The Limerick

For more than 200 years, the limerick has been loved for its mordant wit, breathtaking rhymes, swinging rhythm, groaning puns, and ability to paint outrageous mental pictures. This book analyzes the limerick’s origin and evolution as the best-known humorous verse form in the English-speaking world. It also examines previous attempts to capture the history of the limerick, including those that used guesswork, presented flawed conclusions and even contradicted each other. Findings are laid out logically and chronologically, so readers can easily follow the thread of every claim.

Bob Turvey lives in Bristol, England. His published works include popular and scholarly articles on matters limerickal, articles on etymology and travel, illustrated children’s books and scientific papers.

Bob Turvey
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 282
Bibliographic Info: 12 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2024
pISBN: 978-1-4766-9559-4
eISBN: 978-1-4766-5280-1
Imprint: McFarland

Introductory Quotations ix

Preface 1

Introduction 3

PART I—Suggested Sources of the Limerick ­Pre-1820 11

 1. Not the Beginning! 13

 2. Possible Limericks in English Prior to 1820 29

 3. Possible Irish Origins Prior to 1820 38

Part II—Limericks from 1820 to 1920 53

 4. The 1820s: At Last—Limericks! 55

 5. The 1830s: Little Progress—On the Surface 62

 6. The 1840s: Some Progress Comes to Light 65

 7. The 1850s: The Calm before the Storm 73

 8. The 1860s: The Limerick Explodes 82

 9. The 1870s: The Limerick Develops 124

10. The 1880s: The Limerick Expands 151

11. The 1890s: Who Wrote What? 162

12. The 1900s: The Limerick Explodes—Again 175

13. The 1910s: The Limerick Does Its Bit 194

Appendix: ­Pre-1820 Verses in English Which Have Been Claimed to Be Limericks or ­Proto-Limericks 203

Chapter Notes 235

Bibliography 257

Index 261