4 Calling Birds (or is it?)

9 days to go...   ho ho ho






On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me,
Four calling (Colly) Birds

The Four Calling Birds in this stanza is due to a mix up between the English language as spoken in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and the English spoken today. It could also be due to a mix up between English as spoken in England and English as spoken in England's former colonies, particularly the United States and Australia.

It's Colly Birds, Not "Calling Birds"

The verse, four calling birds, is actually a corruption of the English word colly or collie . So, we are referring to four colly birds or four collie bird s (the words to the song were probably written before the creation of the dictionary, so the spelling of old words tends to be flexible).

What is a colly bird? It is a black bird. In England a coal mine is called a colliery and colly or collie is a derivation of this and means black like coal. For a long time in England, blackbirds have been referred to as both blackbirds (as in the nursery rhyme Sing a Song of Sixpence ) and colly birds as in The Twelve Days of Christmas .

Even in Tudor England these birds went by two different names so it is not so unusual that there would be some confusion three centuries and a couple of continents later.

While the name blackbird migrated beyond England, the name collie bird remained behind in England where, even there, it tended to diminish in use over the centuries. Today, many published versions of the song in the U.S. and Australia give the birds' name as calling birds rather than collie birds.

As to why the person in the song would give his true love a gift of blackbirds, the answer is that this would have been another gift of food. Blackbirds were plentiful and were a common food.

From the nursery rhyme Sing a Song of Sixpence we see them being served as a meat pie and this may have been the way they were commonly served. In times past in Great Britain, pies were a convenient way to serve and eat a meal with the meat, potatoes and any vegetables all cooked together in an easy to handle crust (forks not having been invented at that time, table utensils consisted of knives, spoons and one's fingers).

What has Santa Teddy been up to?

He has decided to branch out into performance art.  He calls this "Teddy under glass".

I think S-T is a little bored waiting for Christmas to arrive.

This was painted in the 16th Century -

Adoration of the Shepherds c. 1500–10, by Giorgio da Castelfranco

Signing off for today fellow Christmasophiles!  It's been a long week and I'm relishing my day off.

3 French Hens

10 days to go






On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me..   3 French Hens



Thanks to Nocturnal_guy on Flickr for this gorgeous pic




There are many theories about the significance of words of this ancient Christmas song. One is that the 3 French Hens refer to Faith, Hope and Charity, the theological virtues.



I have found a very pretty blog about a French flea market in Illinois, USA, here is the link, go check it out even if it’s just for the beautifully designed site and lovely old postcards and drawings.

http://3frenchhensmarket.blogspot.com/



And still on the 3 French Hens theme - this is worth a look for a bit of nostalgia. I remember the Peter Cook and Dudley Moore partnership, their comedy was always on the edge (for the 60s) but always, always funny. This is a YouTube video of Peter Cook much later in life, but he still has that comic timing which made him a household name . It’s called Peter Cook – a life in pieces – 3 french henshttp://youtu.be/qi5odZ_aeoc


What has S-T been up to?

Catching up on some reading.

2 Turtle Doves

On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

2 Turtle Doves

 

You’d be lucky to see one turtle dove these days, let alone two as their numbers have plummeted by 85 percent in the past 20 years, according to the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO).

Once a common farmland bird found on commons, heaths and agricultural land, its gentle continuous purring used to be one of the most evocative sounds of summer. It was possible to see hundreds gathered in flocks on overhead cables in early autumn before they returned to their wintering grounds in sub-Saharan Africa. The species is now one of 36 birds on the Red List of highest conservation concern. (as at 2003)

This is all a big serious isn't it, how about we lighten things up?

"There are three stages of a man's life: He believes in Santa Claus, he doesn't believe in Santa Claus, he is Santa Claus."- Author Unknown


And from Ebenezer Scrooge, always identified with Christmas, some of his immortal words before he saw the error of his ways -


Out upon merry Christmas! What's Christmas time to you but a time for paying bills without money; a time for finding yourself a year older, but not an hour richer...? If I could work my will," said Scrooge indignantly, "every idiot who goes about with 'Merry Christmas' upon his lips should be boiled with his won pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart. He should!"

Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol  

 And Santa Teddy, what of him?





...is keeping slightly grumpy offspring company while she studies her French verbs!
maman très difficile!



A Partridge in a Pear Tree - The Twelve Days of Christmas

Yes, only 12 days to go.

So in honour of that, I'm going to attempt to blog everyday using the Christmas Carol,

"The Twelve Days of Christmas" .

On the 1st day of Christmas my true love gave to me - A Partridge in a Pear Tree

Research indicates that the song was not English in origin, but French, though it is considered an English carol. Three French versions of the song are known. If the "partridge in a pear tree" of the English version is to be taken literally, then it seems as if the chant comes from France, since the red-legged (or French) partridge, which perches in trees more frequently than the native common (or grey) partridge, was not successfully introduced into England until about 1770.



You can find this little birdy at The House of Christmas in Abbotsford, Victoria http://www.houseofchristmas.com.au/product-details.php?id=1525&Hanging%20Wood%20Birdhouse%20with%20Bird

It must be remembered that this carol evolved out of the popular culture of the Middle Ages and Tudor England.  Various versions of the carol were sung for two or more centuries before the words were recorded and published.  Despite the fact that the words have been preserved in written form for over two centuries, the carol continues to evolve and the words and symbols continue to change.  It remains a popular carol and people continue to enjoy singing and listening to it.

What has Santa Teddy been up to lately?

S-T has been doing a spot of pole-sitting, very Zen of you teddy!

Until tomorrow, Christmasophiles!

20 days to go..

Hi again, fellow Christmasophiles!  I had a great Sunday baking my Christmas cake.  I've had the fruit soaking for at least 6 weeks, so when I opened the jar, the smell (and the alcohol) nearly blew my head off!

Such a Christmassy smell, fruit soaked in a delectable Tokay and orange juice mix - the aroma wafted all through the house . It makes a beautiful moist cake that keeps for ages.  I have to pay tribute to the Women's Weekly Irish Christmas Cake recipe - named obviously because you are supposed to use Irish Whisky in it.  Now - I have done that for many years using my husband's good Irish Whisky.  He mentioned to me one year that the level was going down a bit and when I told him why, he went a bit pale!  What - you're using my good whisky in a cake!  So now I use anything to hand, from brandy to tokay (I still use the whisky occasionally, don't tell!).  Here are my pictures.

All the elements, plus my vintage Sunbeam mixmaster

S-T pondering the mysteries of the unbaked cake mixture, ready for 3 hours of slow cooking

Voila!  The finished cake

What has Santa Teddy been up to?

Well, apart from being very busy helping me make the all important Christmas Cake, he has been appreciating some modern art.



Very Avant-garde of you Teddy!

Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?

Santa's reindeer are called Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner/Donder, Blitzen, and Rudolph.  Eight of these names are taken from Clent C. Moore's "A Visit from St. Nicholas", and the ninth from the song "Rudolph the red-nosed Reindeer.