A Family on Your Finger, also known as Daddy Finger or The finger family, is a children’s rhyme set to music which has been gaining popularity lately. It has become so popular that numerous of videos dedicated to it have sprung up on YouTube. It is a cute song which names different fingers as a member of a family. Each family member in this is represented by a different finger. the thumb is the daddy finger, the pointer is the mommy finger, the middle finger is the brother finger, the ring finger is the sister finger and the pinky finger is the baby finger. As your child sings the lyrics they hold up the finger which corresponds with the lyrics.
Where is Thumbkin?
A Family on Your Finger is comparable to the children’s rhyme Where is Thumbkin. The two have different tunes but contain similar sounding lyrics. Where is Thumbkin is much more familiar to a wider audience since it has been around for a long time. Rather than a family of fingers, this nursery rhyme gives the fingers different names such as thumbkin for the thumb, pointer for the index finger, tall man for the middle finger, ring man for the ring finger and pinky. Just like A Family on Your Finger, this tune also uses finger movements as the respective lyrics are sung. The child holds their hands behind their back and brings them out one at a time, holding up the corresponding finger.
Frère Jacques
The two songs A Family on Your Finger and Where is Thumbkin, share similar lyrics and both include finger play. Since they have this in common, and not much is known about A Family on Your Finger, then it’s only fair to assume that they share a common origin. Where is Thumbkin uses the same tune as another nursery rhyme Frère Jacques.Origins of this French nursery rhyme may go as far back as the 13th century, though it also has connections in the 17th century. It wasn’t, however, published until sometime in the 1800s. It is unclear who wrote the original lyrics or what they mean. It is also unclear when Where is Thumbkin was written. However, it is widely known that these two songs share the same tune. Frère Jacques and its tune was written and published first.
The Origins
The origins of Family of your Fingers is unclear. It is not known whether this fun little tune was written before the current century. However, the original video version of it was uploaded to YouTube in May of 2007. At the time, the video was simply titled, Finger Family. Since then, this video has become a favorite among preschoolers (as well as driven their parents crazy). It has also sprung many different versions, some videos sporting variations on the lyrics. It is slowly gaining popularity on the internet, and you never know where the future of this cute tune may go. It just may one day surpass Where is Thumbkin as popular children’s songs.