Popular Christmas Carols

Few Christmas carols are as instantly recognisable as Jingle Bells. The moment those opening chords ring out, smiles spread across faces of all ages. But did you know this iconic carol wasn't actually written for Christmas at all?

Jingle Bells was composed in 1857 by James Lord Pierpont and published under the title "The One Horse Open Sleigh." It was written to celebrate the fun of Thanksgiving sleigh races in Savannah, Georgia — a world away from the Australian summer! The carol became so associated with Christmas that it was soon adopted as a festive favourite worldwide.

In Australia, Jingle Bells is one of the first Christmas carols children learn, and it's sung with enormous enthusiasm at school concerts and community carol events every December. The irony of singing about dashing through the snow while enjoying 35°C summer heat is not lost on Australians — and part of what makes it so charming.

Jingle Bells holds a special place in history as one of the first songs ever broadcast from space. In December 1965, astronauts aboard Gemini 6 played a smuggled harmonica and bells, performing Jingle Bells for mission control!

There is perhaps no Christmas carol more universally beautiful than Silent Night (Stille Nacht). Its gentle, lilting melody and peaceful words have the remarkable ability to hush a room and create a moment of genuine reverence — whether you're sitting in a grand cathedral or under the open Australian night sky.

The carol was composed on Christmas Eve 1818 in the small Austrian village of Oberndorf. According to legend, the village church organ had broken down, so assistant priest Josef Mohr brought a poem he had written two years earlier to choirmaster Franz Xaver Gruber, asking him to set it to music for two voices and guitar. The result was one of the most recorded songs in history, translated into over 300 languages.

In Australia, Silent Night is a cornerstone of the Carols by Candlelight tradition — there's something deeply moving about thousands of people singing this delicate carol together by candlelight on a warm summer evening. It was added to UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2011.

O Holy Night is the showstopper of the Christmas carol repertoire. With its dramatic, soaring melody and powerful crescendo — "Fall on your knees!" — it demands skilled vocalists and rewards audiences with shivers down the spine. At major Australian carol events, it often brings the crowd to a hushed, reverent silence.

The carol began as a French poem, "Minuit, chrétiens" (Midnight, Christians), written in 1843 by Placide Cappeau, a wine merchant asked by a local priest to write something for Christmas. Composer Adolphe Adam set it to music, creating the dramatic, operatic piece we know today. The English version, "O Holy Night," was translated in 1855.

At Australia's Carols by Candlelight concerts, O Holy Night is frequently performed by professional singers and is considered one of the most emotionally powerful moments of the evening.

With its impossibly catchy fa-la-la-la-la refrain, Deck the Halls is one of those Christmas carols that gets stuck in your head from the first of December until well into January. Its bouncy, cheerful melody is perfect for the upbeat, decorating energy of the lead-up to Christmas.

The melody of Deck the Halls comes from a Welsh tune, "Nos Galan" (New Year's Eve), which dates back to the 16th century. The English Christmas lyrics were added in the 19th century by Scottish musician Thomas Oliphant. The carol's references to holly, blazing Yule logs, and warm wassail are charmingly European — but Australians have cheerfully adopted it as a summer favourite regardless.

We Wish You a Merry Christmas is one of the oldest and most instantly recognisable Christmas carols in the world. Its cheery, upbeat melody and warm seasonal wishes make it the perfect carol for doorstep carolling — a tradition that, while less common today, still brings joy to neighbourhoods across Australia.

The carol dates back to 16th century England, where it was traditionally sung by carollers visiting the homes of the wealthy, often demanding figgy pudding (a rich Christmas dessert) as a reward for their singing. The slightly demanding nature of "we won't go until we get some" always raises a laugh at Christmas events.

Six White Boomers is arguably Australia's most beloved Christmas carol, and it couldn't be more perfectly suited to our summer Christmas experience. The song tells the whimsical story of Santa swapping his traditional reindeer for six white male kangaroos ("boomers") to navigate the Australian outback on Christmas Day.

The carol was written by Rolf Harris in 1960, with the original version recorded by Shirley Abicair. The song captures something genuinely Australian — the notion that our Christmas, while drawing from European and American traditions, has its own unique flavour shaped by our extraordinary landscape and wildlife.

Six White Boomers is a staple of Australian primary school Christmas concerts and is played extensively on Australian radio throughout December. It perfectly captures the playful, good-humoured spirit of an Aussie Christmas.

Carol of the Birds is a uniquely Australian Christmas carol that beautifully evokes the sounds and imagery of the Australian bush at Christmas time. Rather than European robins or doves, it features distinctly Australian birds — the bellbird, the lyrebird, and the kookaburra — heralding the birth of Christ.

Written in 1948 by Australian composer William G. James with lyrics by John Wheeler, the carol has a gentle, pastoral quality that perfectly suits the long summer twilights and warm evenings of an Australian Christmas. It remains a poignant and distinctly Australian contribution to the global carol tradition.

One of Australia's earliest original Christmas carols, The North Wind is Tossing the Leaves beautifully describes the unique experience of an Australian summer Christmas. In Australia, the hot north wind is a sign of a scorching day ahead — and this carol uses this distinctive Australian weather experience as a backdrop for the Christmas story.

The poem was written by Australian poet Roderic Quinn in 1905 and later set to music by W. G. James. It's a deeply evocative piece that reminds us Christmas in Australia has its own distinct character — golden light, hot winds, and the smell of eucalyptus rather than pine and snow.