Traditional: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

My ain Bonnie May

Traditional

“My ain Bonnie May” as printed in The Book of Scottish Song (1843).

Traditional: Collected Lyrics Text 276 1843 · historical text
Public domainScottish songFolk
Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from The Book of Scottish Song, edited by Alexander Whitelaw, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

O will ye go to yon burn side,

Amang the new-made hay,

And sport upon the flowery swaird,

My ain bonnie May?

The sun blinks blithe on yon burn side,

Whare lambkins lightly play;

The wild bird whistles to his mate,

My ain bonnie May.

The waving woods, wi' mantle green,

Shall shield us in the bower,

Whare I'll pu' a posie for my May,

O' mony a bonnie flower.

My father maws ayont the burn,

To spin my mammy's gane;

And should they see thee here wi' me,

I'd better been my lane.

The lightsome lammie little kens

What troubles it await:

Whan ance the flush o' spring is o'er,

The fause bird lea'es its mate.

The flow'rs will fade, the woods decay,

And lose their bonnie green;

The sun wi' clouds may be o'ercast,

Before that it be e'en.

Ilk thing is in its season sweet;

So love is, in its noon:

But cank'ring time may soil the flow'r,

And spoil its bonnie bloom.

O, come then, while the summer shines,

And love is young and gay;

Ere age his with'ring, wintry blast

Blaws o'er me and my May.

For thee I'll tend the fleecy flocks,

Or haud the halesome plough,

And nightly clasp thee to my breast,

And prove aye leal and true.

The blush o'erspread her bonnie face,

She had nae mair to say,

But ga'e her hand, and walk'd alang,

The youthfu' bloomin' May.

Credits

Written by Traditional

Traditional words. Historical text published in The Book of Scottish Song (1843); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

The Book of Scottish Song (1843), edited by Alexander Whitelaw, “My ain Bonnie May”

Every contribution in this 1843 anthology predates modern copyright terms by more than a century; any contributor died at least 130 years ago, so the text is in the public domain worldwide (life+70 terms expired no later than 2020).

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 2026-10-12. Line spacing and section labels are adapted for reading. The displayed text follows the linked edition. Editorial notes and abstract artwork are by 52lyrics.
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