More nursery rhymes and their meanings continued ..

_Elsa_

THIS OLD MAN

This old man, he played one,

He played knick-knack on my thumb;

With a knick-knack paddywhack,

Give the dog a bone,

This old man came rolling home.

This old man, he played two,

He played knick-knack on my shoe;

With a knick-knack paddywhack,

Give the dog a bone,

This old man came rolling home.

This old man, he played three,

He played knick-knack on my knee;

With a knick-knack paddywhack,

Give the dog a bone,

This old man came rolling home.

This old man, he played four,

He played knick-knack on my door;

With a knick-knack paddywhack,

Give the dog a bone,

This old man came rolling home.

This old man, he played five,

He played knick-knack on my hive;

With a knick-knack paddywhack,

Give the dog a bone,

This old man came rolling home.

This old man, he played six,

He played knick-knack on my sticks;

With a knick-knack paddywhack,

Give the dog a bone,

This old man came rolling home.

This old man, he played seven,

He played knick-knack up in heaven;

With a knick-knack paddywhack,

Give the dog a bone,

This old man came rolling home.

This old man, he played eight,

He played knick-knack on my gate;

With a knick-knack paddywhack,

Give the dog a bone,

This old man came rolling home.

This old man, he played nine,

He played knick-knack on my spine;

With a knick-knack paddywhack,

Give the dog a bone,

This old man came rolling home.

This old man, he played ten,

He played knick-knack once again;

With a knick-knack paddywhack,

Give the dog a bone,

This old man came rolling home.

Meaning - I’ve always been a little bit creeped out by this ditty about an old man playing “nick-nack” on various things owned by the song’s writer. In the end, it turns out this is just a standard case of the English hating on poor Irish people after the potato famine. Most sources I’ve found believe “This Old Man” refers to the influx of Irish beggars going door to door in England after the famine, either to sell knickknacks or to literally play a rhythm called "nick-nacks" using spoons in hopes of getting some change.  

The “paddy whack” is a derogatory term for literally hitting an Irish person (just as a “paddy wagon” referred to either the Irish cops driving it or the Irish drunks inside it), and the old man “rolling home” seems to allude to the use of caravans, or the old man using his money from those lucrative knickknack sales to get boozed up. Sigh. The emotional impact this story is having on me is significant. (Source) 

Let’s continue - Tiffi can hardly believe these meanings

Start at the beginning – The story of Mother Goose