Robert Burns: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

O bonie was yon rosy Brier

Robert Burns

“O bonie was yon rosy Brier” as printed in The Poetical Works of Robert Burns (1887).

Robert Burns: Collected Lyrics Text 262 1887 · historical text
Public domainScottish songSong lyrics
Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from The Poetical Works of Robert Burns, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

O bonie was yon rosy brier,

That blooms sae fair frae haunt o' man;

And bonie she, and ah, how dear!

It shaded frae the e'enin sun.

Verse 2

Yon rosebuds in the morning dew,

How pure amang the leaves sae green;

But purer was the lover's vow

They witness'd in their shade yestreen.

Verse 3

All in its rude and prickly bower,

That crimson rose, how sweet and fair!

But love is far a sweeter flower

Amid life's thorny path o' care.

Verse 4

The pathless wild, and wimpling burn,

Wi' Chloris in my arms, be mine;

And I, the world, nor wish, nor scorn,

Its joys and griefs alike resign.

Credits

Written by Robert Burns

Words by Robert Burns. Historical text published in The Poetical Works of Robert Burns (1887); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

The Poetical Works of Robert Burns (1887), “O bonie was yon rosy Brier”

Every text in this 1887 collected edition is by Robert Burns (1759-1796), who died more than 230 years ago, so the text is in the public domain worldwide; the edition carries a Wikisource PD-old determination and a pre-1931 United States publication.

How to read this historical text and its source

Read the source on Wikisource

View copyright evidence · Transcription terms (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Retrieved 2026-10-25. Line spacing and section labels are adapted for reading. The displayed text follows the linked edition. Editorial notes and abstract artwork are by 52lyrics.
Keep tracing

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01A Rose-budPublic-domain lyrics02A red, red RosePublic-domain lyrics03Address to a LadyPublic-domain lyrics04AdieuPublic-domain lyrics