Immigrant's names and languages have always been the subject of American jokes and songs, some affectionately well-intentioned and other mean-spirited. John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmitt seems to come out of that tradition. German immigrants began settling in America during colonial times, but the mid-nineteenth century saw a new influx of Germans and other northern Europeans arriving in the United States. Just when, where, and how John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmitt appeared is anybody's guess, but it has the same "endless loop" pattern as another song based on the Scandinavian immigrant experience. To get the full effect of this song, pronounce "j" as "y" and "w" as "v" ("My name is Yon Yonson, I come from Wisconsin, etc.)
My name is John Johnson, I come from Wisconsin,
I work in the lumber yard there.
When I walk down the street all the people I meet,
They say, "What's your name?"
And I say-
My name is John Johnson, I come from Wisconsin...
Somehow a song that just keeps going and going always tickles a four-year-old's funny bone. Think of the ubiquitous "This is a Song that Never Ends," a more recent entrant in this tradition of songs that are good for long hikes, car rides, and testing the limits of parental patience.
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