Alphabet song - British vs US version

[merryNath88]

Sorry if it's the wrong section of the forums to ask about this.
I need to understand the differences between the US English and UK English version of the traditional ABC songs.
Is the only difference that the British version uses 'ZED' and the US version uses ZEE? Can the both songs be performed by one artist provided that she sings ZEE and ZED according to the version?

I personally think the sounds of the letters are different. You would be able to tell an American singing a British version and vice versa regardless of zed and zee.

One of the things that used to irritate me most when my child was small was American talking toys for colours/numbers etc... - I preferred a British accent which I often couldn't find.

Yes basically. Depending on where you live in the English speaking world of course the pronunciation of many letters vary in particular also the letter 'a'... which can be ai or ahh or a variety depending. Basically the main difference is the z though.

I think zee vs zed is the main one. I'm British but was raised in the Middle East and so learnt zee. We live in the UK now and DS1 scolds me for using zee instead of zed in short, don't worry about it!

Yeah, I try to remember to sing zed at the end but it's annoying because it doesn't rhyme. Otherwise it's just what accent you're singing in really. I don't think pronunciation of letter names is particularly important anyway, but it's handy knowing the song when they need to know alphabetical order for e.g. looking things up in a dictionary.

No. Many children muddle up the lmnop bit because of the **ing Barney one. Another plus of the good old fashioned one is that the natural break is after m, half way through the alphabet. There's lots of research on this as a dyslexia issue. You'd be surprised (I was) how many children really can't order the alphabet at 7/8ish.

Thanks so much everyone!

@goingmadinthecountry - what do you mean by 7/8ish? (many children really can't order the alphabet at 7/8ish.)

There are many alternative alphabet songs so it's quite easy to find one that works in both US & UK (and rhymes)

@goingmadinthecountry I’m desperately trying to find the original UK version with the ‘m’ break online - all UK versions seem to have been replaced by bloody twinkle twinkle (ie the US version) and just say ‘zed’ instead of ‘zee’. FFS..

AFter a bit of googling, I have concluded that the version that I sang at primary school was to the tune of ‘row row row the boat’. No ‘m’ break though I’m afraid @Khodg

The tune is very similar to Dr Foster Went to Gloucester. Don't get me started on how children hardly know any nursery rhymes these days!

My mother taught me to sing it to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star before I started school in 1943. I didn't know there was an alternative version.

@wentmadinthecountry I just tried it to the ‘little bo peep’ song and that seemed really familiar and had an ‘m’ break!

Twinkle twinkle tune with the lmnop repeat garble in the middle when I was little. Dd learnt the same tune but with break after m instead of the repeat which is much clearer. Both end in zed

I am from non English speaking country, and I learned (I think) US version of twinkle twinkle Alphabet song as a child. I sang it to my ds, and he was singing it and had no trouble ordering Alphabet or differentiating "Z" as zee or zed. I just told him I learned it as zee, but it's pronounced zed in UK.

The row, row tune gives a break after m for me - it is where “stream” is in the words! You pair up the first letters AB, CD, EFG, to row, row row your boat.

@Joinourclub yes that’s probably the closest one to what I’m thinking. Thanks! I’m glad im not making it up, as anyone I speak to in person has no idea what I’m on about!

We used to sing it to the twinkle twinkle tune in the seventies, but with a break after O. So instead of a gabbled lmnop, it was l m n O, P q r s t u v.

How did I know realise that the alphabet song is the same as Twinkle Twinkle? I play instruments - so am familiar with tunes!!!!! I am 4* - so have sung it for many years. I have 3 kids and have sung it many times with them. I never ever realised this. My mind is blown......