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The text is a Scots-language poem written by Robert Burns in 1788 [4][5] but based on an older Scottish folk song. In 1799, it was set to a traditional pentatonic tune, which has since become standard. "Auld Lang Syne" is listed as numbers 6294 and 13892 in the Roud Folk Song Index.
- Overview
- Scots version
- English version
Auld Lang Syne, Scottish song with words attributed to the national poet of Scotland, Robert Burns. The composer is not definitely known. In English-speaking countries, the first verse and chorus are now closely associated with the New Year festival.
The lyrics of “Auld Lang Syne” are in the Scots language. The title, translated literally into standard English, is Old Long Since. The words can be interpreted as since long ago or for old times’ sake. The lyrics are about old friends having a drink and recalling adventures they had long ago. There is no specific reference to the new year.
Burns first wrote down “Auld Lang Syne” in 1788, but the poem did not appear in print until shortly after his death in 1796. It was first published in volume five of James Johnson’s Scots Musical Museum. Burns, a major contributor to the compilation, claimed that the words of “Auld Lang Syne” were taken “from an old man’s singing.” However, the song has been associated with Burns ever since. As published by Johnson, the lyrics were set to a different tune from the one that later became familiar.
Poems with similar words existed before the time of Burns. Sir Robert Ayton, who died in 1638, wrote Old Long Syne, a poem that was first published in 1711 and is sometimes cited as Burns’s inspiration. The Scottish poet Allan Ramsay published a poem in 1720 that begins with the line “Should auld acquaintance be forgot” but is otherwise dissimilar to the Burns poem.
The melody also existed before Burns wrote down the words. The English composer William Shield used a similar tune in his comic opera Rosina, first performed in 1782. Another version of the same tune was published in 1792 in volume four of the Johnson compilation, but with words entirely different from “Auld Lang Syne.” Not until 1799 did the words and music that are now familiar appear together, in a Scottish song compilation published by George Thomson. In the 19th century the song was reprinted many times, and eventually it became part of the Scottish Hogmanay (New Year’s celebration). Hogmanay celebrants traditionally sing the song while they stand in a circle holding hands.
The Canadian-born bandleader Guy Lombardo helped make “Auld Lang Syne” a New Year’s Eve tradition in North America. His band, the Royal Canadians, played the song at the turn of the new year in a series of popular radio (and later television) broadcasts that began on December 31, 1929, and continued for more than 30 years.
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,
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
And old lang syne?
(Chorus)
For auld lang syne, my dear,
Sep 7, 2023 · ‘Auld Lang Syne’ was written by Scottish poet Robert Burns, and is usually sung to fireworks on New Year’s Eve. Picture: Alamy. By Daniel Ross. We all know Auld Lang Syne from bleary-eyed New Year’s Eve renditions, but have you ever wondered exactly what the words mean, and where they come from? And what about the tune?
- 25 min
Dec 22, 2021 · It all started with Robert Burns, the national poet of Scotland. When was “Auld Lang Syne” written? Burns wrote his “Auld Lang Syne” version—the one that we’ve all come to know (or at least kind of know)—in 1788 and published it in 1796.
Dec 31, 2023 · The song "Auld Lang Syne" comes from a Robert Burns poem. Burns was the national poet of Scotland and wrote the poem in 1788, but it wasn't published until 1799—three years after his death....
Dec 31, 2023 · "The main reason why Lombardo became identified as the Ghost of New Years Past, of New Years Present and of New Years Yet to Come, he says, 'is because Auld Lang Syne is our theme song...
Dec 31, 2013 · In 1799 Edinburgh publisher George Thomson included the song in his Select Collection of Original Scottish Airs. Both the words and the tune appear to be based on earlier fragments which Burns...
