‘Tis the season to look up any Christmas-related words I haven’t already done. 😉 Knowing that noel is French, I suppose I figured there wasn’t much more to know about it, so I hadn’t looked into this one before. But I decided it was time!
For starters, I had no idea noel has been part of the English language for so long! Originally spelled nowel, this word has meant “the feast of Christmas” since the late 1300s. It does, of course, come from Old French noel, which meant “the Christmas season.” It, however, was a variant of nael, from the the Latin natalis, which means simply “birth.” In Church Latin, of course, “the birth” can only speak to one thing… 😀
Wondering what other Christmas words I’ve featured? Here’s the list!
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.
Interesting words choice this week! I'd sure like to know why these aren't showing on page anymore. I have to remember to search for them every week.
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