auld lang synen.
/ˌɔːld laŋ ˈsʌɪn/, /ˌəʊld laŋ ˈsʌɪn/, /ˌɔːld laŋ ˈzʌɪn/, /ˌəʊld laŋ ˈzʌɪn/, U.S. /ˌoʊl(d) ˌlæŋ ˈzaɪn/, /ˌɔl(d) ˌlæŋ ˈzaɪn/, /ˌɑl(d) ˌlæŋ ˈzaɪn/, Scottish English /ˌɔld ˌlanɡ ˈsaɪn/ Originally Scottish.
Times long past; times long ago; old times; consideration or regard for old friendships, loyalties, etc. Esp. in for auld lang syne: = for old times' sake at old adj. 9b.Popularized outside Scotland through its use in Robert Burns's version of an earlier song (see quots. ?1701, 1796).
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > relative time > the past > [noun] > time long past or long ago
fern-daysOE
yesterdayOE
antiquityc1375
ancienty1489
eldc1540
father-age1633
auld lang syne1666
(the) year one1754
ancientry1755
aforetime1803
good (also bad) old days1828
long-ago1831
eld-time1845
the year dot1857
old times1898
1666 in G. Sinclair & C. K. Sharpe Lett. Earl of Argyll to Duke of Lauderdale (1829) 37 Deare lord father, farewell for old long syne.
1692 ‘J. Curate’ Sc. Presbyterian Eloquence iii. 101 Now billy Jonah, wilt thou go to Nineveh for ald lang syne [margin Old kindness].
?1701 Old Long Syne (single sheet) Is thy sweet Heart now grown so cold..That thou canst never once reflect on Old long syne... Force nor Fate can me displease, for Old long syne.
1796 R. Burns Auld Lang Syne (chorus) in J. Johnson Scots Musical Museum V. 426 For auld lang syne my jo, For auld lang syne, We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet for auld lang syne.
1820 W. Scott Abbot I. vii. 149 Give us a grip of your hand, man, for auld lang syne.
1827 W. Scott Two Drovers in Chron. Canongate 1st Ser. I. xiii. 303 I am Hugh Morrison from Glenae, come of the Manly Morrisons of auld langsyne.
1896 G. B. Shaw in Sat. Rev. 23 May 524/1 That smile may have meant sentimental memories of auld lang syne.
1901 W. Laidlaw Poetry & Prose 58 On auld lang syne I'll stand and ponder.
1934 Pop. Aviation Feb. 82/1 Celebrities mount the ladder of success and many of them are deaf to the appeal of ‘auld lang syne’.
1988 M. Bishop Unicorn Mountain (1989) i. 4 Come on, Libby. Thirty minutes. For auld lang syne. Is that so damn much to ask?
2014 L. Fleming Postcard i. i. 14 Thank you, but I'll be on my way; just wanted a wee peep at the place for auld lang syne.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2017; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
> as lemmas
auld lang syne
Long since, long ago. Also n. esp. in auld lang syne. (Somewhat common in English use with allusion to Burns's song.)
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > relative time > the past > [adverb] > long ago
yorec900
for longOE
langer1303
long agoc1350
far1362
for yorea1375
of yore ago(ne)a1375
long time1376
of olda1393
anciently1502
langsyne?a1513
oldlya1513
in old season1582
old1609
antiquely1652
then-a-days1688
(the) year one1754
way back1870
in yore1876
way back when1921
a1513 W. Dunbar Poems (1998) I. 80 I had bene deid lang syne, doutles.
1570 in J. Cranstoun Satirical Poems Reformation (1891) I. xvii. 3 In eirth lang syne yair had been nothing than, Saif only vice.
a1774 R. Fergusson Poems (1785) 181 Hame-o'er langsyne you hae been blyth to pack.
1796 R. Burns Auld Lang Syne (chorus) in J. Johnson Scots Musical Museum V. 426 For auld lang syne my jo, For auld lang syne, We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet for auld lang syne.
1820 W. Scott Monastery I. iv. 142 Like what I hae seen langsyne, when we dwelt at Avenel.
1841 E. Bulwer-Lytton Night & Morning ii. vii A friend..of the happy lang syne.
1870 H. Smart Race for Wife ii. 27 In days lang syne.
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n.1666as lemmas