On the 13th Day of Christmas
About the Story
“The Twelve Days of Christmas” is an English Christmas carol that dates back to the 1700s. The song tells of the many gifts received from a “true love” on each of the 12 days of the Christmas season, which starts on Christmas Day and continues for 12 days. Thought to have originated in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, a copy of the carol was found printed on a 1714 broadsheet entitled, “An Old English Carol.” Some scholars believe that the “old ballad” Sir Toby Belch begins to sing in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night also may refer to the carol. Written records indicate that the song was also used as part of a Christmas game in which participants took turns repeating verses and had to offer a small gift if they made an error. Today, the best-known version of the carol comes from the children’s book, Mirth Without Mischief, published in London in 1780. Many variations of music exist, but the standard melody known today was popularized by the English composer, Frederic Austin, whose arrangement was published in 1909. In France, the song is called, “The Twelve Months” and the gifts include 12 cockerels, 11 silver dishes, 10 white pigeons, 9 horned oxen, 8 biting cows, 7 windmills, 6 running dogs, 5 rabbits running along the ground, 4 ducks flying, 3 wooden branches, 2 turtle doves, and a partridge.
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