Who is noel christmas

This sometimes leads to criticism among Christians that Christmas has become too secularized and commercialized. The abbreviation Xmas , for example, is sometimes seen as inappropriate, perhaps due to its replacement of the name Christ or its widespread use in commercial contexts, such as in advertising. In the Middle Ages, the word mass referred to a religious feast day in honor of a specific person.

By far the most well-known holiday that uses this ending is Christmas, but there are others, including Candlemas and Michaelmas. Noel is another word for Christmas, surprise! However, the word Noel is often used only in a religious context. The word can also be used to refer to a Christmas carol or song in which case it is not capitalized , but is no longer commonly used this way.

The first records of the word Noel in English come from the early s. Some of these customs influenced the ways that Christmas is celebrated. While you burn that yule log, read up about it and other facts about yule and Christmastime. Feedback Tired of Typos?

Word of the Day. Meanings Meanings. Like carol and holly it has found another life as a first name, especially for those born during the Christmas period, but otherwise is now found only in Christmas carols and as a greeting on Christmas cards:. Lovelich Merlin I. Greene Early Eng. The earliest citations come from the early 12th century and it has completely superseded its rivals as the standard term for the festival celebrated on 25th December, as well as the period immediately before and after it.

So three different words with three very different origins, all referring to the same thing. English speakers borrowed the word noel from French.

It can be traced further back to the Latin word natalis, which can mean "birthday" as a noun or "of or relating to birth" as an adjective.

The English adjective natal has the same meaning and is also an offspring of natalis. Noels were being sung in Latin or French for centuries before the word found its way into our language in the s. The earliest known musical use of noel occurred in the text of a Christmas motet called "Nova vobis gaudia," which was written in the s. See more words from the same century. Some of the words that defined the week ending December 25, Accessed 11 Nov.

Nglish: Translation of noel for Spanish Speakers. Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free! Log in Sign Up. Save Word. Definition of noel.