Seinn O comes from the Gaelic tradition of "mouth music," a style of vocal music intended to accompany dancing. Mouth music appears in every Gaelic culture in the world, from Ireland to Cape Breton to Appalachia. Like most mouth music, the lyrics of Seinn O are light, flirtatious, and improvisatory, with a healthy amount of nonsense. The speed of the music, the call-and-response structure, and the inconsequential nature of the lyrics makes the song seem like a party game or a bar bet to see who can trip up the tongues of their opponents.