Now that we are fully into December, I think it is only fair that we shift our focus to more festive topics. Since it is Christmas time, I want to give you something special—something that won’t be given away the next day like a heart (if you know the song reference, congratulations… and good luck getting it out of your head). That gift is the gift of song—Christmas songs.
As the influence of this juggernaut of a holiday has crept earlier and earlier each year, nowhere is it more evident than in the music playing on radio stations and echoing through malls and shopping centers. Some people even participate in challenges centered around avoiding specific songs until December 25 (more on that later).
Finding the precise origin of why we started singing Christmas music is nearly impossible, so let’s skip the unsolvable and dive directly into the origins of Christmas music itself.
The earliest known traces of Christmas music date back to the 4th century in Rome, where hymns were sung in Latin. One example attributed to this era is the “Angel’s Hymn,” reportedly sung as early as 129 CE. By the 9th and 10th centuries, monks in northern Europe had begun adapting these hymns, creating rhymed stanzas and expanding the tradition. These hymns remained the norm until the 12th century, when Adam of Saint Victor, a Parisian monk, began writing Christmas songs set to the tunes of popular melodies, effectively creating the earliest recognizable Christmas carols.
By the 13th century, thanks in part to Francis of Assisi, the tradition spread into regional languages. English-language songs gained traction by 1426 when John Awdlay, an English chaplain, listed twenty-five “caroles of Cristemas,” likely sung by wassailers traveling house to house. (For context, Christmas of that era was far less peaceful and sentimental—expect more on that next week.) By the 15th century, more carols began appearing in English, solidifying the tradition.
It was not until the 16th century that some of the Christmas songs we still sing today emerged, including “The 12 Days of Christmas,” “God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen,” and “O Christmas Tree.” Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, folklorists collected and published carols in songbooks, making them more widely accessible.
During Cromwell’s rule over the Commonwealth of England, Christmas celebrations—including carols—were banned for being “pagan” and “sinful,” a view some puritans still hold today. The ban ended in May 1660, and the Victorian era ushered in classics such as “Silent Night,” “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” and “O Holy Night,” along with Saint Nicholas–themed tunes like “Up on the Housetop" and “Jolly Old St. Nicholas.”
In the United States, and later England, Christmas carols grew in popularity throughout the 19th century with the development of the “Nine Lessons and Carols” format in 1880. The 20th century brought a wave of modern classics, beginning with “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town,” written by Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie in 1934 and performed by Eddie Cantor that same year. This era introduced many of the standards we hear endlessly today: “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!”, “Winter Wonderland,” “Sleigh Ride,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” and even Paul McCartney’s “Wonderful Christmastime.”
And of course, we cannot forget the modern megahits—Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” George Michael’s “Last Christmas,” and other endlessly looped staples.
Allow Me to Change Your Mind
Christmas music is about as subtle as a jackhammer on pavement when announcing the holiday season. I can enjoy some of it, but I have certain rules. I do not begin listening the moment the clock strikes midnight on November 1. I prefer to let Thanksgiving have its moment before fully embracing the Christmas spirit. I enjoy a carol now and then, but I do not want to overdose on holiday music and burn out by the third week of December. Even I will admit that some of these songs are wildly overplayed—especially given the two challenges I’m about to mention.
If you want to make the season more interesting, there are, in fact, Christmas music challenges.
One example is Whamageddon, which tasks you with avoiding Wham’s “Last Christmas” from December 1 to December 25. Once you hear the original version—even by accident—you lose. And trust me, it is harder than it sounds. Since George Michael’s death in 2016, this challenge has become a bit less dominant, overshadowed by a more intense contender.
Enter the Mariahpocalypse, the “hard mode” version of Whamageddon. The rules are identical, except the forbidden track is Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” This version is considered more difficult because the song is even more prevalent—an absolute inevitability in retail stores, restaurants, and anywhere a speaker exists.
And if you have a retail job and you are attempting both challenges, all I can say is this: good luck. You are going to need it.
