Auld lang syne who is

Should old acquaintance be forgot, And long, long ago. And for long, long ago, my dear For long, long ago, We'll take a cup of kindness yet, For long, long ago And surely youll buy your pint-jug!

And surely I'll buy mine! And we'll take a cup of kindness yet, For long, long ago. We two have run about the hills And pulled the daisies fine; But we've wandered manys the weary foot Since long, long ago. We two have paddled in the stream, From morning sun till dine; But seas between us broad have roared Since long, long ago.

And there's a hand, my trusty friend! And give us a hand of yours! And we'll take a deep draught of good-will For long, long ago. Learn more. Chorus: For auld lang syne, my jo, For auld lang syne, We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet, For auld lang syne, And surely ye'll be your pint-stowp!

Chorus We twa hae run about the braes And pu'd the gowans fine; But we've wander'd mony a weary foot Sin auld lang syne.

And who wrote it? This tradition began in Scotland, where Hogmanay would be marked by the singing of the song while singers join hands to form a large circle. See more Latest features. Royal Ballet. The answer is that it's a rhetorical question. The speaker is asking whether old friends should be forgotten, as a way of stating that obviously one should not forget one's old friends. The version of the song we sing today is based on a poem published by Robert Burns , which he attributed to "an old man's singing," noting that it was a traditional Scottish song.

Fundamentally similar songs and poems existed in other forms in 18th-century Scotland. This printing by James Watson reveals the rhetorical nature of the question very clearly:.

We have here a series of rhetorical questions, all amounting to the point that unless you are completely dead inside, you should be able to appreciate the virtues of reconnecting with old friends and thinking about old times.

Americans are aware that Scottish people speak English with a distinctive accent, and may also be aware of the existence of a language called Scottish Gaelic that is related to Irish and Welsh and is rarely spoken. But there is also what is known as the Scots language , which has clear similarities to English without truly being intelligible to English speakers — in much the way that Italian and Spanish are similar, but distinct, languages.

The difference, of course, is that for hundreds of years now there has been no independent Scottish state to standardize and promote Scots as a formal language distinct from Scottish-accented English.

Much of Irvine Welsh's novel Trainspotting is written in Scots, and this lecture in Scots about Scots should give you a sense of its relationship to English:. The point is that the phrase "auld lang syne" is not recognizable to English speakers because it is not an English phrase.

Translated literally it means "old long since," but the meaning is more like "old times" or "the olden days. It happens to be the case that the phrase "should auld [i. And since conventionally only the first verse and the chorus are sung, the difference between the languages is not very salient except for the unfamiliar titular phrase.

But if you delve into the later verses, it becomes clear that the song is not in English. Here's the second verse, for example:. Luckily for you, we've put the lyrics below so you can serenade yourself and all your friends into the New Year. Read More.

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,. And never brought to mind? And auld lang syne. For auld lang syne, my jo,. For auld lang syne. We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet,. And surely ye'll be your pint-stowp! And surely I'll be mine!