The Twelve Days of Christmas
Diane Taraz Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My true love gave to me
A partridge in a pear tree
On the second day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Two turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree
On the third day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Three French hens
Two turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree
On the fourth day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Four calling birds
Three French hens
Two turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree
On the fifth day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Five golden rings
Four calling birds
Three French hens
Two turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree
On the sixth day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Six geese a-laying
Five golden rings
Four calling birds
Three French hens
Two turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree
On the seventh day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Seven swans a-swimming
Six geese a-laying
Five golden rings
Four calling birds
Three French hens
Two turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree
On the eighth day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Eight maids a-milking
Seven swans a-swimming
Six geese a-laying
Five golden rings
Four calling birds
Three French hens
Two turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree
On the ninth day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Nine ladies dancing
Eight maids a-milking
Seven swans a-swimming
Six geese a-laying
Five golden rings
Four calling birds
Three French hens
Two turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree
"The Twelve Days of Christmas" is a popular Christmas carol that tells the story of a love interest who receives increasingly extravagant gifts from their true love each day for twelve days. Each verse of the song repeats the previous gifts and adds a new one, building up to a grand finale of twelve gifts on the twelfth day. The lyrics are structured in a cumulative manner, with each verse becoming longer as the gifts accumulate.
The song begins with the gift of a partridge in a pear tree, which is repeated in each verse. On the second day, the true love adds two turtle doves to the partridge in a pear tree. On the third day, three French hens are added, and so on. As the days progress, the gifts become more extravagant, including calling birds, golden rings, geese, swans, maids, ladies dancing, lords a-leaping, pipers piping, and drummers drumming.
"The Twelve Days of Christmas" is believed to have originated in England during the 18th century. It is unclear who the true love symbolizes in the song or what the specific meaning behind each gift is. Some interpretations suggest that the gifts have religious symbolism, while others see them as a playful representation of wealth and extravagance. The song has been adapted and recorded by numerous artists throughout the years, becoming a beloved holiday classic.
Line by Line Meaning
On the first day of Christmas
At the beginning of this festive season
My true love gave to me
Someone who truly loves me presented to me
A partridge in a pear tree
A bird perched on a pear tree
On the second day of Christmas
Continuing into the second day of the holiday season
Two turtle doves
A pair of pigeons known as turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree
Together with the bird on the pear tree
On the third day of Christmas
Progressing to the third day of the festive period
Three French hens
A trio of hens from France
Two turtle doves
The same pair of turtle doves as before
And a partridge in a pear tree
Alongside the bird still resting on the pear tree
On the fourth day of Christmas
Advancing to the fourth day of the holiday season
Four calling birds
A quartet of birds that are skillful at singing
Three French hens
The three hens from France as previously mentioned
Two turtle doves
The same pair of turtle doves as before
And a partridge in a pear tree
Together with the bird still perched on the pear tree
On the fifth day of Christmas
Moving on to the fifth day of the festive period
Five golden rings
A set of five rings made from precious gold
Four calling birds
The group of four melodious singing birds
Three French hens
The three hens from France mentioned earlier
Two turtle doves
The same pair of turtle doves as before
And a partridge in a pear tree
Accompanied by the bird still perched on the pear tree
On the sixth day of Christmas
Continuing towards the sixth day of the holiday season
Six geese a-laying
Six geese actively laying eggs
Five golden rings
The set of five valuable gold rings
Four calling birds
The same group of four melodious singing birds from earlier
Three French hens
The trio of hens from France as previously mentioned
Two turtle doves
The continuing presence of the pair of turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree
Still accompanied by the bird sitting on the pear tree
On the seventh day of Christmas
Progressing to the seventh day of the festive period
Seven swans a-swimming
A group of seven swans gracefully swimming
Six geese a-laying
The same six geese actively laying eggs as before
Five golden rings
The set of five precious gold rings presented earlier
Four calling birds
The group of four melodious singing birds from previous days
Three French hens
The three hens from France mentioned before
Two turtle doves
The pair of turtle doves that continues to be included
And a partridge in a pear tree
Still accompanied by the bird perched on the pear tree
On the eighth day of Christmas
Advancing to the eighth day of the holiday season
Eight maids a-milking
Eight young women vigorously milkmaids
Seven swans a-swimming
The same seven swans elegantly swimming as before
Six geese a-laying
The continuing presence of the six geese actively laying eggs
Five golden rings
The set of five valuable gold rings that were presented previously
Four calling birds
The group of four melodious singing birds from previous days
Three French hens
The three hens from France as mentioned earlier
Two turtle doves
The ongoing inclusion of the pair of turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree
Continuing to be accompanied by the bird resting on the pear tree
On the ninth day of Christmas
Continuing towards the ninth day of the festive period
Nine ladies dancing
Nine women joyfully dancing
Eight maids a-milking
The same eight young women vigorously milking as before
Seven swans a-swimming
The continuing presence of the seven gracefully swimming swans
Six geese a-laying
The ongoing inclusion of the six geese actively laying eggs
Five golden rings
The set of five valuable gold rings that were previously presented
Four calling birds
The group of four melodious singing birds from previous days
Three French hens
The three hens from France as previously mentioned
Two turtle doves
The pair of turtle doves that continues to be included
And a partridge in a pear tree
Still accompanied by the bird perched on the pear tree
Lyrics © MUSIC SALES CORPORATION
Written by: Traditional
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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