New Liturgical Movement, Peter Kwasniewski: 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, Une jeune pucelle. 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. More here.
