A word from Scrooge

As we hurl ourselves into the holiday season (making some of us want to hurl), I must make an effort to educate you lot about one more language thing that makes me crazy. Well, crazier.

Which of the following is a Christmas carol?

A.  Joy to the world
B.  Here we come a-caroling
C.  I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus
D.  We need a little Christmas
E.  Coventry carol


The correct answer is B. Only B. OK, sometimes E, depending on how it's treated. A is a Christmas hymn. C and D are Christmas songs. (D is also an abomination, but I digress.)

A Christmas carol is a type of Christmas song. It is not every Christmas song. Wikipedia, that authoritative source, defines it thusly: "A carol is in Modern English a festive song, generally religious but not necessarily connected with church worship, and often with a dance-like or popular character." Please note the the important characteristics: festive, dance-like or popular character, not necessarily connected with church worship. 

Picture actual carolers in medieval England, going from house to house offering a few moments of entertainment, hoping to be invited in for a mug of wassail and gifted with a coin or two. The carolers would have been poor tenant farmers or townspeople knocking on doors of wealthy merchants or landholders. Would they be singing "I want a hippopotamus for Christmas"? Not likely. They'd be singing "Good King Wenceslaus" or "Deck the Hall". The spirit of those carols made reference to Christmas while also celebrating the secular fun that is had at Christmas--often poking fun at the householder they're serenading, suggesting the only way to show the Christmas spirit is to invite the carolers in.

Splitting hairs?  Yes. Will it spoil your holiday season if you use the wrong term? I doubt it. Will it spoil mine? Not really. But God keeps track of such things!