The lyric from “Baa, Baa, Black Sheep” is “Have you any wool?”
The rhyme continues with the sheep answering, “Yes, sir, yes, sir, three bags full,” followed by one bag for the master, one for the dame, and one for the little boy who lives down the lane. “Wool” refers to the fleece sheared from sheep and used historically for textiles.
The earliest known printed version appeared around 1744 in Tommy Thumb’s Pretty Song Book. The words have changed slightly over time, including versions with “Yes, merry have I” and one eighteenth-century ending that gave none to the little boy.
Its melody is closely related to the French tune “Ah! vous dirai-je, maman,” first published in 1761. That same melody is used for “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” and the alphabet song. The rhyme’s supposed links to medieval wool taxes or slavery remain theories rather than established facts.