The "Sans Day Carol" or "St. Day Carol" is one of the many Cornish Christmas carols written in the 19th century. This carol and its melody were first transcribed from the singing of Thomas Beard, a villager in St Day in the parish of Gwennap, Cornwall. The fourth verse is a translation from the Cornish version, "Ma gron war'n gelln". The lyrics of "Now the holly bears a berry", the text most associated with the Sans Day Carol, are similar to those of "The Holly and the Ivy" and it is no. 35 in the Oxford Book of Carols.
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Words "Now the holly bears a berry"
The words of the text "Now the holly bears a berry," the most common and earliest used text for this carol, are as follows:
1. Now the holly bears a berry as white as the milk,
And Mary she bore Jesus, who was wrapped up in silk:
Chorus: And Mary she bore Jesus our Saviour for to be,
And the first tree that's in the greenwood, it was the holly.
Holly! Holly!
And the first tree that's in the greenwood, it was the holly!
2. Now the holly bears a berry as green as the grass,
And Mary she bore Jesus, who died on the cross:
Chorus
3. Now the holly bears a berry as black as the coal,
And Mary she bore Jesus, who died for us all:
Chorus
4. Now the holly bears a berry, as blood is it red,
Then trust we our Saviour, who rose from the dead:
Chorus
When the angel came to Mary
British hymnodist Michael Perry composed the text When the angel came to Mary which is also sung to the Sans Day Carol.