# Oldest and newest Christmas songs **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 26, 2007, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262 "2007-12-26T04:34:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![solkoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@solkoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solkoe)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/1 "2007-12-26T04:34:12Z")
I’m a few days late with this but I was wondering what the oldest and newest traditional Christmas carols are. I know that there will be varying definitions of “traditional” but to me it means a song that is known by the majority of the population (Christian is this case). I suspect the oldest will go back to the 1400’s but I would be surprised if any had be written later than the 60’s. Joyeux Noel my SD friends. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/2 "2007-12-26T07:24:15Z")
isn’t “O Come All You Faithful” a translation of a very old Latin song? “Adeste Fidelis”? ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/3 "2007-12-26T14:13:32Z")
There are certainly newer Christmas songs than the 1960s. I just heard some new-agey number by some girl band from the 80s last night. The tune is stuck horribly in my head but I can’t remember the words. (“nuh-nuh-NUH-nuh nuh-nuh-NUH-nuh something something Christmas time this year”?) Not to mention my sisters’ childhood favorites, Hanson, put out a Christmas record if I remember correctly. I think N’Sync and others might have, too. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveroptic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiveroptic/32/8257_2.png) [@Fiveroptic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveroptic)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/4 "2007-12-26T15:56:39Z")
But what you’re describing, **DrCube** , are Christmas _songs_. I believe the OP is inquiring about traditional Christmas _carols_, which are joyful religious songs celebrating the birth of Christ. I think of Christmas songs being more about snowmen, chestnuts, chipmunks wanting hula-hoops and people getting “upsot.” ---
**Author:** ![solkoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@solkoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solkoe)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/5 "2007-12-26T18:14:03Z")
[QUOTE=Fiveroptic] But what you’re describing, **DrCube** , are Christmas _songs_. I believe the OP is inquiring about traditional Christmas _carols_, which are joyful religious songs celebrating the birth of Christ. I think of Christmas songs being more about snowmen, chestnuts, chipmunks wanting hula-hoops and people getting “upsot.” [/QUOTE] I’ll take either religious or not. By traditional, I mean popular, ones that your kids might hear and sing. This wouldn’t include anything by Hanson. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/6 "2007-12-26T18:27:25Z")
How about Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas Is You for new, 1994. Of course, large bits of it would fall under TRY to sing as opposed to actually sing. 😉 O Come O Come Emmanuel may be the oldest, it seems to go back to the 12th century. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/7 "2007-12-26T18:57:30Z")
Moving to CS. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![cornflakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@cornflakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cornflakes)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/8 "2007-12-26T19:01:33Z")
[QUOTE=Northern Piper] isn’t “O Come All You Faithful” a translation of a very old Latin song? “Adeste Fidelis”? [/QUOTE] “Adeste Fideles” was written in 1743 by John Francis Wade [(Wiki)](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adeste_Fideles). “Greensleeves”, the basis for “What Child is This?” was probably written around 1550 or so [(Wiki again)](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greensleeves). ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/9 "2007-12-26T19:13:56Z")
[QUOTE=Fiveroptic] people getting “upsot.” [/QUOTE] Isn’t that a Thanksgiving song? ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/10 "2007-12-26T20:08:05Z")
The tune to [Good King Wenceslas](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_King_Wenceslas) comes from a 13th century _spring_ carol (“_Tempus Adest Floridum_” – “It Is Time for Flowering”). ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/11 "2007-12-26T20:38:38Z")
Per the [Catholic Herald](http://www.catholicherald.org/archives/articles/carol.html), the first song celebrating the birth of Jesus was a hymn, _Of the Father’s Love Begotten_. This dates to the 4th century, about the time when Christmas was first established as a holy day. The originator of the tradition of caroling was supposedly St. Francis of Assisi, circa 1223. At the same time he initiated the living Nativity play. The idea was to make the Christmas story more meaningful to the public, who were, of course, largely illiterate. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2007, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/12 "2007-12-26T21:34:29Z")
[QUOTE=Lute Skywatcher] Isn’t that a Thanksgiving song? [/QUOTE] No, that’s Jingle Bells. It has a lot more verses than just the first. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2007, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/13 "2007-12-27T00:56:41Z")
[QUOTE=Zsofia] No, that’s Jingle Bells. It has a lot more verses than just the first. [/QUOTE] And was supposedly written for a Thanksgiving service. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2007, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/14 "2007-12-27T01:09:39Z")
According to this link “Lo, How a Rose Ere Blooming” is from the 15th century. [http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/l/h/lhowrose.htm](http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/l/h/lhowrose.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2007, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/15 "2007-12-27T01:51:46Z")
[QUOTE=Antinor01] How about Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas Is You for new, 1994. Of course, large bits of it would fall under TRY to sing as opposed to actually sing. 😉 [/QUOTE] Never heard of it. Not that I’m representative… _Baby, It’s Cold Outside_ and _The Christmas Song_ were 1944. _Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!_ was 1945. _Sleigh Ride_ was 1946. _Blue Christmas_ was 1948. _Frosty the Snowman_ was 1950. _Santa Baby_ was 1953. _The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late)_ was 1958. _Do You Hear What I Hear?_ was 1963. _Christmas Time is Here_ (from Charlie Brown) was 1965. _You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch_ was 1966. _Feliz Navidad_ was 1970! _Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer_ was the late 1970s. All from Wikipedia. The war was pretty good for classic Christmas songs, apparently. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2007, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/16 "2007-12-27T01:55:40Z")
[QUOTE=Garfield226] The war was pretty good for classic Christmas songs, apparently. [/QUOTE] There apparently wasn’t any such thing as a pop Christmas song until 1935, when we got _Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town_. I suspect _Winter Wonderland_ (1934) was the catalyst. ---
**Author:** ![Key\_Lime\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/48db29/32.png) [@Key\_Lime\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Key_Lime_Guy)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2007, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/17 "2007-12-27T02:01:02Z")
Paul McCartney’s “Wonderful Christmastime” (1979) is probably one of the most recent ‘classics’. ---
**Author:** ![cornflakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@cornflakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cornflakes)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2007, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/18 "2007-12-27T03:08:20Z")
…And Robert Earl Keen’s “Merry Christmas From the Family” is from 1994, not that anyone goes around singing it from door to door. It does get tons of airplay though. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2007, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/19 "2007-12-27T14:37:52Z")
John & Yoko’s [Happy Christmas (War is Over)](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_Xmas_(War_Is_Over)) has become a classic. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2007, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oldest-and-newest-christmas-songs/431262/20 "2007-12-27T15:54:07Z")
[QUOTE=Lute Skywatcher] And was supposedly written for a Thanksgiving service. [/QUOTE] Honestly, it doesn’t even begin to occur to me that one would be able to ride in a sleigh in November. Of course, I’ve never seen anything you could ride a sleigh on at any time in my hometown.