It’s the most wonderful time of the year but how well do you know your Christmas Carols? Prepare to be informed, Rogue Polymath style.
The Twelve Days of Christmas
Origins:
Written versions of this song date back to 1780 England, compiled in a child’s book called Mirth without Mischief. However, it’s believed that the oral version considerably predates the written version. Also, there is circumstantial evidence that it’s originally French, not English. Its structure was used in a game called ‘memories and forfeits’, where each player had to remember all the previous lines. If they forgot, they had to pay a penalty (forfeit). Something like the game Truth or Dare.
12 days?
In contrast to today’s commercial Christmas season which unofficially starts the day after Thanksgiving (and unfortunately in isolated instances – before then) and culminates on Christmas day, Medieval Christmas celebrations were different. They began Christmas day and continued to January 5th, twelve days total. January 5th is the eve of a holiday called the Epiphany which celebrates the Magi bringing gifts to the Christ child.
3 Calling Birds
They were actually ‘collie’ birds (as in coal-ie), which means black birds
5 Golden Rings
Not really jewelry, instead it refers to a type of bird with a yellow ring on its neck (like a pheasant). Now you can see the continuity between all the first seven gifts (hint – they’re all birds).
Rising Costs
Every year some economist calculates the cost of actually purchasing these items for your ‘true love.’ Here’s how much it will cost this year: 12 Days List Passes 100K
sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Twelve_Days_of_Christmas_(song)
