The Bonny Hind Explained

"The Bonny Hind" is Child ballad number 50 (Roud 205).^[1]

Synopsis

A squire persuades a maiden to lie with him. Afterward, she asks his name, and he reveals that he is a lord's son. She calls him a liar: she is that lord's daughter. The horror-struck son reveals that he was long at sea. She stabs herself to death, and he buries her. He goes home and grieves for a "bonny hind" whatever his father can do to distract him.

Variants

Other ballads on this theme include "Sheath and Knife", "The King's Dochter Lady Jean", and "Lizie Wan".^[2]

See also

• The Bonnie Banks o Fordie

Notes and References

1. [Francis James Child]
2. Francis James Child, The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, v 1, p 185, Dover Publications, New York 1965