A Guyanese Version Of "Say Say My Playmate" (with information about Guyana & information about a Jamaican Patois originated word in that rhyme)

Edited by Azizi Powell 

This pancocojams post presents information about Guyana, South America and showcases a Guyanese version of the early 20th century song "Playmate" which is now commonly known as "Say Say My Playmate". That song  hasr evolved to multiple versions of children's jump rope and (later) hand clap rhymes with the "Say Say My Playmate" title or similar titles.

This post also presents information about a Jamaican Patois originated word in that rhyme.

The content of this post is presented for cultural, recreational, and linguistic purposes. 

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
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Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/09/the-evolution-of-childrens-rhyme-say.html for the closely related pancocojams post entitled "The Evolution Of The Children's Rhyme "Say Say My Playmate" (with a focus on some examples that include a reference to the flu)"

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INFORMATION ABOUT GUYANA
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guyana
"Guyana ,,, officially the Co‑operative Republic of Guyana,[10] is a country on the northern mainland of South America and the capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north, Brazil to the south and southwest, Venezuela to the west, and Suriname to the east. With 215,000 square kilometres (83,000 sq mi), Guyana is the third-smallest sovereign state by area in mainland South America after Uruguay and Suriname; it is also the second-least populous sovereign state in South America after Suriname.

 [...]

Guyana was colonised by the Dutch before coming under British control in the late 18th century. It was governed as British Guiana, with a mostly plantation-style economy until the 1950s. It gained independence in 1966, and officially became a republic within the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970. The legacy of British rule is reflected in the country's political administration and diverse population, which includes Indian, African, Amerindian, Chinese, Portuguese, other European, and various multiracial groups. In 2017, 41% of the population of Guyana lived below the poverty line.[11]

Guyana is the only South American nation in which English is the official language. The majority of the population, however, speak Guyanese Creole, an English-based creole language, as a first language. Guyana is part of the Anglophone Caribbean. It is part of the mainland Caribbean region maintaining strong cultural, historical, and political ties with other Caribbean countries as well as headquarters for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). In 2008, the country joined the Union of South American Nations as a founding member.”…

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A GUYANESE VERSION OF THE CHILDREN'S RHYME "SAY SAY MY PLAYMATE"
(with comments)

[Pancocojams Editor's Notes:
Most of the examples of rhymes in this BlackHairMedia.com  discussion thread appear to be from African Americans women, although few of the contributors indicate where they lived when they were children.

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WARNING: A number of rhyme examples in this discussion thread contain profanity and sexually explicit references. None of those examples are included in this pancocojams post.

The term "batty" may fall into the category of profanity or is at least considered a risque word (as per the contributor's comments given below.) Also, the closely related Jamaican Patois referent "batty boy" is pejorative.

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From http://forum.blackhairmedia.com/childhood-songs-or-rhymes_topic205958_page9.html  BlackHairMedia.com Childhood Songs Or Rhymes 

CeCe my baby
I cannot play with you
Because you have the flu
Chicken Pox and measels too
Go down the draining pipe
I lost my sailors shoe
since 1972
123
A boy see me
Up in a mango tree
An He skin his batty pun me
What he do?
He skin his batty pun me
- Derri, Aug 06 2009
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Reply
"what is skin his batty??  sounds hurtful."
-Stacymo28, August 6,  2009

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Reply
"lmao in Guyana if you show someone your butt we call it

skinning your batty on them

or if you're laughing a lot you're skinning your teeth lmao

 

but as kids we were'nt allowed to say batty, most lil kids say BT instead, unless they're nasty"
-Derri, August 6, 2009
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Read the next section of this post for the meaning of the word "batty" in this rhyme.  My guess is that the word "pun" in this rhyme means "at" although it probably came from the word "upon".

Do you know this rhyme or any other children's recreational rhymes from Guyana? If so, please share it in the comment section below. Please remember to include demographics (where you learned it (geographic location) and when (decade or year), along with information about how you performed it and what the Patoise word/s mean. Thanks!  

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE JAMAICAN PATOIS MEANING OF THE WORD "BATTY"
“Batty” is a Jamaican patois word meaning “butt”.

Read https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batty_boy * for information about the related pejorative term “batty boy”

WARNING: That Wikipedia page includes some violent and sexually explicit content.

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