New Year鈥檚 Eve is full of traditions that are easy to understand. Counting down the seconds until the day the calendar changes, for example. Others are a little less straightforward. Case in point: singing “Auld Lang Syne”鈥攐r at least humming along while it plays on TV in the background.
Don鈥檛 blame yourself if you don鈥檛 know the lyrics despite the song making the rounds every year. The words auld lang syne literally mean 鈥渙ld long since,鈥� though in practice it means 鈥渙ld times, especially times fondly remembered,鈥� as well as an 鈥渙ld or long friendship.鈥� It鈥檚 from the Scots language, and the expression was first recorded in 1660鈥�1680.
But why do millions of people sing it on New Year鈥檚 Eve every year? It all started with Robert Burns, the national poet of Scotland.
When was 鈥淎uld Lang Syne鈥� written?
Burns wrote his 鈥淎uld Lang Syne鈥� version鈥攖he one that we鈥檝e all come to know (or at least kind of know)鈥攊n 1788 and published it in 1796. Since the first known recording of the expression came about more than a century earlier, it鈥檚 clear it wasn鈥檛 an entirely new concept.
Burns may get the credit for 鈥淎uld Lang Syne,鈥� but no one knows who actually first wrote the poem. Burns himself didn鈥檛 claim the ditty. Instead, he said he took a fragment of a folk song that he鈥檇 heard and built more lyrics around it. It鈥檚 believed that the chorus and first stanza came from elsewhere, while the rest is a Burns original.
The chorus and first stanza, of course, are the bits that people typically know if they know any lyrics at all. Sorry, Rob.
Why is 鈥淎uld Lang Syne鈥� a New Year鈥檚 Eve song?
The final day of the year is an apt time for looking back at the days past. That makes the theme and gist of 鈥淎uld Lang Syne鈥� ripe for seasonal use. Still, that doesn鈥檛 fully explain why a centuries-old Scottish folk song became such a New Year鈥檚 Eve hit in America.
One of the reasons that 鈥淎uld Lang Syne鈥� made it into New Year鈥檚 Eve lore is because of mass media. A popular New Year鈥檚 Eve broadcast on radio and then television hosted by Guy Lombardo and his band, the Royal Canadians, ran from 1929 to 1976. Lombardo came to be known as 鈥淢r. New Year鈥檚 Eve鈥� because of the broadcast.
Mr. New Year鈥檚 Eve himself is responsible for pushing 鈥淎uld Lang Syne鈥� to the masses year after year on his annual show. If anything can make an 18th-century Scottish song popular in the modern era, it鈥檚 the power of television.
WATCH: How Do Other Parts Of The World Celebrate The New Year?
What do the lyrics mean?
Now that you know what the titular words mean and how it came about, what about the rest of the lyrics? You might as well know what the most popular lyrics mean if you鈥檙e going to sing the song before starting the new year. 鈥淎uld Lang Syne鈥� is a relatively lengthy song in its entirety, but typically only the first verse and the chorus make the cut for New Year鈥檚 Eve celebrations.
The first lyrics, 鈥淪hould auld acquaintance be forgot / And never brought to mind?鈥� is a rhetorical question of whether you should forget about your old friends (which is not recommended). It goes on to talk about reminiscing 鈥渇or auld lang syne,鈥� or for fond memories of old times. The lyric 鈥淲e鈥檒l tak a cup o鈥� kindness yet鈥� refers to raising a glass, while 鈥渁nd surely ye鈥檒l be your pint-stowp / and surely I鈥檒l be mine鈥� is another drinking line that means, 鈥淎nd surely you鈥檒l have your pint tankard / And surely I鈥檒l have mine.鈥� Because these lyrics do resemble English words, it can come as a shock to many casual singers that the rest of the song does not seem equally familiar.
Burns writes about running 鈥渁bout the braes,鈥� which are hills, and 鈥減u鈥檇 the gowans fine,鈥� which means “pulled the daisies fine.” The lyrics 鈥減aidl鈥檇 i鈥� the burn / Frae mornin鈥� sun till dine / But seas between us braid hae roar鈥檇,鈥� mean that the singer has paddled in the stream from the morning until dinner, but the broad seas have roared between us. This is a reference to friends that were once close but now are far.
Finally, Burns writes 鈥渢here鈥檚 a hand, my trusty fiere / And gie鈥檚 a hand o鈥� thine / And we鈥檒l tak a right guid willy waught.鈥� This means the singer is giving his hand to his trusty friend and the friend does the same. Then the references to alcohol come back as they drink a good-will drink to the days past.
If you understand it that far through, you鈥檒l likely be in better shape than your companions come New Year鈥檚 Eve. For the ambitious, however …
Here are the full lyrics to “Auld Lang Syne”:
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne.
CHORUS:
For auld lang syne, my jo,
For auld lang syne.
We’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.
And surely ye’ll be your pint-stowp!
And surely I’ll be mine!
And we’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.
REPEAT CHORUS
We twa hae run about the braes
And pu’d the gowans fine
But we’ve wander’d mony a weary foot
Sin auld lang syne.
REPEAT CHORUS
We twa hae paidl’d i’ the burn
Frae mornin’ sun till dine.
But seas between us braid hae roar’d
Sin auld lang syne.
REPEAT CHORUS
And there’s a hand, my trusty fiere!
And gie’s a hand o’ thine!
And we’ll tak a right guid willy waught,
For auld lang syne.
REPEAT CHORUS
Should old acquaintance be forgot
And never brought to mind?
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
And long, long ago.
REPEAT CHORUS
And for long, long ago, my dear
For long, long ago.
We’ll take a cup of kindness yet
For long, long ago.
And surely youll buy your pint-jug!
And surely I’ll buy mine!
And we’ll take a cup of kindness yet
For long, long ago.
REPEAT CHORUS
We two have run about the hills
And pulled the daisies fine;
But we’ve wandered manys the weary foot
Since long, long ago.
REPEAT CHORUS
We two have paddled in the stream,
From morning sun till dine;
But seas between us broad have roared
Since long, long ago.
REPEAT CHORUS
And there’s a hand, my trusty friend!
And give us a hand of yours!
And we’ll take a deep draught of good-will
For long, long ago.
