| Dejlig er jorden | |
| Translation: | The earth is (so) beautiful |
| Native Name Lang: | Danish language |
| Other Name: | Pilgrimssang |
| Year: | 1850 |
| Occasion: | Christmas |
| Language: | Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Faroese, Finnish, Kven and Saami |
| Melody: | Schlesische Volkslieder mit ihren Melodien |
| Duration: | 2 minutes |
"Dejlig er jorden" is a Nordic religious hymn. The hymn is usually sung during Christmas.[1]
The hymn has origins from Silesia and Germany, and the melody used for the hymn has its origins in Silesian folk music. It was published by August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben under the collection "Schlesische Volkslieder mit ihren Melodien" in 1842, and the hymn is thought to have origins from pilgrims on their travel to Jerusalem.[2]
The melody was used by Danish hymn-writer Bernhard Severin Ingemann in 1850, following the request of his friend, Ferdinand Fenger to write words to the melody. The hymn was originally named Pilgrimssang, by Ingermann. However the opening verse stuck around as the colloquial name of the hymn.[3]
The hymn is a famous Christmas hymn in the Nordic countries.[4] The hymn is available in most native languages of the Nordic countries, including Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, Swedish and Faroese, Icelandic, Kven, Northern Sami and Southern Sami.[5] The hymn is traditionally sung during Christmas Eve, however is sometimes sung at funerals in Denmark. In Sweden the hymn is primarily used in funeral, usually as the closing song.[6]