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Monday 28 December 2015

Y is for Yuletide

Some folks get to December 26 and automatically stop listening to Christmas-related music. Of course, they may have been hearing it since late November, on US Thanksgiving, or even earlier. Whereas I don't even START until December 6, when and play it until Epiphany.

A dictionary definition of yuletide is the period extending from December 24 to January 6. Yule is a "a festival observed by the historical Germanic peoples, later undergoing Christianised reformulation resulting in the now better-known Christmastide."

Here's another description.

One Christmas song that use the word is Deck the Halls - "Troll the ancient Yuletime carol." What does that mean?!
"According to the OED, one of the meanings of 'troll,' in use since the 16th century, is 'to sing in a full, rolling voice; to chant merrily or jovially.'"

Another Yule reference is in The Christmas Song, perhaps better known as Chestnuts Roasting By An Open Fire: "Yuletide carols being sung by a choir."
You can hear and read about the song here.
This is a lovely story about co-writer Mel Torme.
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13 comments:

  1. Music... in whatever form can be very comforting and that is what i wish for, especially in this time with all the sadness that arounds us.

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  2. Yippee! Thanks for the clarification of yuletide and other words!

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  3. Please note post #2, and the loss of our regular contributor Berowne.

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  4. Oh no, we have lost Berowne? How sad. May his memory be a blessing. How good to leave behind so much writing.

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  5. I'm still listening to christmas music! Enjoyed your post
    My post is autumnal, but I have to say our winter e=weather is very much like our autumn weather this year, just wetter.

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  6. Happy Yuletide, indeed! And Happy New Year included, too!
    My "Y" today is for the YARRA River, here in Melbourne.

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  7. January 6 has always been the last day of Christmas for us. :-)

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  8. I had been working on Yuletide for a few days, like minds I guess.
    Ann

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  9. What a great Y word! I'm still listening to Christmas songs. Thank you for visiting my blog!

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  10. Interesting info on Letter Y.

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  11. Had no clue that Troll could have anything but the ugly meaning we associate it with.

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