Ten Little Indians

"Ten Little Indians" has a complex and controversial history, originating in 19th-century American minstrel shows. The earliest known version was composed by songwriter Septimus Winner in 1868 and was performed in blackface minstrel shows. In 1869, Frank J. Green adapted the song, changing the subjects to "Indians," redirecting the mockery toward Native Americans while maintaining the structure where each verse describes a mishap that reduces the count by one. The rhyme gained cultural traction through illustrated editions and became part of children's education despite its macabre theme. Native American advocates have criticized it as a "genocidal nursery rhyme" that normalizes the erasure of indigenous peoples through whimsical narrative. The rhyme inspired Agatha Christie's 1939 mystery novel, originally titled controversially but later renamed "And Then There Were None." Modern versions for children often substitute "aeroplanes," "soldier boys," or "teddy bears" to avoid the offensive language.