Soul Cake - The O’Connors & Theiss | A Celtic Music Holiday Celebration

“Soul Cake“ performed by The O’Connors and Theiss. A soul cake is a small round cake - traditionally made on All Souls Day -the song can be tied to both All Souls Day (November 2) and Christmas. Soul cakes were made to honor the dead; in England, cakes were given to children (or the poor) as they went from door to door singing prayers for the dead. The lyrics to the song were first collected in 1891 from a girl at a school in Tattenhall, England, and published in 1893. In the 1960s the song was rearranged into a version that included “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen“ by American folk group Peter, Paul, and Mary, transitioning the song to become more popular during the Christmas season. — feeling festive.