A Rose Bloomed on Christmas Morning lyrics and meaning

Kalėdų rytų
Rožė pražydo,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Sekminių rytų
Dyvai pasidarė,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Dyvai pasidarė:
Ažerai užšalo,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Jaunas bernelis
Ladelį kirto,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Ladelį kirto,
Žirgelį girdė,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Žirgelį girdė,
Mergelį virkdė,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Atlėkė elnias
Devyniaragis,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

An pirmo rago
Ugnelė degė,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

An antro rago
Kavoliai kalė,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Jūs, kavolėliai,
Mani brolaliai,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Oi jūs nukalkit
Aukselio žiedą,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Aukselio žiedą,
Sidabro žirklas,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Aš nukarpysiu
Aglių šakelas,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Aglių šakelas,
Pušų viršūnes,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Gal pamatysiu
Tėvulio dvarų,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Po tėvulio dvarų,
Bobos vaikštinėja
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda.

Bobos vaikštinėja,
Mergos varinėjo,
Lėlium kalėda, kalėda

A Rose Bloomed on Christmas Morning: song interpretation

This song with the refrain "Lėlium kalėda" can be understood as a mythological song of the Christmas season. At the beginning, a rose blooms on Christmas morning, while on Pentecost morning wonders occur: lakes freeze. These images can be interpreted as a miraculous reversal of the world's order, characteristic of solstice songs.

Then the nine-antlered stag flies in, with fire burning and smiths hammering on its antlers. This image can be understood as an ancient cosmic figure, where a miraculous animal carries fire and smithcraft. The smiths, called brothers, are asked to forge a gold ring and silver shears.

With those shears the singer promises to cut fir branches and pine tops in order to see the father's manor. These images can be read as longing for home and signs of wedding preparation. That is one possible meaning, but the song's mythological Christmas worldview is clear.

A Rose Bloomed on Christmas Morning: symbols and phrases

Rose on Christmas morning
A rose blooming at Christmas. It marks miracle and the transformation of natural order.
Wonders and frozen lakes
Miracles in which lakes freeze at an unexpected time. They mark an old solstice worldview.
Nine-antlered stag
A miraculous stag with nine antlers. It is a cosmic mythic animal carrying fire and smithcraft.
Fire and smiths on the antlers
Fire burning and smiths hammering on the stag's antlers. They mark creative, cosmic smithcraft.
Gold ring and silver shears
Objects forged by the smiths. They mark signs of marriage and longing for home.

A Rose Bloomed on Christmas Morning: song history

The nine-antlered stag is one of the oldest images in Lithuanian calendar songs, especially Christmas songs. Researchers connect it with the old Baltic worldview, in which a miraculous animal carrying fire on its antlers marks the return of the sun and light at the winter solstice. Songs of this kind, accompanied by the refrain "Lėlium kalėda," were sung during Advent and Christmas.

The exact recording place and date are not given on this page, so the song is presented through its genre features. Images of an inverted world order - a rose blooming on Christmas morning, lakes freezing on Pentecost morning - and smiths hammering on the stag's antlers are treated as a mythic, ritual layer of calendar song. The gold ring and silver shears also connect the song with images of wedding preparation.

sources

  • Lietuvių liaudies dainynas, vols. 1-23, Vilnius 1980-2011 (LLTI)
  • N. Laurinkienė. Mito atšvaitai lietuvių kalendorinėse dainose, Vilnius 1990
  • Lietuvių liaudies dainų katalogas, 6 vols., Vilnius 1972-1986

A Rose Bloomed on Christmas Morning: sources