The Origin of Christmas Carols
We all sing them at holiday time. But do you know how all of those wonderful Christmas carols began? While the history of carols is a bit hazy, most historians will agree that the first real Christmas carols as we know them began in England around the fourteenth century. This is when Christians caught on to the idea of singing religious songs for the season, and most of the carols of this time were centered on the story of the Christ child or the Virgin Mary. It is also thought that these were the first early carols to follow the verse/refrain pattern that we are familiar with today.
In the next century, Christmas carols were begun to be thought of as another art form, and the musical arrangements became beautiful and complex. At the end of this century, an actual song book was published with many of the Christmas carols of the time. Many of these musical pieces were written for three or four voices. And although the popularity of Christmas carols seemed to fizzle in the following century, by the 1800's, carols were back with a vengeance and this is the time period in which most of the Christmas carols that we know today were written.
Inspiration in War Time
The Civil War in the United States during this century saw a surge in hymn and carol writing, as many soldiers turned to faith during this troubling time in our country. Some of the most famous Christmas carols that we sing in modern times were penned during the Civil War. For example, "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" was written by the poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in 1862. No doubt the sadness within the song was a reflection of Longfellow's own grief over losing his second wife the year before. Another popular Christmas carol, "O Little Town of Bethlehem" was penned by Phillips Brooks, who was a pastor in Philadelphia during the war.
So when you begin belting out the popular Christmas carols this holiday season, take some time to contemplate where those beautiful words and music came from. The origins of some of those timeless pieces might surprise you when you realize that some were written in troubling times or periods of dark despair. Many were written by men and women of deep faith who showed patience and perseverance during those times. And so the words ring out, offering hope, love and peace during this most festive time of the year.
