Theme
The song tells of a lover courting the object of his affections, Mary Jane, on Ilkley Moor without a hat (baht 'at). The singer chides the lover for his lack of headwear – for in the cold winds of Ilkley Moor this will mean his death from exposure. This will in turn result in his burial, the eating of his corpse by worms, the eating of the worms by ducks and finally the eating of the ducks by the singers.
The Yorkshire Dictionary (Arnold Kellett, 2002) stated that the song (i.e., the lyrics) probably originates from the Halifax area, based on the dialect used in the song, which is not common to all areas of Yorkshire.
The title is seen in various transcriptions of Yorkshire dialect, but is most commonly On Ilkla Mooar baht 'at, i.e. "On Ilkley Moor without a hat". The song's origins are believed to be as a ditty to poke fun at a courting couple, as sung by a mischievous local choir.
The first published version of the words appeared in 1916, when it was described as "a dialect song which, for at least two generations past, has been sung in all parts of the West Riding of Yorkshire". Arnold Kellett calculates that the song "could well have originated in the early years of the second half of the century, and not as late as 1877 ...".
Read more about this topic: On Ilkla Moor Baht 'at
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