure that none of these things will be worth one million lien.” Jun Xie was a person who learned from experience, especially in such a matter as the psychology of gambling. This fat guy wouldn't be so upset if he didn't play something that is absolutely not worth playing.

— Y-yes, I didn't have anything of that value with me back then. In the end… In the end… I-I-I… I put my wife on the line…” Tang Yuan’s face was desperate, it was the face of a man who wanted to commit suicide. “I still had to marry her.

— Huh? “Baby Ke was the one who made that sound. Her eyes looked straight at Tang Yuan.

She was deeply shocked, even disgusted inside her. She thought to herself: [It was not easy for my Master to become good, and here comes this bad friend!]

— What? Have you put your wife on the line? Did you really drag her into this? Jun Xie almost fell off his chair. It was too shocking! Simply unthinkable!

Tang Yuan's fiancée was not just his future wife, she was the daughter of Sun Cheng He, Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Justice! A beauty from a prestigious family, and sent to the House of a Thousand Gold! If news of this gets out, then the flow of ridicule and jokes will be immeasurable.

“I… I didn’t drag her there…” Tang Yuan said, almost sobbing. “But I wrote a receipt, and I wrote it down as a pledge worth a million silver lanes… It was written in white and black, here and there… With my signature…”

- PIG! What a pig you are! One is the daughter of the Deputy Minister of Justice, and the other is the son of the Minister of the State Treasury. Connections like this affect the future and reputation of two prestigious families! And yet, he put her on the line for one million silver lien! Jun Xie finished yelling at the meatball and rolled on the floor laughing. - Yes, you really signed up here ... And what happened to a million dean?

“Lost…as always…” Tang Yuan fell to his knees, causing the ground to shake, and began to whine and howl. “They said that if I don’t bring a million and five hundred thousand silver lanes within three hours, then they won’t need my money, and neither will my wife, they will tell everyone about the receipt…”

- Wow! Jun Xie was speechless again. How did one million turn into a million and five hundred thousand?

“This is… this is the price of waiting three hours…” Tang Yuan muttered to himself. “Young Master, you must save me!” I... I have nowhere else to go!