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CAROL (O. Fr. carole)

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Originally appearing in Volume V05, Page 380 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

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CAROL (O. Fr. carole)

CAROL (O. Fr. carole) , a hymn of praise, especially such as is sung at See also:

CHRISTMAS (i.e. the Mass of Christ)

Christmas in the open See also:

air. The origin of the word is obscure. See also:

Diez suggests that the word is derived from See also:

CHORUS (Gr. xopbs)Z

chorus. Others ally it with corolla, a See also:

GARLAND, JOHN (fl. 1202—1252)

garland, circle or coronet,' the earliest sense of the word being apparently " a See also:

RING (O.E. hring; a word common to Teutonic languages; and probably cognate with the Lat. circus, Gr. KtpKOS or KpLKOS, Skt'. chakra, wheel, circle, cf. also " harangue "); in art, a band of circular shape of varying sizes, made of any material and used f

ring " or " circle," " a ring See also:

dance." See also:

STONEHENGE (Sax. Slanhengist, hanging stones)

Stonehenge, often called the Giants' Dance, was also frequently known as the Carol; thus See also:

Harding, Chron. lxx. x., " Within (the) Giauntes Carole, that so they hight, The (See also:

Stone hengles) that nowe so named been." The See also:

CELTIC

Celtic forms, often cited as giving the origin of the word, are derivatives of the See also:

ENGLISH

English or See also:

French. The See also:

CRIB (a word common to some Teutonic languages, cf. Dutch krib and Ger. Krippe; it has a common origin with the O. Eng. " cratch," a manger or crib, cf. Fr. creche)

crib set up in the churches at Christmas was the centre of a dance, and some of the most famous of Latin Christmas See also:

HYMNS

hymns were written to dance tunes. These songs were called Wiegenlieder in See also:

German, noels in French, and carols in English. They were originally modelled on the songs written to accompany the choric dance, which were probably the starting-point of the lyric See also:

POETRY

poetry of the Germanic peoples. Strictly speaking, there-fore, the word should be applied to lyrics ,written to dance See also:

MEASURES

measures; in See also:

COMMON

common acceptation it is applied to the songs written for the Christmas festival. Carolling, i.e. the combined exercise of dance and See also:

SONG

song, found its way from See also:

pagan See also:

RITUAL (from Lat. ritus, a custom, especially a religious rite or custom)

ritual into the See also:

Christian See also:

church, and the See also:

clergy, however averse they might be from See also:

HEATHEN

heathen survivals, had to content themselves in this, as in many other cases, with limiting the practice. The third See also:

COUNCIL (Lat. concilium, from cum, together, and the root cal, to call)

council of See also:

Toledo (580) forbade dancing in the churches on the vigils of See also:

SAINTS, BATTLE OF THE

saints' days , and See also:

SECULAR (Lat. saecularis, of or belonging to an age or generation, saeculum)

secular dances in church were forbidden by the council of See also:

AUXERRE

Auxerre in the next See also:

YEAR

year. Even as See also:

LATE

late as 1209 it was necessary for the council of See also:

AVIGNON

Avignon to forbid theatrical dances and secular songs in churches.

Religious dances persisted longest on Shrove Tuesday. and a castanet dance by the choristers See also:

ROUND (O. Fr. rond, Lat. rotundus, the Fr. is the source also of Du. rond; Ger., Swed., Dan. and Nor. rond)

round the See also:

LECTERN (through 0. Fr. leitrun, from Late Lat. lectrum, or leclrinnna, legere, to read; the French equivalent is lutrin; Ital. leggio; Ger. Lesepult)

lectern is permitted three times a year in the See also:

CATHEDRAL

cathedral of See also:

Seville. The Christmas festival, which synchronized with and i In See also:

ARCHITECTURE (Lat. architectura, from the Gr. ap)(LTEKrwv, a master-builder)

architecture, the See also:

TERM

term " carol " (also wrongly spelled " See also:

CARREL, JEAN BAPTISTE NICOLAS ARMAND (18o0-1836)

carrel " or " carrol ") is used, in the sense of an enclosure, of a small See also:

CHAPEL

chapel or See also:

ORATORY (Lat. oratorio, sc. ors; from orare, to speak or pray)

oratory enclosed by screens, and also sometimes of the rails of the screens themselves. It is more particularly, applied to the See also:

SEPARATE

separate seats near the windows of a See also:

CLOISTER (Lat. claustrum; Fr. cloitre; Ital. chiostro; Span. claustro; Ger. Kloster)

cloister (q.v.), used by the monks for the purposes of study, &c. The term " carol " has, by a See also:

MISTAKE (i.e. take amiss)

mistake, been sometimes used of a See also:

SCROLL

scroll bearing an inscription of a See also:

TEXT (Lat. textum, woven fabric, from texere, to weave)

text, &c.superseded the Latin and See also:

Teutonic feasts of the See also:

winter See also:

SOLSTICE (Lat. solstitium, from sal, sun, and sistere, to stand still)

solstice, See also:

LENT (0. Eng. lenclen, " spring," M. Eng. lenten, lente, lent; cf. Dut. lente, Ger. Lenz, " spring," 0. H. Ger. lenzin, lengizin, lenzo, probably from the same root as " long " and referring to " the lengthening days ")

lent itself especially to gaiety. The " crib " of the Saviour was set up in the churches or in private houses, in the traditional setting of the See also:

STABLE

stable, with earthen figures of the See also:

HOLY

Holy See also:

FAMILY

Family, the ox and the See also:

ass; and carols were sung and danced around it. The " rocking of the See also:

CRADLE (of uncertain etymology, possibly connected with " crate " and " creel," i.e. basket; the derivation from a Celtic word, with a sense of rocking, is scouted by the New English Dictionary)

cradle " was the occasion of See also:

DIALOGUE

dialogue between See also:

Joseph and See also:

Mary which was not without elements of See also:

COMEDY

comedy, and gave rise to lullabies such as the well-known German Dormi fili. The See also:

ADORATION (Lat. ad, to, and os, mouth; i.e. " carrying to one's mouth ")

adoration of the shepherds and the visit of the Magi also provided See also:

MATTER

matter for dramatic and choral See also:

REPRESENTATION

representation. The singing of the carol has survived in places where the institution of the "crib," said to have been originated by St See also:

Francis of See also:

ASSISI (anc. Asisium)

Assisi to inculcate the See also:

DOCTRINE

doctrine of the incarnation, has been See also:

long in disuse, but in the See also:

West See also:

RIDING

Riding of See also:

YORKSHIRE

Yorkshire the See also:

CHILDREN, LAW RELATING TO

children who go round carol-singing still carry " millyboxes " (My See also:

LADY (0. Eng. hlaefdige, Mid. Eng. ldfdi, lavedi; the first part of the word is hldf, loaf, bread, as in the corresponding hldford, lord; the second part is usually taken to be from the root dig-, to knead, seen also in " dough "; the sense development fr

Lady boxes) containing figures which represent the Virgin and See also:

Child. That carol-singing See also:

early became a pretext for the asking of See also:

ALMS

alms is obvious from an Anglo-See also:

Norman carol preserved in the See also:

BRITISH

British Museum (MS. Reg. 16 E. viii.), Seigneurs ore entendey a nus, which is little more than a drinking song. Carols were an important See also:

ELEMENT (Lat. elementum)

element in the See also:

MYSTERY (Gr. µw(Trilpcov, from tcuvrm, an initiate, µfew, to shut the mouth)

mystery plays of the Nativity, and one of these, included in the Marguerites de la See also:

MARGUERITE

Marguerite See also:

des princesses, tres-illustre reine de See also:

NAVARRE (Span. Navarra)

Navarre (See also:

Lyons, 1547), incidentally gives See also:

EVIDENCE (Lat. evidentia, evideri, to appear clearly)

evidence of the connexion of dancing and carol-singing, for the shepherds and shepherdesses open their chorus at the manger with "Dansons, chantons, faisons rage." There is a long English carol See also:

RELATING

relating the See also:

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

chief incidents of the See also:

LIFE

life of See also:

Christ, which is a curious example of the mixture of the sacred and profane common in this See also:

SPECIES

species of See also:

composition.

It begins " To-morrow shall be my dancing See also:

day," and has for refrain " Sing, oh ! my love, oh ! my love, my love, my love ; This have I done for my true love." There are extant numerous carols dating from the 15th See also:

CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century which have the characteristic features of folksong. The famous See also:

CHERRY

Cherry-See also:

tree Carol, " Joseph was an old See also:

man," is based on an old See also:

LEGEND (through the French from the med. Lat. legenda, things to be read, from legere, to read)

legend which is related in the See also:

Coventry mystery plays. " I saw three See also:

SHIPS

ships come sailing in," and " The See also:

CAMEL (from the Arabic Djemal or the Heb. Gamal)

Camel and the See also:

Crane," though of more See also:

MODERN

modern date, preserve curious legends. Numerous entries in the See also:

HOUSEHOLD, ROYAL

household accounts of the Tudor sovereigns show that carol-singing was popular throughout the 16th century, and the literature of Christmas was enriched in the next century by poems which are often included in collections of carols, though they were probably written to be read rather than sung. See also:

Milton, See also:

CRASHAW, RICHARD (1613-165o)

Crashaw, See also:

Southwell, See also:

BEN (from Old Eng. bennan, within)

Ben See also:

JONSON

Jonson, See also:

George See also:

Herbert and George See also:

WITHER, GEORGE (1588-1667)

Wither all produced Christmas poems, but the richest collection by any one poet is to be found in the poems of See also:

HERRICK, ROBERT (1591-1674)

Herrick, whose " Come, bring with a See also:

NOISE (a word of doubtful origin; O. Fr. nogse or nose; Prov. nausa, which points to Lat. nausea, sickness, as the origin; others take Lat. noxia, harm, as the source)

noise " is a typical carol of the jovial See also:

KIND (O. E. ge-cynde, from the same root as is seen in " kin," supra)

kind, and may well have been written to a dance tune. Among 18th-century religious carols perhaps the most famous is See also:

Charles See also:

Wesley's " Hark, how all the welkin rings," better known in the variant, " Hark, the See also:

HERALD (O. Fr. heraut, herault; the origin is uncertain, but O.H.G. heren, to call, or hariwald, leader of an army, have been proposed; the Gr. equivalent is Kddpvi : Lat. praeco, caduceator, fetialis)

herald angels sing." The artificial modern revival of carol-singing has produced a quantity of new carols, the best of which are perhaps mostly derived from See also:

MEDIEVAL

medieval Latin Christmas hymns. Among the many modern Christmas poems one of the most striking is See also:

SWINBURNE, ALGERNON CHARLES (1837–1909)

Swinburne's " Three Damsels in the See also:

Queen's Chamber," which is, however, a ballad rather than a carol. The earliest printed collection of carols was issued by Wynkyn de Worde in 1521. It contained the famous See also:

BOAR (0. Eng. bar; the word is found only in W. Ger. languages, cf. Dutch beer, Ger. Eber)

Boar's See also:

Head carol, Caput apri defero, Reddens laudes Domino, which in a slightly altered See also:

FORM (Lat. forma)

form is sung at Queen's See also:

COLLEGE (Collegium)

College, See also:

Oxford, on the bringing in of the boar's head. Modern collections of See also:

ancient carols are derived chiefly from three tracts belonging to the collection of See also:

Anthony A. See also:

Wood, preserved in the Bodleian library, from a 15th-century MS. (See also:

SLOANE, SIR HANS (1660-1753)

Sloane 2593), a 16th-century MS. with the See also:

MUSIC

music (Add.

5665), and other See also:

MSS. in the British Museum, and from oral tradition. In the 18th century T. See also:

BLOOMER, AMELIA JENKS (1818-1894)

Bloomer of See also:

BIRMINGHAM

Birmingham published a number of carols in the form of broad-sides. Among the numerous collections of French carols is Noei Borguignon de Gui Bar8zai (1720), giving the words and the music of See also:

THIRTY

thirty-four noels, many of them very See also:

FREE

free in See also:

CHARACTER (Gr. xapareri7p, from xap&crew, to scratch)

character. The term See also:

NOEL, RODEN BERKELEY WRIOTHESLEY (1834-1894)

noel passed into the English carol as a favourite refrain, " See also:

NOWELL, ALEXANDER (c. 1507-1602)

nowell," and seems to have been in common use in See also:

France as an See also:

EQUIVALENT

equivalent for See also:

MEAT

Meat. Among the more important modern collections of Christmas carols are: Songs and Carols (1847), edited by T. See also:

Wright for the See also:

Percy Society from Sloane MS. 2593 ; W. See also:

Sandys, Christmastide, its See also:

HISTORY

History, Festivities and Carols (1852); Christmas with the Poets (edited by V. H., 4th ed., 1872) ; T. Helmore and J. M.

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