hymn

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hymn. Song of praise to the deity or a saint. Particularly assoc. with Anglican church where words and melodies of hymns are especially popular for congregational singing. Books of hymns and hymn-tunes of special significance are Hymns Ancient and Modern (1861 and many subsequent edns.), The Yattendon Hymnal (Bridges, 1899), The English Hymnal (1906, rev. 1933, mus. ed. Vaughan Williams, in which some folk tunes were adapted as hymn-tunes), and Songs of Praise (1925, rev. 1931, mus. ed. Vaughan Williams and Martin Shaw). In Eng. hymn-books, tunes are given an identifying title such as a Latin translation, or the name of a town or village, e.g. Down Ampney ( Vaughan Williams's birthplace) is title of his Come down, O love divine.

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