Thus, if some old rhyme or saying has in one place a solemn import in philosophy or religion, while elsewhere it lies at the level of the nursery, there is some ground for treating the serious version as the more original, and the playful one as its mere lingering survival.
1871, Edward Burnett Tylor, Primitive culture: researches into the development of mythology, philosophy, religion, language, art, and custom[IA], Volume 1, chapter 3: "Survival in culture", page 78