Sleeping Beauty (Thorn Rose, Briar Rose)

DESCRIPTION: Singing game. "Fair Rosa was a lovely child... Fair Rosa slept a hundred years... A forest grew around her tower... A wicked fairy found her there... A noble prince came riding by... And now she's happy as a bride."
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1935 (Sam Henry collection)
KEYWORDS: magic rescue marriage beauty
FOUND IN: Ireland US(NE)
REFERENCES (4 citations):
Henry/Huntingdon/Herrmann-SamHenrysSongsOfThePeople H599, p. 12, "Fair Rosa/The Sleeping Beauty" (1 text, 1 tune)
Hammond-SongsOfBelfast, p. 19, "Fair Rosa" (1 text, 1 tune)
Opie/Opie-TheSingingGame 61, "Fair Rosie" (2 texts, 1 tune)
Averill-CampSongsFolkSongs, pp. 234, 518, "Fair Rosie" (notes only)
Roud #7889
RECORDINGS:
Patricia Campbell, "Thorn Rosa" (Fragment: Piotr-Archive #232, recorded 09/05/2022)
NOTES [125 words]: Very common as a folktale, of course, and quite old. In the Grimm collection, it is "Briar-Rose" ("Dornröschen," #50, 1812, from Marie Hassenpflug); Perrault also had a version ("La belle au bois dormant"). The oldest version known is in the Volsung saga; in section 20, Sigurd awakens Brynhild by slicing away her enchanted armor.
Roud appears to lump this with a rare piece called "Melven Vine." This is possible, but I'd want more evidence.
I'm not sure this is what Averill-CampSongsFolkSongs means by "Fair Rosie," but as with all her many unidentifiable songs, this seems the best bet. There is a song "Rosa" in SongsOfManyNations that might also fit, but it doesn't seem to have been widely distributed and never calls the woman "fair Rosa." - RBW
Last updated in version 6.7
File: HHH599

Go to the Ballad Search form
Go to the Ballad Index Song List

Go to the Ballad Index Instructions
Go to the Ballad Index Bibliography or Discography