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carol
carol (Fr. noel; Ger. Weihnachtslied). In medieval times a round dance with mus. acc., but soon developed into a song for 2 or 3 vv. usually (but not necessarily) to a text dealing with the birth of Christ. All Christian nations, Western and Eastern, have carols, some of them evidently of pagan origin but taken over and adapted in early days of Christianity. The nature of the carol varies: it may be dramatic, narrative, or lyrical.
One of oldest printed Eng. Christmas carols is the Boar's Head Carol, sung as the traditional dish is carried in on Christmas Day at Queen's College, Oxford; it was printed in 1521. This is but one of a large group of carols assoc. with good cheer as an element in Christmas joy. With the growth of the Christmas season as a public holiday which became increasingly commercialized, the carol grew in popularity and, concomitantly, in vulgarity so that some 19th-cent. carols are of inferior standard, but the best of them have achieved a place alongside the folk-carols and 17th-cent. Ger. carols which were revived by the late 19th-cent. folk-song movement. A fine selection is sung annually in Eng. on Christmas Eve at King's College, Cambridge. Vaughan Williams wrote a Fantasia on Christmas Carols, Hely-Hutchinson A Carol Symphony, and Britten a Ceremony of Carols. |
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MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "carol." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "carol." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-carol.html MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "carol." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-carol.html |
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carol
carol popular hymn, of joyful nature, in celebration of an occasion such as May Day, Easter, or Christmas. The earliest English carols date from the 15th cent. The carol is characterized by simplicity of thought and expression. Many are thought to be adaptations of pagan songs. Despite the folk-song character of true carols, many Christmas hymns composed in the 19th cent. have been called carols. The oldest printed carol is the Boar's Head Carol, printed in 1521 by Wynkyn de Worde. Carols of French origin are called noels.
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"carol." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "carol." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-carol.html "carol." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-carol.html |
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Carol
Carol ♀, originally ♂ Anglicized form of Carolus (see Charles), or of its feminine derivative Carola. It has never been common as a boy's name, and has become even less so since its growth in popularity as a girl's name. This seems to be of relatively recent origin (not being found much before the end of the 19th century). It probably originated as a short form of Caroline.
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PATRICK HANKS, KATE HARDCASTLE, and FLAVIA HODGES. "Carol." A Dictionary of First Names. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. PATRICK HANKS, KATE HARDCASTLE, and FLAVIA HODGES. "Carol." A Dictionary of First Names. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O41-Carol.html PATRICK HANKS, KATE HARDCASTLE, and FLAVIA HODGES. "Carol." A Dictionary of First Names. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O41-Carol.html |
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carol
car·ol / ˈkarəl/ • n. a religious folk song or popular hymn, particularly one associated with Christmas. • v. (car·oled , car·ol·ing ; car·ol·led, car·ol·ling) [intr.] sing Christmas songs or hymns, esp. in a group. DERIVATIVES: car·ol·er n. car·ol·ing n. |
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"carol." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "carol." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-carol.html "carol." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-carol.html |
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Carol
Carola band or company; a circle or ring of things; a ring dance with songs; hence, the songs themselves; a ring of standing stones; a company of singers; an assembly. See also choir. Examples: carol of maidens; of singers; of songs, 1300; of standing stones; of virgins, 1483. |
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"Carol." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Carol." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505300238.html "Carol." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505300238.html |
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carol
carol. A song of joy, originally accompanying a dance; now applied especially to traditional songs of a religious character. Modern English practice has tended to confine the singing of carols to Christmastide and to break down the distinction between hymns and carols.
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E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "carol." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "carol." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-carol.html E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "carol." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-carol.html |
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carol
carol †ring-dance accompanied by song XIII; †the song itself XIV; hymn of joy for Christmas, etc. XVI. — OF. carole = Pr. carola, corola, of doubtful orig.
So carol vb. †dance in a ring XIII; sing XIV. |
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T. F. HOAD. "carol." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "carol." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-carol.html T. F. HOAD. "carol." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-carol.html |
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carol
carol Traditional song usually of religious joy and associated with Christmas. Earliest examples date from the 14th century.
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"carol." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "carol." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-carol.html "carol." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-carol.html |
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carol
carol
•apparel, barrel, carol, Carole, carrel, Carroll, Darrell, Darryl, Farrell
•gambrel • spandrel
•astral, plastral
•cracker-barrel
•Errol, feral
•petrel, petrol
•spectral
•central, epicentral, ventral
•ancestral, kestrel, orchestral
•dextral • Sacheverell • mayoral
•sacral • wastrel • cerebral
•anhedral, cathedral, dihedral, tetrahedral
•hypaethral (US hypethral), urethral
•squirrel, Tyrol, Wirral
•timbrel, whimbrel
•minstrel • arbitral • sinistral • integral
•triumviral
•spiral, viral
•amoral, Balmoral, coral, immoral, laurel, moral, quarrel, sorel, sorrel
•cockerel, Cockerell
•dotterel • rostral
•aboral, aural, choral, floral, goral, oral
•austral, claustral
•scoundrel • cloistral • neutral • figural
•augural
•demurral, Durrell
•mongrel • sepulchral • lustral
•spheral • retiral
•crural, jural, mural, neural, plural, rural
•illiberal, liberal
•natural • federal • peripheral
•doggerel • mackerel • pickerel
•bicameral, unicameral
•admiral
•ephemeral, femoral
•humeral, numeral
•general • mineral • funeral
•spatio-temporal, temporal
•corporal • tesseral • visceral
•bilateral, collateral, equilateral, lateral, multilateral, quadrilateral, trilateral, unilateral
•pastoral
•electoral, pectoral, prefectoral, protectoral
•clitoral, literal, littoral, presbyteral
•dipteral, peripteral
•doctoral • several • behavioural
•conferral, deferral, referral, transferral
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"carol." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "carol." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-carol.html "carol." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-carol.html |
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