



Among the most beloved of Christmas pieces is surely the so-called “Huron Carol.” The carol’s text was written by St. Jean de Brebeuf in Quebec in 1642 or 1643 while his father recuperated from a broken clavicle, and set to a familiar French tune of the day,St. Jean composed the text in the Huron dialect (also known as Wyandot) that he had learned quite well. Fortunately, one of the later missionaries, Fr. de Villeneuve, wrote down the words and translated them into simple French; otherwise we would have lost it altogether.Ehstehn yayau deh tsaun we yisus ahattonniaO na wateh wado:kwi nonnwa 'ndasqua entaiehnau sherskwa trivota nonnwa 'ndi yaun rashataIesus Ahattonnia, Ahattonnia, Iesus Ahattonnia.Ayoki onki hm-ashe eran yayeh raunnaunyauntaun kanntatya hm-deh 'ndyaun sehnsatoa ronnyaunWaria hnawakweh tond Yosehf sataunn haronnyaunIesus Ahattonnia, Ahattonnia, Iesus Ahattonnia.Asheh kaunnta horraskwa deh ha tirri gwamesTishyaun ayau ha'ndeh ta aun hwa ashya a ha trrehaundata:kwa Tishyaun yayaun yaun n-dehtaIesus Ahattonnia, Ahattonnia, Iesus Ahattonnia.Dau yishyeh sta atyaun errdautau 'ndi Yisusavwa tateh dn-deh Tishyaun stanshi teya wennyauaha yaunna torrehntehn yataun katsyaun skehnnIesus Ahattonnia, Ahattonnia, Iesus Ahattonnia.Eyeh kwata tehnaunnte aheh kwashyehn ayehnkiyeh kwanaun aukwayaun dehtsaun we 'ndeh adehtarrya diskwann aunkwe yishyehr eya ke naun staIesus Ahattonnia, Ahattonnia, Iesus Ahattonnia.The following is John Steckley’s literal translation of the carol from Huron to English:Have courage, you who are humans; Jesus, he is born.Behold, the spirit [demon] who had us as prisoners has fled.Do not listen to it, as it corrupts the spirits of our minds.Jesus, he is born.They are spirits, sky people [angels], coming with a message for us.They are coming to say, “Be on top of life [Rejoice],Marie, she has just given birth. Rejoice!”Jesus, he is born.Three have left for such, those who are elders.Tichion, a star that has just appeared on the horizon, leads them there.He will seize the path, he who leads them there.Jesus, he is born.As they arrived there, where he was born, Jesus,the star was at the point of stopping, not far past it.Having found someone for them, he says, “Come here!”Jesus, he is born.Behold, they have arrived there and have seen Jesus,They praised many times, saying “Hurray, he is good in nature.”They greased his scalp many times [greeted him with reverence],saying “Hurray.” Jesus, he is born.“We will give to him praise for his name,Let us show reverence for him as he comes to be compassionate to us.It is providential that you love us and wish, ‘I should adopt them.’”Jesus, he is born.The song is crafted to appeal to the worldview and customs of the natives. However, in Brebeuf’s text, no God is praised except Jesus. One may see the same thing in the French translation of Brebeuf’s original:Chrétiens, prenez courageJésus Sauveur est néDu malin les ouvragesA jamais sont ruinésQuand il chante merveilleA ces troublants appasNe pretez plus l’oreilleJésus est né, in excelsis gloria!Oyez cette nouvelleDont un ange est portuerOyez, âmes fidèlesEt dilatez vos coeursLa Vierge dans l’étableEntoure de ses brasL’Enfant-Dieu adorableJésus est né, in excelsis gloria!Voici que trois Rois MagesPerdus en OrientDéchiffrent ce messageEcrit au firmamentL’astre nouveau les hanteIls la suivrant là-basCette étoile marhanteJésus est né, in excelsis gloria!Jésus leur met en têteQue L’Etoile en la nuitQui jamais ne s’arrêteLes conduira vers LuiDans las nuit radieuseEn route ils son déjàIls vont l’âme joyeuseJésus est né, in excelsis gloria!Pour l’enfant qui reposeDans un petit berceauHumblement ils déposentHommages et cadeauxComme eux, l’âme ravieChrétiens, suivons ses pasSon amour nous convieJésus est né, in excelsis gloria!Problems arise, however, when we get to the exceedingly well-known 1926 English version of the carol done by Jesse Edgar Middleton (1872-1960). Middleton's version rather self-consciously enhances the “Indianness” of the text by stating that Jesus is born in “lodge of broken bark” and wrapped in a “robe of rabbit skin.” He is surrounded by hunters rather than shepherds, and chiefs bring him “fox and beaver pelts” instead of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Most troublingly, Middleton gratutiously inserts the name of one of the pagan gods of the Algonquin, “Gitchi Manitou,” which is not in the original Wyandot version. Indeed, the very words “Gitchi Manitou” are from the Ojibwe language, not the Wyandot.Why is this a big deal? The answer is simple: Middleton’s familiar translation is not faithful to St. Jean de Brebeuf’s authorial intentions. With classic Jesuit ingenuity and precision, Brebeuf wrote a text that utilizes native concepts while simultaneously not asserting or honoring anything pagan. We, too, when singing this carol, should avoid the same. While it is true that “Gitchi Manitou” can be translated as “Great Spirit” and subsequently entered into common usage among Algonquian Christians (an insight for which I am thankful to a commenter below), in context it would be somewhat like those Renaissance Latin hymns that addressed God as thundering Jupiter.Years ago I composed a harmonization of the Huron Carol and published it in myI regret that I used Middleton’s text, the difficulties of which I did not grasp until much later, when a discerning musician wrote an email to me about all of these matters.Do we have any alternatives, then, when singing the Huron Carol? Fortunately, yes, we do. Julie Pyle's translation is quite useable ( see here ). A similar translation of two stanzas from Heather Dale makes me wish she had done all of them:Let Christian men take heart todayThe devil’s rule is done;Let no man heed the devil more,For Jesus Christ is comeBut hear ye all what angels sing:How Mary Maid bore Jesus King.Iesus Ahattonnia, Jesus is born, Iesus Ahattonnia.Three chieftains saw before NoelA star as bright as day,“So fair a sign,” the chieftains said,“Shall lead us where it may.”For Jesu told the chieftains three:“The star will bring you here to me.”Iesus Ahattonnia, Jesus is born, Iesus Ahattonnia.For a fascinating scholarly article on this subject, see John Steckley, “Huron Carol: A Canadian Cultural Chamelion,”vol. 27, n. 1 (March 2014): 55–74. Retrievable from ResearchGate.