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  • Hi this is Tutor Nick P and this is Word Origins 92.

  • The word origin today is Yuletide.

  • Okay.

  • Yuletide basically means Christmas season.

  • Okay.

  • Let's look at the note here.

  • Yuletide is an old word that is still often heard a lot around Christmastime.

  • It is also mentioned in a number of Christmas songs and sometimes seen written on Christmas

  • decorations.

  • I can remember as a kid thinking what is this Yuletide ? What is this about ? Because you

  • know, they don't often explain that to you when you are a kid.

  • Yuletide ? Where did Yuletide come from ? All right.

  • Let's continue.

  • The term basically means the Christmas season.

  • But some dictionaries vary about the exact time.

  • It was originally connected to the Winter solstice.

  • which could begin around December 21.

  • So the 21st, 22nd that's is always around the shortest day of the year is.

  • That is the winter solstice.

  • And will definitely include Christmas and the period right up to Jan. 1.

  • That is definitely usually part of it. But some may go as far as January 6.

  • So some dictionaries vary like if you look up Yuletide they may very slightly on when

  • they say that Christmas week or Christmas season is.

  • Okay.

  • Let's continue.

  • The word Yule come from old English and is dated all the way back to the 15th century.

  • Tide is an old word referring to a certain period of time.

  • I think I kind of covered this in one of the ones like when we were talking about Like

  • you know, tide waits for no man.

  • Basically.

  • that sort of proverb.

  • where we found out that the tide.

  • Like there is evening tide you know it had something to do with a time period originally.

  • Anyway, let's continue.

  • Originally Yuletide was to celebrate the winter solstice which is the shortest day of the

  • year and its customs of decorating an evergreen tree.

  • So you know , it is connected to the Christmas tree and exchanging gifts was originally done

  • to symbolize the passing from one year to another.

  • These customs have combined with the celebration of Christmas and Christ's birth and they are

  • a very important part of it now.

  • So it is almost hard to separate the two because everybody thinks of Christmas you with Christ's

  • birthday , they think of a Christmas tree, a star on top. and you know, with the gifts

  • around it . So that is a big part of Christmas.

  • All right . Let's continue.

  • Okay. In the song" Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.

  • So if you recognize that title . There is a line.

  • "have yourself a merry little Christmas.

  • Make the Yuletide gay.

  • Yeah. So this is one of the ones in which it is in the song.

  • Again Yuletide here just means Christmas season.

  • And I have told you this in a few other videos.

  • A while ago, gay is a very old word and it used to just mean happy.

  • So of course when they say make the Yuletide gay , it has absolutely nothing to do with

  • homosexuality.

  • It means make the Christmas season happy.

  • Have a happy Christmas season.

  • Okay good.

  • And let's continue here.

  • In the song " Deck the Halls."

  • "Another very big Christmas carol.

  • There is a line " don we now our gay apparel.

  • Okay . Don means wear.

  • Here the word gay comes up again.

  • Also just meaning happy.

  • Happy, apparel was clothes.

  • We still use that word in a very formal sense.

  • In regard to business for clothes.

  • Troll the ancient Yuletide carol . You know like follow.

  • The ancient Yul tide . The Christmas season.

  • Follow along with the carols.

  • The Christmas carols.

  • Okay b.

  • So here's just some examples.

  • A couple of example of how you will see it pop up in songs.

  • An d it pops up in a number of other Christmas songs too.

  • As well as the decorations I mentioned before . Anyway, I hope you got it.

  • I hope you found it informative.

  • Thank you for your time.

Hi this is Tutor Nick P and this is Word Origins 92.

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