Saturday, December 19, 2009

12 Days Of Truth - The Real Meaning Of Christmas

The Sixth Day of Truth - Caroling

A group of singers, huddled together in the cold, walking from house to house spreading christmas cheer with only their voices. Where did this start? Caroling is a direct descendant of wassailing. Wassail loosely translates to "good health". The tradition is said to have started in the third or fourth century. At celebrations of the solstice people would toast each other and call out the term wassail. By the fourteenth century, wassailing had become a common feature at christmas parties. The peasants would come to the houses of the rich on christmas, to be wassailed as well as given gifts. As time progressed, the large bowl that held the wassail (also the name of the drink used in the toast by this point) began to be carried from house to house to toast the whole town. Often christmas carols would be sung between houses. Eventually the toast fell away, but the caroling continued.

So next time you go out caroling, do not forget the origins of the custom and be sure to toast to the health of those houses you visit. Just please don't knock on my door.

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