A Child is Born in Bethlehem

Christmas Carols Explained, 7

The first version of this song was Latin (“Puer natus in Bethlehem”), then later Danish (“Et barn er født i Bethlehem”), dating from the 13th century today. It’s one of the oldest carols, and typically tells the story of the Nativity in verse. The melody came along later, around the 14th century, and the song gained popularity alongside the reform movement led by Martin Luther. Reformers were big on congregational singing, which naturally led to a demand for a bigger catalog of songs to sing.

Johann Sebastian Bach gave it some lasting endurance when he included it in his own organ book for Protestant use across northern Europe. By the 19th century the song was in Anglican hymnals, and now it enjoys regular seasonal use in church settings. It’s a little hard to punch up and energize, so it hasn’t been converted to a Mannheim or TSO track.