Aguillanneuf
(A-gui-l'an-nef/), an old cry used on Jan. 1 as a mode of rejoicing. It is derived from the Druids, who at the beginning of the year distributed the blessed mistletoe to the people, announcing at the same time the new year. In Brittany, Picardy, and Burgundy the children are said still to sing these words on New-year's-day.
The name was also given to a collection made in some dioceses on Jan. 1 to procure candles for the churches. Young persons of both sexes took part in it, and were apt to commit, even in the churches, all sorts of extravagances.' The Synod of Angers, in 1595, prohibited these proceedings within churches; but the custom still continued out of them until a later synod (1668) forbade the observance of it altogether.' See Moreri, who cites Thiers, Traiti des Jeux.
The Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature was edited by John McClintock and James Strong. It contains nearly 50,000 articles pertaining to Biblical and other religious literature, people, creeds, etc. It is a fantastic research tool for broad Christian study.
John McClintock was born October 27, 1814 in Philadelphia to Irish immigrants, John and Martha McClintock. He began as a clerk in his father's store, and then became a bookkeeper in the Methodist Book Concern in New York. Here he converted to Methodism and considered joining the ministry. McClintock entered the University of Pennsylvania in 1832 and graduated with high honors three years later. Subsequently, he was awarded a doctorate of divinity degree from the same institution in 1848.WikipediaRead More