Historical Notes

Twinkle, twinkle, little star, a poem by Jane and Ann Taylor, was published as “The Star” in Rhymes for the Nursery (1806). It became so popular that the first verse at least (there are five in all) entered the oral tradition as a nursery rhyme.

Since there is some debate about which sister actually wrote the poem, generally it is generally listed under both names. A one line dedication in the original book, however, does indicate that it was Jane who had the original idea; and she is listed as the single author in some reference sources .

“Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” was set to music by J. Green by about 1860, and a PANTOMINE, Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star or Harlequin Jack Frost, was performed about ten years later. This verse has often been parodied, the best known example being the Mad Hatter’s Song in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland: “Twinkle, twinkle, little bat!” Martin Gardner, in The Annotated Alice (1960), suggests that this may refer to the Oxford mathematician and friend of Carroll, Bartholomew Price, known to students as “The Bat.”

Lewis Carroll (1832-1898)
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Bat!

“-- -- it was at the great concert given by the Queen of Hearts, and I had to sing

`Twinkle, twinkle, little bat!
              How I wonder what you're at!'

You know the song, perhaps?"

   "I've heard something like it," said Alice.

   "It goes on, you know," the Hatter continued, "in this way: -- --

              `Up above the world you fly,
              Like a teatray in the sky.
                    Twinkle, twinkle --'"