Advent songs (german: Adventslieder, link=no) are songs and hymns intended for

Advent Advent is a Christian season of preparation for the Nativity of Christ at Christmas. It is the beginning of the liturgical year in Western Christianity. The name was adopted from Latin "coming; arrival", translating Greek '' parousia''. ...

, the four weeks of preparation for

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

. Topics of the time of expectation are the hope for a

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of '' mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach ...

, prophecies, and the symbolism of light, among others. Several of the songs are part of

hymnal A hymnal or hymnary is a collection of hymns, usually in the form of a book, called a hymnbook (or hymn book). Hymnals are used in congregational singing. A hymnal may contain only hymn texts (normal for most hymnals for most centuries of Chr ...

s such as the German Catholic ''

Gotteslob ''Gotteslob'' ("Praise of God") is the title of the hymnbook authorized by the Catholic dioceses in Germany, Austria, South Tyrol, Luxembourg and Liège, Belgium. First published in Advent 2013, it is the current official hymnal for German-speaki ...

'' (GL) and the Protestant '' Evangelisches Gesangbuch'' (EG). ''This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness.''

4th century

* Veni redemptor gentium

6th century

O Antiphons The O Antiphons (also known as the Great Advent Antiphons or Great Os) are Magnificat antiphons used at Vespers on the last seven days of Advent in Western Christian traditions. They likely date to sixth-century Italy, when Boethius refers to the ...

* Vox clara ecce intonat

12th century

* Veni, veni, Emmanuel (the most common

setting Setting may refer to: * A location (geography) where something is set * Set construction in theatrical scenery * Setting (narrative), the place and time in a work of narrative, especially fiction * Setting up to fail a manipulative technique to e ...

in the

Anglophone world Speakers of English language, English are also known as Anglophones, and the countries where English is natively spoken by the majority of the population are termed the ''Anglosphere''. Over two billion people speak English , making English the ...

dates to the 19th century)

13th century

Angelus ad virginem "" (Latin for "The angel came to the virgin", also known by its English title, "Gabriel, from Heven King Was to the Maide Sende") is a medieval carol whose text is a poetic version of the Hail Mary and the Annunciation by the archangel Gabriel to ...

* Gabriel's Message

14th century

* Sei uns willkommen, Herre Christ

15th century

Adam lay ybounden "Adam lay ybounden", originally titled Adam lay i-bowndyn, is a 15th-century English Christian text of unknown authorship. It relates the Biblical events of Genesis, Chapter 3 on the Fall of Man. Originally a song text, no contemporary musical se ...

* The Cherry-Tree Carol * Es kommt ein Schiff, geladen * Ther is no rose of swych vertu

16th century

* Der Morgenstern ist aufgedrungen *

Es ist ein Ros entsprungen "" (literally "A rose has sprung up") is a Christmas carol and Marian hymn of German origin. It is most commonly translated into English as "Lo, how a rose e'er blooming" and is also called "A Spotless Rose" and "Behold a Rose of Judah". The ros ...

Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

* Of the Father's Heart Begotten * Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day *

Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme "" (literally: Awake, the voice is calling us) is a Lutheran hymn written in German by Philipp Nicolai, first published in 1599 together with "". It appears in German hymnals and in several English hymnals in translations such as "Wake, Awake, f ...

17th century

Conditor alme siderum Conditor alme siderum, is a seventh-century Latin hymn used during the Christian liturgical season of Advent. It is also known in English as Creator of the Stars of Night, from a translation by J.M. Neale. History It was formerly ascribed to S ...

Macht hoch die Tür "Macht hoch die Tür" (Fling wide the door) is a German popular Advent hymn, written in Ducal Prussia in the 17th century. The lyrics were written by Georg Weissel in 1623, for the inauguration of the Altroßgärter Kirche in Königsberg. The m ...

Mit Ernst, o Menschenkinder "" (literally: With seriousness, you Children of Man) is an Advent hymn by . It partly paraphrases the call to penitence by John the Baptist. The text was first published in 1642 in the collection ''Preußische Festlieder''. The different melody ...

* O Heiland, reiß die Himmel auf * Rorate cæli (as a separate Advent hymn) * * Wie soll ich dich empfangen

18th century

Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus "Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus" is a 1744 Advent and Christmas carol common in Protestant hymnals. The text was written by Charles Wesley. It is performed to one of several tunes, including "Stuttgart" (attr. to Christian Friedrich Witt), " Hyfr ...

* Jesus Christ the Apple Tree * Lo! He comes with clouds descending * On Jordan's Bank the Baptist's Cry *

19th century

* Bereden väg för Herran * The Holly and the Ivy * Hosianna, Davids son *

Lasst uns froh und munter sein "" ("Let us be happy and cheerful") is a traditional German carol from the Hunsrück/ Taunus region. There are some regional variations in the lyrics.The second verse is not widely used. The song is traditionally sung during Advent Adven ...

* Leise rieselt der Schnee * Macht weit die Pforten in der Welt *

Maria durch ein Dornwald ging "" (English: "Maria walks amid the thorns", or "Mary walked through a wood of thorn") is a German Advent song. By origin it was a pilgrimage song that initially was spread orally in the 19th century, starting in the Catholic Eichsfeld. Versions ...

* Meine Seele, dank und singe *

Tochter Zion, freue dich "Tochter Zion, freue dich" (Daughter Zion, rejoice) is a Christian Advent song in German. The text was written by Friedrich Heinrich Ranke, based on music derived from two of Handel's oratorios. The song was published in 1826, assigned to the Trium ...

20th century

* Advent är mörker och kyla * Adventstid * Det är advent * * Kündet allen in der Not * Long Ago, Prophets Knew * Und unser lieben Frauen *Up, Awake, and Away! (Traditional Galician carol arranged by Philip Ledger) * Vi tänder ett ljus i advent

Secular Advent songs

* * Leise rieselt der Schnee *

Literature

* Gerhard Engelsberger: ''Bilder vom Kommen Gottes. Dichter, Bilder und Botschaft der Adventslieder.'' Evangelischer Presseverband für Baden, Karlsruhe 992 .

External links

* {{authority control Lists of songs about a topic