It gives an account of the murder of a woman and her infant son by a man, in some versions, a disgruntled mason, in others, a devil, bogeyman or a motiveless villain.
According to Roud and Bishop (2012): "Lambkin" is not one of the major league Child ballads in terms of popularity, but it was widely known in England and Scotland, and even more so in North America.
[6] The ballad, as Long Lonkin, was taken from a friend by Letitia Elizabeth Landon and published in her Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1835.
The American poet Robert Lowell also referenced the song in the title of his Pulitzer Prize-winning collection of poetry Lord Weary's Castle (1946).
[14] A sadistic character named Lankin appears as a member of the Fairy Queen's court in Terry Pratchett's Lords and Ladies.