– – – Twelve Days of Christmas December 26, 2007
Posted by janargy in Lessons in Life.trackback
There is one Christmas Carol that has always baffled me!
What in the world do leaping lords, French hens, swimming swans, and especially the partridge that won’t come out of the pear tree have to do with Christmas?
From 1558 until 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. Someone during that era wrote this carol as a catechism song for young Catholics.
It has two levels of meaning:
The surface meaning plus a hidden meaning known only to members of their church. Each element in the carol has a code word for a religious reality which the children could remember.
The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ.
Two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments.
Three French hens stood for faith, hope and love.
The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.
The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation.
Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit-Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.
The eight maids a-milking were the eight beatitudes.
Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit-Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness,
Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control.
The ten lords a-leaping were the Ten Commandments.
The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples.
The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles’ Creed.
So there is your history for today. This knowledge was shared with me and I found it interesting and enlightening and now I know how that strange song became a Christmas Carol…so pass it on if you wish. Merry Christmas to all!!!
ei, sir thanks 4 d info
trully dis s amazing
i never heard about dis b4
i only knew dat dis song made 4 children to sing during christmas though i dont understand the significance
now i know
thanx
yeah astigs yung symbol ng song..gnun pla! nagthanks na ung isa eh…di na ko magthathank you…hehehe
what will i say p ba….
im not really religious person eh pero cge i’l pass it this year’s christmas…very late kung ngayon eh…sory for late comment very busy eh…
now we know.. siguro naman hindi na tayo gagawa ng sarili nateng version ng xmas carol na yan.. 🙂
the first time i saw the title of this article..it already catched my attention..coz i was so curious behind the song “twelve days of christmas”..wheeww..grabe pla…very nice..as in to the highest level…galing ng mga corresponding meanings..thank’s sir for the info…(“,)
anggaling nman poh…un pala un…kala q simpleng kanta lang..walang meaning,pero ung simple lang e napakahalaga poh pala…thanx poh for the knowledge!!!
christmas is the happiest season of the year, dapt hindi lang by words db.
good.
astiiiig.. oo nga noh.. ngayon ko lang nalaman yung symbolismo ng mga yun ah! astig astig
GREAT!! i can’t imagine that, that was the story behind the song “Twelve Days of Christmas”. Ni hndi ko nga kabisado un eh. thanks for the info! it’s pretty hard to memorize all those meanings pero at least nlman ko na.nkktuwa lng mlman n gnon pla pnangglingan non.still, kahit there are lots of songs about Christmas, what we are celebrating for is the birth of Jesus Christ…and that we should never forget!
ang kulet..panalo..no wonder it is now one of the most significant christmas songs..hay..buti nalang ngaun ndi na natin kelangang gumawa ng codes para lang mapatunayan ung faith natin..
panalo..
UNESCO…kw ang naalala q d2 sa article na ito,hehehe!peace but sir. thanks sa info d q rn lam yan,religious po tlga kau…
now that xmas carol has a whole new meaning to me
aysus giliw…un pala un..
.jejeje. un un eH…
ang gnda cguro nu lalo pg ka2nthin tas la2gyn ng beautiful tune…jejeje
..nice..galing talaga..un pala un eh..
sometimes we really have to dig into the deeper meaning of words to see their real essence…
amazing.. hahaha akalain mu un??
wow! galing nung gumawa nung kantang yun ah! tama nga nmn! sana last christmass eh ung mga un ang natanggap ntn!
is this a self-induced translation?
never heard of it….or perhaps i wasnt just listening 🙂
ganun pla un….hmpf christmas is the most happiest season sa lahat kc ksma mo pmilya…sana pasko hehhehehehhe
FANTABULOUS!
this is now the explanation. now i know.
kz nmn, dte nbubulol p q sa pgknta nito,
tpoz tinatawanan q pa…hay! ang sma q pla!
There’s a deeper meaning pla behind that song!
i spologize for it!
wow… ang galing… sakto tlga… 🙂
ang galing naman…
may alam din akong story about christmas about sa candy cane:
there was a time in russia called the bolshevic revolution( ewan ko kung tama ang spelling ko), dati kasi ang mga believers ni Christ di makapag-celebrate ng christmas kaya naisip ng isang candy maker na gumawa ng candy na korteng baston to remind the people that the Lord is our Shepherd. ung red color naman that intertwines the white symbolize the blood of Christ nung mamatay siya sa cross for the penalty of our sins.
wooo!!! great!!! awesome!!!
ngayon koh lng poh yun nalaman ahh…
wow.. un pla un?? ang galing napaka informative now we know
yun pala yun.. galing ah!
UN PLA UN…!!!!
GANDA PO NG MEANING
ngayun ko lang to narinig.. hehehehehhehe,,, peo come to think of it…. meron ngang sense!
i truly dont know bout this… kala ko wala lang, but it has a deeper meaning pala… i never thought it could mean as religious as that.. dapat tinuro samin yan nung primary level palang kami eh..
i really dont know bout it.. or never had an interest to know whats behind the song. if its really a fact,..then thank goodness. haha! something to share! 🙂
ganun poh b un,sir?
salamat poh sa info.,kaya lng hirap poh ata kantahin ung translated version.,hehehe.,
i never thought that sir jan would have that kind of articles when i know for a fact that he is not a religous person, yet he knew better than me.. what a shame
yes!!!!!!!!!sa wakas me kopya na ako ng lyrics nung kanta nayan.
at me bonus pa!alam ko na din ngaun ung mga secret meaning for each day!
salamat sir!
_wow!!never heard un ah kahit sa catholic skul aq galing at halos every sunday kabonding ang mga taong simbahan,
THUMBS’ UP!!!
abuh abuh abuh… akalain mo… meron palang ganun sa kantang yun… at dahil dyan.. hindi ko na lolokohin ang kantang ito… sir jan… maraming salamat sa karagdagang impormasyon nanaman!
oo nga noh….hahaha…ang cute ng piece…naalala ko tuloy si UNESCO COMMISSIONER PROFESSOR JOSE DAVID LAPUZ nung Christmas FARTY namen, pinakanta nya yung 12 Days of Christmas with a trembling modulated voice na buong buo…wala lang…hahaha….
everything has a meaning lalo na para kay Lord…
naun ko lang nlaman to ah…
natutuwa pa aman ako sa kanta na to..heheehehehe….
nice one!!!!
akalain mo yun!hehe..
akalain mo yun!hehe..
I knew this already even before I read this article. But it is some sort of review. Truly, Christmas is very meaningful.. like the hidden meanings between the lines of the song ‘Twelve days of Christmas”
12 days of christmas:
i didn’t know this actually… but i wonder, aren’t the 7 gifts of the holy spirit the following: knowledge, fortitude, counsel, wisdom, piety, understanding and fear of the lord, and aren’t there 12 fruits of the holy spirit??? wahehehe… Just curious…
nkakatuwa naman yun.. ngaun ko lang nalaman na may hidden meaning pala yung kanta na yun.. galing!!..
ang hirap kabisaduhin eh. hehehe
tapos na pako diba>
nice… i’ve been singing this song for almost 10 years every christmas but i really didn’t know that every gift stands for something..nice article
hehehe… ang kulit nito ah…. I haven’t thought of that until i read this….
hala.. ayun pala yung mga meaning nun.. galing hah.. ^_^
ahh,…hehehe
d ko lam un ha!!!
un pla un////
its nice to know the real meaning of that christmas carol..
talaga????now i know..tenk u sir sa in4matiuon….
..sana mabasa to ng lahat para hnde gawing katatawanan tong “x-mas carol na ito at nang hnde na dn bgyan ng ibat-ibang lyrics…..
its nice to know the history and true meaning of the song..at least the next time we will sing it, it will be the voices from our hearts because we cannot attract audience to listen to what we sing if we doesn’t even feel the song…
hmmmm…sir thank you po na pina assign nyo samin na mag bigay ng comment dito sa blog nyo napakaraming magagandang lesson… at informative p…
ngayon ko na realize na ang kanta ay hindi basta kanta lang…hahaha…nakakatuwa
thanks for the FYI
kahit lipas na ang christmas season, gusto ko paring mag commment sa blog na ito..
i find it really quite very interesting…
for all the years that i celebrated christmas, nagyon ko lang nalaman na hindi rin pala non sense ang mga lyrics ng twelve days of c mas…
akala ko, paboritong kanta lang talaga yun ni unesco commssioner kaya tuwang tuwa siya nung c mas party namin.. hindi naman pala…
may misteryo pala sa lokod ng mga letra…
ang galing talaga ni sir jan, hehehe…
next time, pag kinanta ko ang cmas song na ito, at least, di na ako magtataka sa mga pingahalong balat sa tinalupan na maga regalong nakalista sa kanta…
teka nga lang… bakit nga ba 12 days lang ang countdown ng songwriter? bakit hindi 100 days? hehehe…
we dont have christmas…
but we believe in Christ..
i don’t want to debate on religious matters..
because if we would, nobody will surely win
and get some prize…
i love singing songs
including Christmas carols…
i am open to any religious beliefs and practices..
the same as i am open to receive gifts during your Christmas…hehehehe!!!
“funny it seems but makes sense”di ba?
ansama ko! puro regalo lang iniisip ko pag pasko may ganyang meaning pala yan! aysus. my bad. pero ang galing talaga(serious mode)
hirap kabisaduhin ng song na to pero after reading this article im inspired… hehe mangangaroling kame sir sa inyo ha samaq lahat ng 4-2… haha… advance merry Christmas po!!!!! lalala lalala lala
uhm, d qn tinapos ung article kc d ko rin nmn alm ung mga sense n cnsbe nung another translation ng kanta… obviously, d aq religious kind of person, but i do believe in higher being.. un… tskah mrme kc kong kilala na makadiyos pero ang sasama ng ugali tpos mrme rn kcng parang inconsistencies ung bible at church.. kea un.. share ko lng..
..,nEnc0unter q n 2 dti, back in eLem.
ngaaRal p q s NEU then..
aun! , cla p ng ngkwen2 xken ’bout diz..
aun, share q lng ^ ^
-®ai
lhat cla ngulat sa bagong kaalaman=meaning ng carol n un..
aq..ngaun q lng nlman ung 12 n un..hahah..turtle doves lng alam ko..haha..haba kxe..^_^
hhmm..seriously,,its cool..
kxe its not just a plain xmas carol..it has a meaning pla tlga..and its really significant,..^_^..
nice
hehe..akala ko wala un meaning…wa lang gawa lang nung writer un pala eh my code word for a religious reality. May mga bagay bagay talaga na akala mo walang halaga un pala eh meron…
Tnx…po sa pagsshare ng knowledge…AH UN PALA UN…hehe..
ya.. nabasa ku na meaning nito b4 e, akala ku,, christmas song 4 nothing lang din 2,, ganda pala ng story behind
Khit n i came from a catholic skul d q lam toh! naun lng! thanks 4 d trivia
galing! galing! ngaun q lang nlaman un ah..
at ngaun q lng dn nlaman ang lyrics..
everything has its own story tlga..
lapit na xmas.. gift ko!! joke!
if all of them was very shock hehehehe,
well me po eh from a catholic schoo, so, i’ve already know that but then some parts po eh m=nkalimutan q na..,hehehe
ahm, ok n din kc atleast nalaman q ulit..,
Godbless and merry christmas po 2 all=)
ahhh.. how cunning… galing tlga ng mga tao.. kpag ginigipit lalong lumulupit.. it just shows the extreme faith of christians
sa wakas!mkakanta q n ng buo ung xmas carol n un n hindi humuhina ang boses s parteng d q alam..hahah
at may bonus pa! it’s meaningful meanings..
astig tlga tong blog ni sir oh oh..
galing… *_*
so there are hidden meanings palah behind the lyrics…
pwoh ‘nuh din kyah ung hidden meaning ng title?? y is it 12?? hhhmmm…
advance merry christmas poh! 🙂
nasabi na to ng isa sa aming teacher nung highskul kami, si Sister Puring…
Lahat ng bagay sa mundo ay may kahulugan kagaya ng kantang yan na simbolismo ng mga paniniwala nating kristyano…
funny thing is i did’t even to bother to inquire why that song seemed strange… haha… that’s a really ingenious and creative way to express your faith in the midst of adversity! Wish that same fortitude still exists with modern-day Christians who are truly blessed to exercise their faith without persecution and doesn’t have to write stange songs about it….
well, bgong kaalaman na naman, maxado kcng mhaba un song, pgod k ng kumanta d mo p tpos,
anyways, tnx n rn
now I know where this Christmas jingle really came from..
~BinmaR™
is this a coincidence?
in my perception, everything in this world has meaning, no matter how deep or shallow it is..
yung careen nga me meaning sa dictionary eh,,, oh diba.. la lang,.. hehe…
Wee! Thanks for this article I better now understand what the song really means and the history behind this. I thought this song is made just for fun like jack and Jill or Mary had a little lamb but hey, it all has its meaning. Ahehe..
bwisit naman tong comp.n to super bagal!!!! anyways… ntuwa aq d2.. ganun pala un
bwisit tlg tong comp. n to… ang bagal nkkainis n… well, ganun pla un…amazing
…jejeje…
…oo nga pla noh…
…gets q nah…
,haha un pala un!!!haha nakakamangyan!!!
…may meaning pala bawat numbers sa kantang yun…
…yun pala yun…hehehe
…may story behind p pala…
…basta kapag sinabing christmas, masaya, full of happiness, full of love, at hindi mawawala ang CRHISTMAS GIFT…!
ganun pala un?! Hmm.. ngaun ko lang nalaman un ah.. galing
ah me meaning pla un!!!
hehe,
naun alm ko n! tnx sir!
hala, un pla un!!kaya pla…ang gling!!!
sabi quh n nga b e, ndi mawawlan ng symbolization un e…hehe
pero honestly sir,nka2enlighten tlaga xa!!!