Ay-Ziggy What?! The Origin of ‘Ay Ziggy Zoomba’
Gilbert Fox ‘48 left BGSU more than 50 years ago. When he did he left a legacy to campus spirit that exists to this day.
It was Fox who brought Bowling Green State University its unique, albeit unofficial, fight song and he was also an original member of SIC SIC, the secret organization that promotes school spirit.
Fox says it was a fluke that brought him to BGSU. The native of Westchester County, New York, was leaving the service in October of 1944 after serving as a bombardier with the Air Force in Italy. Wanting to get on with his life and enroll in college, Fox was told by his discharge officer that BGSU was the only university in the country that had not started its fall term. He quickly enrolled as a music education major and was soon immersed in campus life.
In 1946 he was asked to perform at a special spirit assembly called by University President Frank Prout. Fox brought along a song he had learned in Italy from a group of South African Airmen. The tune, which was a loose translation of a Zulu war chant, was ‘Ay Ziggy Zoomba’. "Those airmen were great singers of all kinds of songs and they taught me ‘Ziggy Zoomba,’ Fox said. He rewrote the words and taught them to a quartet of students who sang it at a school assembly. The students loved it.
The song quickly caught on and over the years it slowly worked its way into a permanent place in BGSU spirit. The song is now heard very often at BGSU athletic events and alumni gatherings – it was even sung in the 1968 movie Paper Lion in which former All-American and Detroit Lion All-Pro defensive back Mike Weger ’67 sang it as part of his rookie initiation at training camp.
-Story adapted from an At BG article written by Matt Markey ’76
Words to Ay Ziggy Zoomba:
Ay Ziggy Zoomba Zoomba Zoomba
Ay Ziggy Zoomba Zoomba Ze
Ay Ziggy Zoomba Zoomba Zoomba
Ay Ziggy Zoomba Zoomba Ze
Roll along you BG warriors
Roll along and win for BGSU!
