Alice The Camel

History & Origin

Alice the Camel is a counting song that combines simple arithmetic with a satisfying comic twist. The song follows Alice, a camel who starts the story with five humps, counts down verse by verse to zero — and then reveals, with perfect logic, that Alice must therefore be a horse.

The song belongs to a broader tradition of cumulative counting songs designed to make numbers memorable for young children. By attaching the countdown to a vivid character and a punchline, it turns subtraction into an event. Children quickly learn to anticipate the ending, which makes it just as enjoyable on the tenth hearing as the first.

The origin of the specific "Alice" version is not precisely documented — it is part of the large body of playground and camp song tradition that circulated widely in the 20th century, with many regional variations. It is closely related to "Sally the Camel" and other versions that use different names. What all versions share is that irresistible final verse — and the delight children take in shouting "no humps!" before the song can even get there.