Riddles Wisely Expounded

1445 traditional song

"Riddles Wisely Expounded" is a traditional English song, dating at least to 1450. It is Child Ballad 1 and Roud 161, and exists in several variants. The first known tune was attached to it in 1719. The title "Riddles Wisely Expounded" was given by Francis James Child and seems derived from the seventeenth century broadside version "A Noble Riddle Wisely Expounded".

The motif of riddling in folklore is very ancient, the stories of Oedipus and Samson giving two early examples. The particular form used here matches the folktale Aarne Thompson type 875 The Clever Girl where a woman wins a husband by her clever answers to riddles. Other tales of this type include What Is the Fastest Thing in the World? and The Wise Little Girl. There are strong parallels with ballads in other languages, with many German, and Scottish and Irish Gaelic versions known to exist. There is also significant crossover with other popular English language ballads, such as The Two Sisters (Child 10) and The False Knight on the Road (Child 3) and The Elfin Knight (Child 2).

In the earliest surviving version of the song, the "foul fiend" proposes to abduct a maiden unless she can answer a series of riddles. The woman prays to Jesus for wisdom, and answers the riddles correctly.

Hewene ys heyer than ys the tre. (Heaven is higher than is the tree.) Helle ys dypper than ys the see. (Hell is deeper than is the sea.) Hongyr ys scharpper than [ys] the thorne. (Hunger is sharper than is the thorn.) Thonder ys lodder than ys the horne. (Thunder is louder than is the horn.) Loukynge ys longer than ys the way. (Looking is longer (broader) than is the way.) Syn ys rader than ys the day. (Sin is redder than is the day.)