The Hymns and Carols
of Christmas!

Christmas carols and hymns are one aspect of the holiday season that never fail to lift the spirits - and require no baking, no tree stands, and no extension cords. While there is a body of well-known Christmas songs that are perennial favorites, there are many more which have slipped into obscurity.

The purpose of this site is to preserve the rich history of Christmas carols and hymns which might otherwise be lost. My reasons for doing so are very similar to those feeling expressed by the early 19th century collector Davies Gilbert. In the Preface to his 1822 edition, he wrote:

The Editor is desirous of preserving them in their actual forms ...  as specimens of times now passed away, and of religious feelings.... He is anxious also to preserve them on account of the delight they afforded him in his childhood, when the festivities of Christmas Eve were anticipated by many days of preparation, and prolonged through several weeks by repetitions and remembrances.

This web site is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.  At this site, you can celebrate the music and spirit of Christmas all year round.

If you have received a benefit from this site, please consider making a donation to an appropriate charity. Please see the FAQ.

If you have received a "spam" message purportedly from this site, please see What's New. This site does not send unsolicited email of any sort.

Happy Holidays!

Douglas D. Anderson

Semper Ferians
(Always Keeping Holiday)
The motto of George Ferrers of Lincoln's Inn,
Lord of Misrule, 1551-2
Source: William Sandys, Christmas-tide,
London: John Russell Smith, ca. 1852

- Jacob Marley

- Ebenezer Scrooge

-- Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol, 1843

-- Dr. Seuss, How The Grinch Stole Christmas

Charles Schultz, A Charlie Brown Christmas

The Biblical Account of The Birth of Christ

Hebrews 4:7

"Religious songs are proper expressions of thankful praise."
From Matthew Henry's Commentary on Psalm 33