"On the First Day of Christmas"
One version of this song dates back to 1770 when it appeared on a broadside. It was traditionally played on Twelfth Night (evening of January 5th). Each person takes a part and has to remember all of the objects mentioned by previous players and then add on an extra item. If the person missed, they had to perform a forfeit. (A forfeit is like a dare.) The twelve days of Christmas extends from Christmas Day to Epiphany, when the Wise Men arrived with their gifts. In wealthier homes, a gift on each of the 12 days was not unusual. (I am very surprised that modern day merchants have not latched on to this idea yet!)
Here are some things to ponder about this song:
--If you read my post on wassailing you may see a connection with the pear tree.
--You might notice that on the fourth day of Christmas, the gift is four COLLY birds, not "calling birds". Colly birds refers to the European blackbird and over time it has been misunderstood and changed.
--You might get excited thinking that you were getting five golden rings, especially with the price of gold being so high, but it actually means that you are getting five ring-necked pheasants. If you notice, the first seven gifts are all birds. Can you imagine receiving that many birds for Christmas? Most, if not all of them, are edible, so you could just have a feast at your true love's expense!
--Some sources have said that the song was written in England during the period when it was illegal to be of the Catholic faith. It was rumored to be an aid to help youngsters learn about their faith in secret.
--Some sources say that the song represents various religious symbols: Partridge in a Pear Tree (God or Christ); Two turtle doves (Old & New Testaments); Three French hens (Faith, Hope & Charity); Four Colly Birds (Four Gospels); Five Golden Rings (First five books of the old testament); Six geese (Six days of creation); Seven swans (seven sacraments); Eight Maids (Eight beatitudes); Nine Ladies (Nine fruits of the Holy Spirit); Ten Lords (Ten commandments); Eleven Pipers (Eleven faithful apostles); Twelve drummers (Twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle's Creed).
In any case, it is a very fun song to sing!
"On the First Day of Christmas"
(aka "The Twelve Days of Christmas"
(aka "The Twelve Days of Christmas"
On the first day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
a partridge in a pear tree.
On the second day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
two turtle doves,
and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the third day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
three French hens, two turtle doves,
and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the fourth day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
four colly birds, three French hens, two turtle doves,
and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the fifth day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
five golden rings, four colly birds, three French hens, two turtle doves,
and a partridge in a pear tree.
On the sixth day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
six geese a-layin', etc
On the seventh day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
seven swans a-swimmin', etc
On the eighth day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
eight maids a-milkin', etc
On the ninth day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
nine ladies dancin', etc
On the tenth day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
ten lords a-leapin', etc
On the eleventh day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
eleven pipers pipin', etc
On the twelfth day of Christmas,
my true love gave to me,
twelve drummers drumming, etc
I've always really liked that song...but if you were to ask me any trivia about it, I would have no clue about it...even for a million dollars...I'd have to phone a friend...I guess you'll have to be on my list.
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