A seemingly scary nursery rhyme: a children’s song that gives you the chills when you hear it
When you think of children’s songs, you probably picture the cute tunes kids sing in daycare or kindergarten.
But did you know that some of them have chillingly scary lyrics when you listen to the whole song? In this article, we’ve gathered nursery rhymes that turn out to be frightening once you dig into the lyrics.
You’ll also learn the intriguing backgrounds behind these songs—not just the scare factor—so if there’s a nursery rhyme you’ve always wondered about or never quite understood the meaning of since you were a child, be sure to check it out!
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Actually scary nursery rhymes: children's songs that give you the chills (21–30)
Shōjōji’s Raccoon Dog Festival MusicSakushi: Noguchi Ujō / Sakkyoku: Nakayama Shinpei
Published in 1924, this song may seem like a cheerful tune that conjures up the image of raccoon dogs drumming on their bellies with a “pon poko” beat.
In fact, however, the lyricist Ujo Noguchi is said to have based the lyrics on a ghost story called “Tanuki Bayashi.” In the tale, festival music can be heard from nowhere in particular; even if you walk toward the direction of the sound, you can’t discover its source.
And as you keep searching for where the sound is coming from, before you know it you’ve wandered into an unfamiliar place.
It’s a light, lively melody that you’d never expect to have such a creepy ghost story as its origin.
Red ShoesSakushi: Noguchi Ujo / Sakkyoku: Motoori Nagayo
A children’s song widely known even today as a symbol of Yokohama.
Because of its lyrics, melancholic melody, and historical context, it is often associated with images of human trafficking.
However, the prevailing account passed down is that it is based on a true story: a mother’s wish for her daughter—born into poverty—to find happiness as the adopted child of an American missionary couple, and the girl who, before she could emigrate, died of tuberculosis in an orphanage.
While the lyrics have sparked much debate over their interpretation, the song’s beautiful, wistful melody has been cherished across generations.
Actually scary nursery rhymes: children's songs that give you the chills when you listen (31–40)
The Spinning SongSakushi: Kayama Yoshiko/Shokyoku: Komori Akihiro
The hand-play song “Ito Maki no Uta” (The Spool-Winding Song).
With lyrics by Yoshiko Kayama and music by Akihiro Komori, this piece was created based on the Danish folk tune “The Shoemaker’s Polka.” The song depicts a journey to a little elf’s house and is designed to spark children’s imaginations.
There are multiple interpretations of the lyrics; some even read the latter part as suggesting that “the elf is caught in a pitfall and made into soup.” What do you think? Be sure to pay attention to the latter verses too, which are not often heard!
Zuizui Zukkorobashiwarabe uta
Zuizuizukkorobashi is known as a hand game where you make a ring with your hand and put fingers into the ring one by one, but did you know this song also has a frightening meaning? In the Edo period, tea from Uji in Kyoto was placed in jars and carried all the way to the Edo shogunate.
This was called the “Ocha-tsubo Dōchū,” and no one was allowed to cross the procession.
Although it was just tea that was being transported, crossing their path was taken as an insult to the prestige of the Tokugawa family.
You can almost picture the commoners along the highway holding their breath as they watched the procession pass by.
red dragonflySakushi: Miki Rofū / Sakkyoku: Yamada Kōsaku
A nostalgic children’s song that uses the yo scale and is also featured as an insert song in the films “Here Is a Fountain” and “The Red Dragonfly of Sunset.” The lyrics, written by essayist Rofū Miki, are based on his childhood memories, depicting the scene of the maid who raised him after his parents’ divorce leaving to get married.
Urban legends say the maid wasn’t married off but sold through human trafficking, or that the “red dragonfly” refers to the Zero fighter plane—interpretations that evoke the era’s backdrop—but even the true story alone is poignant enough.
Selected as one of the 100 Best Japanese Songs, it is a lyrical children’s song that every Japanese person knows.
When I Become a First GraderSakushi: Mado Michio / Sakkyoku: Yamamoto Naosumi
A children’s song that is still often sung today at occasions celebrating new beginnings for kids, such as preschool graduation ceremonies, school entrance ceremonies, and welcome parties.
It’s also known for numerous urban legends—for example, that since “if you make 100 friends” should be 101 including yourself, the constant depiction of doing things with exactly 100 people is strange; or that because it was created in 1966 and thus supposedly during wartime, one person was thinned out or eaten by the group.
However, thinking more simply, numbers like 99 or 101 don’t fit the melody as well, so it’s reasonable to assume the lyricist intentionally chose 100 despite knowing the arithmetic.
Rather than overanalyzing it, it’s a nursery song we’d like to see used for the sake of children’s bright futures.
Mysterious PocketSakushi: Mado Michio / Sakkyoku: Watanabe Shigeru
A children’s song known for its poppy melody that captures the innocent wishes of kids.
Some of you may have even acted out the lyrics by patting a pocket filled with biscuits or cookies and breaking one in half.
Written in 1954, in the postwar era, the lyrics reflect the era’s reality: a child’s longing for more of the precious treats called biscuits, and the tender heart wavering between that hope and the truth that such things aren’t readily available.
It feels like a vivid projection of its historical backdrop.
It’s a nursery song we hope will be passed down along with its deeper meaning, which teaches the universal truth that the weakest are always the ones who suffer in war.