Auld Lang Syne

The Scots auld lang syne (literally “old long since”) means roughly “for old times’ sake” or “times long ago.” In 1788, Scottish poet Robert Burns sent “Auld Lang Syne” to a collector of Scottish folk songs with the note, “The following song, an old song, of the olden times, and which has never been in print, nor even in manuscript until I took it down from an old man.”

Burns added new verses to those in the older Scottish folk song. Versions vary, in Scots and English. Lines we sing each year had appeared in earlier Scottish street songs and verses. Sir Robert Ayton’s “Old Long Syne” was published in 1711. Allan Ramsey in the 1720s began one poem with the words, “Should auld acquaintance be forgot.” Burns’s words were soon paired with a new tune.

Themes of nostalgia, friendship, and drink made “Auld Lang Syne” a staple of the Scottish New Year celebration, Hogmanay. North American dance band leader Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians heard the song during a winter in Britain and added it to their repertoire. From 1929 to 1976, first on radio and then on television, Lombardo’s band made “Auld Lang Syne” a highlight of their annual New Year’s Eve special. Millions sang along each year. Nearly half a century after Lombardy’s death, tomorrow at the stroke of midnight we’ll sing it again. 

Image: Illustration to Robert Burns' poem “Auld Lang Syne” by J.M. Wright and Edward Scriven.