A folk song is a piece of music that was composed within the parameters of folk music. These songs are usually about a particular group of people, an event, or a cultures history. Folk music takes its name from "folklore," which are collections of tales associated with a specific culture. Folk songs are usually passed down orally, meaning that they are never written down, changes occur to their structure and events, and they have no original author (or the author has been forgotten) . Folk songs are categorized by geographic region, language type, ethnicity, social function (e.g. work song, ritual song, courting song), and musical type.
Examples of folk songs include "Barbara Allen" and "Scarborough Fair".
