Other Random Facts

  • The song was originally published in 1780 in England without music. It was written as a chant or rhyme.
  • The standard tune we all know now is derived from a 1909 arrangement of a traditional folk melody by English composer Frederic Austin.
  • Austin is the one who introduced the elongated "5 golden rings" to the song.
  • The origins of the game are unknown, but it's likely that it was a game to test children's memory, and if you forget a line, you forfeit and bow out.
  • Since 1984, the cumulative cost of all the gifts has been has been used as a tongue-in cheek economic indicator.
    • Assuming that all the gifts are given each day after its original day, there would be a total of 364 gifts.
    • PNC Bank began the custom of calculating the cost of all the gifts.
    • Two pricing charts are created. 'The Christmas Price Index' and 'The True Cost of Christmas.'
  • Back in 1984:
    • The Christmas Price Index - $12,623.10
    • The True Cost of Christmas - $61,318.94
  • For 2017:
    • The Christmas Price Index - $34,558.65
    • The True Cost of Christmas - $157,558.00

 

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