Ope thy purse, and shut it then.”
There has been much discussion as to the derivation of “oguinâne,” from which the Scottish “hogmanay” also comes. Mr. Métivier, in his dictionary, says that it means the annual present of a master to his servants, of a seigneur to his vassals, of a father to his children, and derives it from “agenhine feoh” or “hogenehyne fee” the present made, or money given, to those who belong to you—a word composed of “agen” one’s own—as the English own, and “hind” servant, one of the family. And he laughs at the theory propounded by various French and English folklorists that it is derived from the rites of the Druids, and comes from their ancient cry “Au guy l’an neuf”—“the mistletoe (gui) of the New Year”—New Year’s Day being the day the pagans went into the forests to seek the mistletoe on the oaks. (See Notes and Queries. Series III. Vol. IV. p. 486.) In the Star of March 14th, 1831, Mr. Métivier tells us that “as late as the reign of Louis XIV. it was usual for the populace round Morlaix to chant a variety of bacchanalian songs on the last eve of the year, and the chorus or refrain of every stanza was precisely what I should never have fancied it to be—our
‘Oghin an eit! Oghin an eit!’
I am informed by a worthy monk that the good news announced by these mystical words had nothing to do with the religion of Christ, and that, being interpreted, they only tell us that ‘the wheat is upspringing—le bled germe.’ Eit and od originally implied not wheat only, but every sort of grain and seed. Thus it appears that what at first sight defied all rational conjecture—the ‘oguinâni, oguinâno,’ cry of our small gentry, once formed the immemorial chorus of an Armorican hymn—the pure heathen liturgical relic of some Gaulish festival. The primitive ditty was full of allusions to the increase of light, the revival of vegetable nature, and other seasonable topics. The noisy little heralds of this pleasing intelligence received for their reward an ‘oguinâne,’ or, as it is now called, ‘leurs hirvières’—an hibernum donum or winter gift. It is true that a few half-learned lexicographers talk of the mistletoe and ‘Au Guy l’An Neuf;’ but the French savans were systematic haters of France’s aboriginal languages, and the minor Latin poet who invented this nonsensical interpretation of a word whose etymon he was too lazy to dig for in its native mine has hardly been dead two centuries.”
[15] Editor’s Note.—The old people of St. Martin’s parish still (1896) talk of having in their youth gone to the neighbours’ houses on New Year’s Eve singing the following rhyme:—
“Bon jour, Monsieur! Bon jour, Madame!
Je n’vous ai pas vu acouâre (encore) chut (cette) an.
Et je vous souhaite une bouâne année,
Et mes irvières s’i’vous plliet.”
And a little bowl or bag of pennies was always at hand for gratuities.