The Holly Bears a Berry

45°f this morning, dropping to the 30's by evening. Rain, fog, clouds all day.

Is there anything more fun than singing with a group of people? Most Christmas carols were written to be sung by groups of just ordinary folks, which means most of us can sing them pretty decently---and if we don't, who cares?  The fun is in the sharing.

One of my very favorite Christmas carols is The Holly Bears a Berry. It was such a joy to sing it a cappella at my Christmas presentations, and audiences quickly picked up the refrain (if they did not already know it), and sang along. The song has an interesting background, which i will get to in a moment but first, let's talk about holly.

Evergreens were believed by many early civilizations to represent the continuation of life even in the coldest and darkest times of year. Any plant still green in winter was used to decorate for the winter festivals. And holly was a favorite.

Did you know there are over 400 varieties of holly, that it was once valued as fodder for animals, and was cultivated to be less thorny? In pagan times holly was believed to have protective powers and was used to guard against evil,  often by carrying a holly twig in one's pocket. Holly was also used as protection against lightning and fire by keeping a small twig of holly in the house year round. 

Other holly superstitions:

Girls looking for husbands would scratch the name of their true love into a holly leaf and sew the leaf into their nightgowns to induce dreams about their sweetheart. (I think it would induce some bad sleep and scratches myself!)

Holly should not be removed from the home until Old Christmas Eve (January 5th) according to some sources. 

For every berry that dropped from the holly in the house, one person from that household would pass away within the year. That would certainly inspire housewives to keep the branches well watered!

Finding a holly tree or bush loaded with berries when gathering for decorations was considered a good omen and a sign of plenty in the coming year.

Prickly holly is male, smoother is female; bring in equal amounts for a peaceful year! 

Tradition dictated that the greenery not be brought into the house before Christmas Eve.  Earlier was seen as a way of announcing to evil spirits that festivities were about to begin and they might sneak in and disrupt the celebrations.

(Remember, this was the time that the "veil" between the living and spirit worlds was thought to be thinnest, and that the evil spirits could easily cross over.)

All evergreens were supposed to be disposed of by burning. Some traditions said they should be burned on Candlemas Eve (Feb 1); others that the burning should take place on Twelfth Night. 

Of course, most of this lore pre-dates Christianity, and celebrations would have centered around the Winter Solstice. Early Christian missionaries were wise enough to attach Christian symbolism to pagan traditions and beliefs so that eventually Christmas Day became the focus instead of Solstice. 

The Sans Day Carol from Cornwall is a good example of this interweaving. First written down in the 19th century from the singing of a man named Thomas Beard, the carol got its name from the village of Saint Day in which it was collected. The song was probably based on one much older, with the Christian parts inserted to tie the holly to the new religion. The song is commonly referred to today as The Holly Bears a Berry.

My favorite version of this carol is by the Chieftains.

Lyrics:

Now the holly bears a berry as white as the milk,

And Mary bore Jesus, all wrapped up in silk:

    Refrain:

And Mary bore Jesus Christ our Saviour for to be,
And the first tree in the greenwood, it was the holly.
Holly! Holly!
And the first tree in the greenwood, it was the holly!

Now the holly bears a berry as green as the grass,
And Mary bore Jesus, who died on the cross:

Now the holly bears a berry as black as the coal,
And Mary bore Jesus, who died for us all:

Now the holly bears a berry, as blood is it red,
Then trust we our Saviour, who rose from the dead.