Auld Lang Syne

For other uses, see Auld Lang Syne (disambiguation).

John Masey Wright and John Rogers' illustration of the poem, c. 1841

"Auld Lang Syne" (Scots pronunciation: [ˈɔːl(d) lɑŋ ˈsəi̯n])[a][1] is a Scottish song. In the English-speaking world, it is traditionally sung to bid farewell to the old year at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve/Hogmanay. By extension, it is also often heard at funerals, graduations, and as a farewell or ending to other occasions; for instance, many branches of the Scouting movement use it to close jamborees and other functions.[2][3]

The text is a Scots-language poem written by Robert Burns in 1788[4][5] but based on an older Scottish folk song. In 1799, it was set to a traditional pentatonic tune, which has since become standard. "Auld Lang Syne" is listed as numbers 6294 and 13892 in the Roud Folk Song Index.

The poem's Scots title may be translated into standard English as "old long since" or, less literally, "long long ago",[6] "days gone by", "times long past" or "old times". Consequently, "For auld lang syne", as it appears in the first line of the chorus, might be loosely translated as "for the sake of old times".

The phrase "Auld Lang Syne" is also used in similar poems by Robert Ayton (1570–1638), Allan Ramsay (1686–1757), and James Watson (1711), as well as older folk songs predating Burns.[7]

In modern times, Matthew Fitt uses the phrase "in the days of auld lang syne" as the equivalent of "once upon a time" in his retelling of fairy tales in the Scots language.[8]


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  1. ^ Rennie, Susan (ed.). "Lang Syne". Dictionary of the Scots Language. Archived from the original on 19 January 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Honeck was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "The End of The Jamboree". Manchester Guardian. 9 August 1920. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Robert Burns – Auld Lang Syne". BBC. 23 April 2009. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
  5. ^ "The History and Words of Auld Lang Syne". Scotland.org. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
  6. ^ Burns, Robert (1947) [Transcribed 1788]. Maine, George Frederick (ed.). Songs from Robert Burns 1759–1796 (leather-bound sextodecimo). Collins Greetings Booklets (in English and Scots). Glasgow: Collins Clear-Type Press. pp. 47–48. This book was purchased at Burns Cottage, and was reprinted in 1967, and 1973.
  7. ^ "nls.uk". nls.uk. Archived from the original on 11 November 2013. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
  8. ^ Higgins, Bernie; Vaughan, David (28 November 2004). "'Wee Reid Ridin Hood': Matthew Fitt and His Scots Fairy Tales in Deepest Bohemia". Radio Prague. Retrieved 12 June 2017.