What Child Is This?
Author: William Chatterton Dix
Composer: English folk song, 16th century
Languages (26)
This song text has been indexed at SingPraises.net in the following languages:
- Cebuano: Kinsa Man Kining Bataa?
- Chinese (Simplified): 这婴孩是谁？
- Chinese (Traditional): 這嬰孩是誰？
- Danish: Hvem er det barn?
- Dutch: Wie is dit Kind?
- English: What Child Is This?
- Finnish: On tallin seimessä
- French: Quel est l’Enfant ?
- German: Wer ist das Kind?
- Hungarian: Mily gyermek ez?
- Italian: Che bimbo è questo?
- Japanese: こはいかなる子であるか
- Khmer (Cambodian): តើបុត្រតូចនេះគឺជានរណា?
- Korean: 이 아기 누구뇨?
- Latvian: Kas ir šis bērns?
- Mongolian: Энэ Хүү хэн бэ?
- Norwegian: Hvor kom Han fra?
- Portuguese: Quem é o menino?
- Russian: Что за Дитя?
- Samoan: O Ai Lenei Pepe?
- Spanish: ¿Qué niño es este?
- Swedish: Vem är det barn
- Tagalog: Sino ang Sanggol na Ito?
- Thai: พระกุมารใครหนอ?
- Tongan: Ko Hai e Kiʻi Tamasiʻí?
- Ukrainian: Що за дитя святе?
- All Languages →
Statistics
Most common tunes for “What Child Is This?”
This chart shows the tunes that are paired with this text most frequently, in hymnbooks and other collections published by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. If the text appears with the same tune in multiple editions or translations of the same hymnbook, it is only counted once.
Appearances of “What Child Is This?” over time
This timeline shows which tunes have been used with this text over time, in hymnbooks and other collections published by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Copyright status of original text
This text was first published in English, in 1867 or earlier.
Public domain
Earliest known source: Christmas Carols New and Old, First Series, 1867.
Earliest source indexed at SingPraises.net:
Reference, Jan 1867.
Representative lyrics
English (Original Language)
1. What Child is this, who, laid to rest, On Mary’s lap is sleeping— Whom angels greet with anthems sweet, While shepherds watch are keeping? This, this is Christ, the King, Whom shepherds guard, and angels sing: Haste, haste to bring Him laud, The Babe, the Son of Mary!
2. Why lies He in such mean estate, Where ox and ass are feeding? Good Christians, fear, for sinners here The silent Word is pleading. Nails, spear, shall pierce Him through, The cross be borne for me, for you; Hail! Hail! the Word made flesh, The Babe, the Son of Mary!
3. So bring Him incense, gold, and myrrh. Come, peasant, king, to own Him. The King of kings salvation brings; Let loving hearts enthrone Him. Raise, raise the song on high. The virgin sings her lullaby. Joy! Joy! for Christ is born, The Babe, the Son of Mary!
Compare
Compare different versions of the lyrics side-by-side: English